Glasgow Cathcart by-election 2005

' A drunken Labour peer, who endangered lives by deliberately starting a fire in a luxury hotel, was jailed for 16 months yesterday.' Auslan Cramb in the Daily Telegraph, 23 rd September 2005.

Local boy who fell from grace

From the Dundee Evening Telegraph 22 nd September 2005

LABOUR peer Mike Watson was today jailed for 16 months for starting a fire and endangering lives at an upmarket hotel.

Lord Watson (56) admitted setting a curtain ablaze after a heavy drinking session at the Scottish Politician of the Year awards ceremony in Edinburgh last year.

Three times married, Lord Watson was born in Cambuslang, but brought up in the village of Invergowrie.

Educated at Dundee High School, he went on to Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, where he graduated in 1974 with a BA in economics and industrial relations.

Ironically, he also has an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Abertay University.

Watson entered the labour movement after leaving Heriot-Watt and worked for various unions.

He was elected to Westminster in 1989 to represent Glasgow Central. But in 1997 his seat disappeared following boundary changes, and he lost a controversial candidate selection contest to Mohammad Sarwar for the Glasgow Govan seat during the 1997 election.

He was made life peer Lord Watson of Invergowrie in compensation, and then successfully stood for the Scottish Parliament in 1999, representing Glasgow Cathcart. He resigned from the seat after admitting fire-raising at the beginning of this month.

Watson has also quit as a director of Dundee United Football Club.

He has been a long-time friend of club chairman Eddie Thompson, who took over at Tannadice three years ago soon after appointed Watson to the board.

When he quit the board, Mr Thompson said, 'On behalf of the club and the board of directors, I would like to thank Mike for his contribution to Dundee United as a director over the past two years and for his support for the club as a fan for over 40 years.'

Today, Mr Thompson said he did not feel it appropriate to comment further.