Mike Pringle was born in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia) on 25th December 1945. Educated at the Edinburgh Academy he initially worked as a banker with the Royal Bank. He qualified with the Scottish Institute of Bankers (Intermediate & Final) and in 1974 formed his own business which ran the Flour Power chain of bakeries in Edinburgh until 1989.

First elected as Morningside's first non Conservative Councillor for many years in 1992 he has represented the area in the District and Regional Councils and was elected as Liberal Democrat MSP for Edinburgh South in 2003 with a majority of 158 votes. He was re-elected with an increased majority in 2007. Mike is married to Maggie with two grown up sons.