A Renfrewshire councillor has paid tribute to former first minister Alex Salmond, describing him as a “friend” and “mentor”, after his sudden passing at the age of 69.

The ex-MP and MSP, who led Scotland from 2007 to 2014, fell ill while attending a conference in North Macedonia on Saturday.

Salmond, who was twice leader of the SNP, is survived by his wife Moira, who he had been married to for more than 40 years.

Councillor Andy Doig, an independent representative for Johnstone North, Kilbarchan, Howwood and Lochwinnoch, said he and his wife Councillor Audrey Doig were “very sad” to hear of Salmond’s death.

Cllr DoigCllr Doig (Image: Renfrewshire Council)

He added: “I knew Alex for 43 years as both a friend, mentor and fellow patriot.

“We last talked in Paisley Abbey around a month or so ago at the funeral of the late Iain Lawson.

“Alex joked that the prospect of me holding the balance of power in Renfrewshire was ‘scary’.

“Alex was around seven years older than me and we met through the SNP 79 Group, a left-wing faction which challenged the SNP leadership in the early 80s and stressed the importance of winning the Labour vote over.

“Eventually we settled down and when Alex was SNP leader in the 1990s I served under him as assistant national secretary of the SNP from 1992-96.

“I learned three key lessons in politics from Alex. Firstly, the importance of hard work and persistence.

“It is very true that most things worth having do not come easily and while Alex was described by some as a hard taskmaster to work with, he pushed himself to the limits, and never asked anyone to do something that he himself was not willing to do.

“Secondly, the importance of a sense of humour. Alex taught me that being strongly principled did not mean you had to leave your sense of humour at the door, in fact, humour is the best tool to make a political point.

“Thirdly, always try and play the ball and not the man. Avoiding personal attacks meant that Alex had a range of friends across the political spectrum.”

Salmond was leader of the SNP for two spells, the first from 1990 to 2000 and the second from 2004 to 2014.

He resigned as first minister following the Scottish independence referendum in 2014 as voters opted to remain in the United Kingdom by 55 to 45 per cent.

In 2021, he launched the Alba Party, an alternative pro-independence party, which he led until his death.