Mr Browne was always tipped to rise quickly through party ranks

Part of the 1997 intake, Mr Browne was close to the late Donald Dewar serving as his parliamentary private secretary during his final year as Scottish secretary.

After the 2001 election, he was appointed a parliamentary secretary to the Northern Ireland Office.

And in the June 2003 reshuffle he was made work and pensions minister.

Child laws

BBC Scotland's political correspondent, Glenn Campbell, said: "Serious, thorough, careful. Mr middle of the road. These are the words that seem to sum up Des Browne.

"If that makes him sound like a typical Scottish solicitor, then that's because he probably is.

"His background, though, is working class. He was born and bred in Ayrshire, where he attended St. Michael's Academy in Kilwinning.

"He is a qualified advocate who specialised in child and family law and was involved in high profile cases including the Orkney child sex abuse case.

"His legal firm McCluskey-Browne, which bears his name, still operates from an office in Kilmarnock, the town he represents in the Commons.

"Friends describe him as 'hard-working' and 'a safe pair of hands'.

"Fellow advocate, Gordon Jackson QC, has known him for nearly 30 years. He believes Des Browne has a "natural inclination to be a power behind the throne" and will have to adjust to life in the firing line as immigration minister.

"The Labour MSP, Margaret Jamieson, who also represents Kilmarnock and Loudon, describes him as 'a family man' who always gives 'a hundred and ten percent'.

New job

"That commitment extends to his support for Celtic football club. Like many Scottish Labour MPs, he is a huge fan and attends matches with his wife and two children, who all have season tickets."

Mr Browne's new job follows the resignation of Beverley Hughes who quit saying she had unwittingly misled Parliament over her knowledge of suspected Eastern European visa scam.

The Tories had accused the Home Office of approving some visa claims despite warnings they were backed by forged documents.

Loyal

His early contributions in the Commons were largely on social security reform and the Child Support Agency.

Mr Browne also made use of his expertise on human rights law to support the incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) into UK law.

Articulate and loyal, he was always tipped to rise quickly in the party ranks.

He will be replaced as work and pensions minister by Liverpool Wavertree MP Jane Kennedy, currently a Northern Ireland Minister.

She in turn hands over in Belfast to Brent North MP Barry Gardiner, her parliamentary private secretary.