Economy, Jobs and Fair Work Committee [Draft]

Meeting date: Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Official Report 336KB pdf

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Interests

Good morning, everybody. I am chairing because, allegedly, I am the oldest member of the committee. No comments on that, by the way—they still let me out at night, so do not worry. I will chair the meeting for the first two items on the agenda.

I welcome everybody to the first meeting of the Economy, Jobs and Fair Work Committee. I ask members to turn off all mobile devices, as they interfere with broadcasting.

No apologies have been received.

Agenda item 1 is a declaration of interests. I will go round the table clockwise to allow each member to make their declaration.

I will start. I am a part-owner of a business called Gil’s Motor Factors, which is now run by my son, Glen, and which distributes throughout Scotland to the motor trade. Some of the committee’s work might be related to that, so I declare an interest in that regard.

I am also a board member of a United Kingdom-wide organisation called Nationwide Independent Bodyshop Suppliers, a company that deals with all businesses that are involved in the business that I am in. I do not take any pay or receive any expenses for that, and I go to a meeting once a year.

Through the family business, I am a member of the Federation of Small Businesses. I have never attended any meetings, but I am very much a supporter of the organisation.

I do not think that anything else needs to be noted in my declaration, but if anyone is interested, my interests are in the public domain for everybody to see.

I have nothing to declare but, on a voluntary basis, I mention the work that I have been doing for the past few years with the Scottish Grocers Federation to highlight the impact of the convenience store sector on the Scottish economy. I receive no remuneration for that, but I think that it is important to promote the federation’s work.

I am director of my own company, Spontaneous Production, which is currently being wound up now that I have been elected. It dealt with oil and gas training programmes and video production work.

I have nothing to declare.

Professionally, my background is as a lawyer and, as such, I am a member of the Law Society of England and Wales. I was previously a partner of the London-based law firm Linklaters, from which I retired on 30 April. I no longer have any connections with that firm, and I have no other outside commitments.

With regard to share ownership, I own approximately 4 per cent of a private limited company registered in England that is involved in the private energy sector, primarily in relation to energy metering systems. The company has no business interests—and has no intention of having any business involvement—in Scotland. I have no control of or directorships in the company; I am merely a minority shareholder.

As far as heritable property is concerned, I own residential property in Scotland as an occupier and, in the past, as a landlord. With regard to investments, I have through my personal pension plan, which was started in 1996, funds under management by Equitable Life. I have no discretion in terms of the management or allocation of those funds, which will appear on the register of interests, and no decision-making capacity with regard to how investments are made.

I have no shareholdings or pecuniary interests, but I declare voluntarily that I am a member of the GMB trade union, Unite the Union, Friends of the Earth Scotland and the Co-operative Party.

In my capacity as a lawyer, I am director and 100 per cent shareholder of my own business, Trinity Kerr Ltd, which provides legal advice services. On that note, I am also a member of the Law Society of England and Wales and the Law Society of Scotland, and I am landlord of a property in Edinburgh.

I have no interests to declare.

I am an unremunerated director of Strathleven Regeneration, and I am also a member of the GMB and Unison.

I am a self-employed advocate and member of the Faculty of Advocates. I also own heritable domestic properties in Edinburgh and West Lothian from which I receive rentals. Finally, I hold ordinary shares in the Royal Bank of Scotland, further detail of which will be in the register of members’ interests.

I have no relevant interests to declare although, voluntarily, I declare that I am a chartered accountant and member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland.

Thank you very much for that.