He grew up in Edinburgh. Although as a teenager he was too young to vote in the Scottish referendum of 1979 he feels this sparked his interest in politics and representation. He worked for Electrolux. He lived and worked in Edinburgh until 1999 when he and his wife moved to Tore in the Black Isle. In 1999 he founded a company, teclan ltd, in Inverness, which delivers digital marketing services for online retailers and ecommerce merchants.