David Russell was born in 1962 in the mining village of
Quarter, South Lanarkshire, where he grew up
working class. He attended Quarter Primary School and
Hamilton Grammar School, also spending time working a weekend job at his local farm, before attending
Motherwell Technical College where he attained a certificate in civil engineering. In the same period, Russell served as a director at Clyde Valley Developments Limited, a hotel operator which was liquidated in 2015, and Ptarmigan Estates, which was acquired as a
shelf company from an Edinburgh-based corporate services provider. Russell served as the
deputy lieutenant of Lanarkshire under
Susan Haughey. == Political career ==