Helen Eadie

Helen Stirling Eadie (7 March 1947 – 9 November 2013) was a Scottish Labour Co-operative politician who served as Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Cowdenbeath, previously Dunfermline East, from 1999 until her death in 2013.

Early life Helen Stirling Eadie was born in Stenhousemuir, near Falkirk. She attended Larbert Village School, Larbert High School and Falkirk Technical College before going on to read trade union studies at the London School of Economics.

Eadie was a member of Fife Regional Council before being elected the Scottish Parliament in 1999.

Member of the Scottish Parliament

When Labour was in power in the Scottish Executive, Eadie called for an end to tolls on the Forth Road Bridge.

After the May 2003 Scottish parliament election, Eadie strongly opposed the then Labour–Liberal Democrat coalition's agreed deal to introduce the single transferable vote (STV) proportional system for future local council elections. She said it was an example of "the tail wagging the dog" and "It's about one of the smallest parties in the parliament wanting to use the power that they have to try to force through issues that they want to see steamrollered through." In 2013, it emerged she was being treated for cancer at the Queen Margaret Hospital, following diagnosis at the end of October. She died on 9 November 2013.