John Allan Stewart (1 June 1942 – 7 December 2016) was a Scottish Conservative politician and Scottish Office minister.^[1][2][3]

Stewart was born on 1 June 1942 in North Fife.^[1] He attended Bell Baxter High School in Cupar.^[1] He then studied at St. Andrews University and Harvard University, where he obtained a first class degree.^[1]

He was a lecturer in Political Economy at St. Andrews before standing unsuccessfully for the Dundee East constituency in 1970.^[1] He was briefly a councillor in the London Borough of Bromley in the mid-1970s. In the 1970s, he also acted as the Secretary of the Confederation of British Industry.^[3]

He was elected MP for East Renfrewshire in 1979.^[3] His maiden speech as an MP was in support of a motion to repeal the Scotland Act 1978, which would have established a new devolved Scottish Assembly.^[3] He served on the Scottish Affairs Select Committee for 2 years.^[3] He continued as MP for the East Refrewshire area in its successor Eastwood from 1983 until 1997.^[1] He served two periods as Under-Secretary of State for Scotland at the Scottish Office from 1981 to 1986, and from 1990 to 1995.^[3] He was responsible initially for health, home affairs and environment at the Scottish Office.^[3] After 1983, he was responsible for industry and education at the Scottish Office until he left the position in 1986.^[3] One of his final acts, while responsible for education in Scotland, was to order the phased closure of Leith Nautical College in 1986.^[4]

From 1990, he assumed responsibility for the community charge at the Scottish Office.^[3] He was described politically as an advocate of Free market ideas and a supporter of Thatcherism ideology.^[3]

Stewart was forced to resign his ministerial post after an incident in February 1995, when he brandished a pickaxe at demonstrators who were protesting at the construction of the M77 motorway.^[5][6][1] He was subsequently fined £200^[3] by the Paisley Sheriff Court for breach of the peace and was forced to give up his position in the Scottish Office.^[1]

In March 1997, Stewart was hospitalised, in Dykebar Hospital, Paisley, after suffering a nervous breakdown^[3] and due to accusations about his personal life.^[7][8] He stood down, not seeking re-election to Parliament in the general election held on 1 May that year, and subsequently retired altogether from politics. Stewart died in December 2016 at the age of 74.^[9]

Stewart was married to a woman named Susie and they had one son, Jack, and one daughter, Rosa.^[3][1] It was reported that he had an affair with a woman named Catherine Knight, however he remained married to his wife until his death.^[1] It was reported late in his career that he had a serious problem with alcohol and participated in the Alcoholics Anonymous program.^[1] He was an active member of the British Hedgehog Preservation Society.^[3]