Gordon McMaster
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Gordon James McMaster (13 February 1960 – 28 July 1997) was a British politician.
Born in Johnstone, Scotland, he served as Labour Member of Parliament for Paisley South from a by-election in 1990 until his death. McMaster had previously been leader of Renfrew District Council. He served as an opposition whip in opposition but was dismissed when his health broke down. McMaster began to suffer chronic fatigue which he ascribed to the effects of organophosphate chemicals which he used in his previous career as a horticulturalist; he also began drinking heavily.
When the Labour Party came into power following the 1997 general election, McMaster was not offered a government post and his drinking became even more severe. He committed suicide through inhaling car exhaust fumes in his garage, leaving behind a note in which he accused two fellow Labour MPs of having made his life difficult. Most commentators understood this as implying that McMaster was accusing them of spreading rumours of his homosexuality.