He gained a BA in Sociology and Social Policy from the London School of Economics and a MEd from the University of Glasgow.
In 1979, he tried to win the Labour nomination for the Strathclyde West seat in the European Parliament, but he came third at the selection meeting, behind Valerie Friel and John Carty.
[1] He was not replaced as the MP for Clydebank and Milngavie because constituency boundaries in Scotland were redrawn before the 2005 election.
This was to bring the number of MPs per head of population in line with the ratio in England (Scotland had previously been over-represented).
He was awarded an honorary DSc by the University of Greenwich in July 2009.