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RT HON. HENRY MCLEISH (CHAIR) *Former First Minister of Scotland*	The Right Honourable Henry McLeish was a member of the Broadcasting Commission and was Chair of the Scottish Prisons Commission. During the last few years he has been visiting professor and lecturer at a number of universities in the US, teaching European Union studies and UK Government and Politics. He has advised the LEED programme of the OECD in Paris, the European foundation for the Improvement of Working and Living Conditions in Dublin and is a Fellow of Edinburgh University. After 30 years in elected office, Mr McLeish retired from public office in 2003 having been elected First Minister of Scotland in 2000, taking responsibility for Scotland’s emerging role on the European and World stage, leading official government missions internationally and implementing Scotland’s social and economic policies. He became a member of the Privy Council – an honour bestowed by Her Majesty the Queen - in the same year. As Minister for Devolution and Home Affairs at the Scottish Office from 1997 to 1999 he was instrumental in shaping Scotland’s first Parliament in almost 300 years.


PROFESSOR RICHARD KERLEY Professor of Management Queen Margaret University	Richard Kerley is currently Professor of Management at Queen Margaret University College, where he has worked since January 2003. He was previously at the University of Edinburgh and the Scottish Local Authorities Management Centre at the University of Strathclyde. He has also been a visiting scholar at Yale University. He is a Visiting Professor at the Institute for Technology and Management (ITM) Mumbai and the East Asia Institute of Management ESAB Singapore. Before entering academic life Richard worked in advertising, hospitality, and in prison education. Richard was a councillor in Edinburgh for eight years and chaired two committees. He also chaired the Scottish Executive Working Party on Renewing Local Democracy; the report of which was published in July 2000 and which was legislated for in June 2004 as the Local Governance Act. Richard is the author of various books, research papers, academic journals and numerous articles in the quality print media. His most recent publications include a book chapter on performance in public services, and journal articles on the management of urban car parking as an example of effective practice in public management and Single Outcome Agreements in local government. He also writes regularly for the quality and trade press and contributes to TV, radio and online news.


PAUL GRICE Clerk and Chief Executive The Scottish Parliament	In 1999, Paul Grice was appointed Clerk and Chief Executive of the Scottish Parliament. He is responsible for the overall management of the Scottish Parliament and advises the Presiding Officer, Committees and individual Members on the conduct of business. He also has overall responsibility for the new Holyrood Building Project. The parliament employs around 500 staff and has an annual budget of around £90M (including revenue and capital) Prior to this, Paul worked as Director of Implementation for the Scottish Parliament responsible for setting up parliamentary organisation and associated support systems. He has been a member of the Constitution Group with responsibility for the Referendum on establishing the Scottish Parliament and subsequently managing the Scotland Act which laid the constitutional framework. He previously worked for the Scottish Office on Housing and Regeneration policy and later heading the Management of Change Unit. Paul has also held the positions of principal working on housing policy and a review of London’s Royal Parks and Private Secretary to Virginia Bottomly. He has held roles in the Department of the Environment focusing on Local Government Finance and in the Department of Transport focusing on Bus Deregulation and Railways Policy. He is a graduate of Stirling University with a (Hons) Degree in Economics and Environmental Science


DR ALISON ELLIOT OBE Convenor SCVO and member of The Commission on the Future Delivery of Public Services	Alison Elliot’s work straddles the university, civil society and the church. Formerly a lecturer in psychology, she is currently an Honorary Fellow at New College, University of Edinburgh. In 2004 she became the first woman to be appointed Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. She is Convener of the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations and a Trustee of Community Service Volunteers. She was a member of the Commission on the Future Delivery of Public Services in Scotland.


BILL HOWAT Chair of The 'Howat Review' The Budget Performance Review for the Scottish Executive, 2007	Bill Howat retired as Chief Executive of Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar (Western Isles Council) in November 2005 and spent the next year leading the independent team that reviewed the (then) Scottish Executive Budget. Their report was published in May 2007 and much is still relevant. Before joining the Comhairle, Bill had a varied career covering 20 years as a civil servant in the Scottish Office/Executive, and 10 as an academic. His duties as a civil servant included central finance, local government finance and functions, legal aid, nature conservation, and European Structural Funds. His academic years included five years at the Planning Exchange as Principal researcher in economic/financial aspects of planning and five as a Lecturer in economics at the Glasgow College of Technology (now Glasgow Caledonian University). Since retiring Bill has been involved in a wide range work including the Review of SE Budgets, advising on public service reform in Northern Ireland, and various projects for councils and private sector bodies. He served as Hon Sec of Solace from 2009 – 2010. He also does voluntary work as Chair (now President) of Volunteer Development Scotland, chair of Forth Sector Development and member of the Forth Sector Board, and is a member of the award committee for the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service.


TIM ELLIS Head of Cabinet and Corporate Business Secretariat The Scottish Government	Tim has been Head of Cabinet and Corporate Business Secretariat (CCBS) since May 2011. CCBS forms part of the Office of the Permanent Secretary and is primarily responsible for managing the business of the Scottish Cabinet and the corporate governance of the Scottish Government. That role includes helping Ministers to develop and perform their constitutional role by supporting effective, collective decision-making; and providing the secretariat for the Scottish Government’s senior management team, the Strategic Board and its sub groups. Before May 2011, Tim was Head of Housing Investment Division, the part of the Scottish Government responsible for responsible for investment in developing new affordable housing. Prior to taking on his housing role, Tim spent his previous career in a number of strategic roles in both the Scottish Government and Whitehall.


JOHN EDWARD Director Scottish Council of Independent Schools	John Edward is the Director of the Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS). SCIS is the educational charity representing over 70 member independent schools in Scotland, which educate more than 32,000 children of mixed abilities from diverse backgrounds. The key aims are to provide information, advice and guidance to parents; advance education via curriculum development and the training of teachers; advise member schools about educational developments and legislation; and to communicate and negotiate with the Scottish Parliament, the Government, public and private bodies on behalf of the independent sector. John Edward is a Member of the Scottish Qualifications Authority Advisory Council. John Edward worked for eight years in Brussels; in Scotland Europa, the Scottish presence in the EU, and the European Policy Centre. From 2000 to 2003 he was Parliamentary Manager for Scottish Enterprise. John was Head of the UK office of the European Parliament in Edinburgh from 2003 to 2009. John Edward is a graduate of the University of St Andrews (MA), University of Glasgow (MPhil) and attended the Universitá per Stranieri, Siena, Italy.


JOHN MACGILL Director Morhamburn	What started out as a tentative step into being his own boss in 2005 has led to the creation of one of Scotland’s most respected public affairs and media consultancies. In 2010 his company Morhamburn became part of Edinburgh-based Pagoda PR. A journalist for 17 years, John spent 15 of those in broadcasting with the BBC, STV and Radio Forth and, despite the odd awkward moment pronouncing the Thai island of Phuket, managed to avoid an appearance on Auntie’s Bloomers. After spending time as a reporter and Producer on STV’s Scotland Today then an Editor on Radio Scotland’s flagship Good Morning Scotland programme, John left to enter the world of politics, firstly as Editor of Holyrood and then as Editor of The Parliament (the magazines of the Scottish and European Parliaments respectively). He left journalism for public policy after being appointed Managing Director of Grayling in Scotland. John has just stepped down as Treasurer (having previously been Convener) of the Association of Scottish Public Affairs (ASPA) and is also a member of the Board of the social care charity CrossReach.


ALASTAIR ROSS Director of Public Policy McGrigors and Convenor, Association for Scottish Public Affairs	Alastair is director of McGrigors Public Policy, and is based in our Edinburgh office. An Honours graduate in Politics and History at Aberdeen University, he was a reporter at The Scotsman Publications with the Edinburgh Evening News before moving into public relations consultancy advising a range of private and public sector clients. He joined McGrigors from HBOS plc where he was Associate Director of Media Relations and then Government and Community Relations Executive. Alastair has extensive and award-winning experience in public affairs including corporate affairs, social inclusion, economic issues, and corporate social responsibility. He advises clients on the strategic and commercial implications of Parliamentary Bills, regulation, legislative consultations, and policy proposals emerging from Parliament and Government at UK, Scottish and local authority levels. He also advises clients on advocacy, communication, and engagement with stakeholder groups, public officials and elected representatives. Alastair is Convener of the Association for Scottish Public Affairs, a Director of the Centre for Scottish Public Policy, and an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations.


MANDY RHODES Editor Holyrood Magazine	Award winning journalist with more than 25 years experience in print, radio and broadcast. As a campaigning journalist, Mandy has been at the forefront of breaking stories related to increasing social inequalities and in her role as editor of Holyrood magazine she has continued with a personal commitment to raise the profile of issues that many still find uncomfortable.


LEE BRIDGES FormerCommittee and Chamber Clerk PPS to the Presiding Officer and Head of Strategy at Holyrood, now working at the House of Commons	Born and raised in Grimsby, Lincolnshire Lee worked in the NHS until 1998 when he was appointed as a clerk in the first tranche of staff establishing the Scottish Parliament. In his 11 years at Holyrood he was a Committee Clerk, the Clerk to the Parliamentary Bureau, the Principal Private Secretary to the Presiding Officer and latterly Head of the Parliament’s Strategy & Development Office. Lee joined the House of Commons in January 2010 and is currently working on the House’s Savings Programme.


RORY MAIR Chief Executive COSLA	Rory Mair was appointed as Chief Executive of COSLA in April 2002. This was an important appointment for COSLA following the fundamental review of its purpose and structures. Prior to this appointment, Rory had spent five years as Director of Aviemore Projects for Highlands & Islands Enterprise. This post was designed to create the circumstances to re-establish Aviemore as a tourism destination of international quality prior to the establishment of the forthcoming Cairngorm National Park. Previous to this, but following local government re-organisation in 1996, Rory spent a short time as Strategic Director for Social Strategy with Fife Council. This post sought to pull together as one cohesive unit the major Council services such as Housing, Social Work, Education and Leisure. Before local government re-organisation, Rory was appointed Chief Executive of Ross & Cromarty District Council and was, at the time, the youngest ever Chief Executive in British local government. Prior to this, Rory spent 10 years in a variety of less senior local government posts. Rory has a partner, a young daughter and three grown-up sons. Rory, participates in all sports, particularly cycling, golf and squash.


DONALD ANDERSON Director PPS Scotland	Donald has over 20 years of experience in high level communications and as a key figure in the growth of Edinburgh in his previous roles as convener of economic development, VisitScotland Board Member and Council Leader. Donald has been involved in most of the major developments in Edinburgh in recent years, including: the Exchange Financial District, Edinburgh Park and (in happier times) the RBS Headquarters at Gogar. Donald also led the communications for the G8 Summit which was recognised by winning the Chartered Institute for Public Relations in Scotland’s Grand Prix Award. At PPS Donald has contributed to planning consents for developments securing thousands of jobs for Scotland. Donald has led on PPS support for Sainsbury’s Scottish investment programme, the largest private sector investor in Scotland in 2010. Donald has also handled complex strategic issues for a range of clients.


MICHAEL CROW Head of UK Regional Public Affairs RBS	Michael is the Head of UK Regional Public Affairs for RBS. His job involves engaging politicians on a whole range of matters, developing and implementing strategies around reputational issues concerning RBS and providing political intelligence internally. He also engages with media and press representatives. Before arriving at RBS Michael was a broadcast journalist for 15 years where he worked as Scottish TV's Westminster Correspondent and then Political Correspondent, presenting many of STV's flagship programmes. In 2009 he moved to the Conservative Party as Director of Strategy and Communications in Scotland. Here he worked closely with David Cameron and Annabel Goldie and their Shadow Cabinet teams in the run up to the UK General Election.


COLIN MACKAY Political Editor Bauer Media Scotland	Colin Mackay is Political Editor of Bauer Media Scotland. Previously he worked for the BBC around Scotland and in Belfast. After the first Scottish Parliament election Colin took up his current post covering Holyrood for Radio Clyde, Forth, Northsound, Tay, Moray Firth, Westsound and Border all part of the Bauer Media group. He is also a regular political commentator on television and hosts the annual Politician of the Year awards. Colin was IRN reporter of the year in 2007 and his election coverage has won two gold medals at the New York Radio Festival.


CHARLES FLETCHER MBE Editor Caledonia Media and Parliamentary Correspondent, SCB Network	Charles Fletcher MBE is an award-winning broadcaster and journalist with 20 years' experience of media in the UK and around the world. Editor of Caledonia Media, he is the author of an international series of ethical guidelines for journalists. He is the Chair and Parliamentary Correspondent for the SCB Network of community radio stations across Scotland. Charles leads courses in radio news production in Glasgow and Edinburgh; and delivers media training, workshops and events worldwide.