The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport today announced the appointments of Allan Rennie and Stephen McAllister as Member of Forth Valley NHS Board.

Members

Allan Rennie worked as a journalist on a variety of newspapers including the Stirling Observer, and edited the Sunday Mail and Daily Record.  Latterly, he was Managing Director of Media Scotland responsible for two national titles, Business Insider magazine, an events division and 17 regional newspapers.  As the former head of the nation’s largest publisher, Allan’s brings a wealth of communication and management knowledge to the role.  He managed a diverse portfolio of brands with a focus on people, performance and partnership.  Allan also ran campaigns with charities such as CHAS and partnered with the Scottish Government on the Scottish Health Awards.  He is looking forward to working with executives and health professionals at a critical time as NHS Forth Valley strives to improve health care services for 288,000 people in central Scotland.  Allan said: “I am delighted to be appointed to this important role and look forward to supporting NHS Forth Valley in delivering quality, inclusive, care.”

Stephen McAllister is a former senior Police Officer, with extensive experience in leadership, governance and performance management.  During his career, Stephen was a Police Hostage and Crisis Negotiator, which allowed him to develop excellent active listening skills and influencing skills.  Stephen was the Police Divisional Commander in Forth Valley prior to retiring and as such has a good perspective on the delivery of a unitary service across three local authorities and a firm understanding of the physical and social geography of the area that Forth Valley Health Board covers.  Since leaving Police Scotland, he has built up non-executive board experience in both the voluntary and public sector and as a consultant in mental health improvement and negotiation.  Stephen hopes to bring these various strands of his Police career and post police experience to the benefit of Forth Valley Health board and community it serves.

Appointments

The appointments will be for four years and will run from 1^st January 2019 to
31^st  December 2022.

The appointments are regulated by the Commissioner for Ethical Standards in Public Life in Scotland.

Remuneration

The appointments are part-time and attract a remuneration of £8,416 per annum for a time commitment of one day per week.

Other Ministerial Appointments

Mr McAllister is a Member of the Golden Jubilee Foundation Board for Scotland, for which he receives remuneration of £8,251 per annum, for a time commitment of one day per week.  He is also a Member of the Risk Management Authority, for which he receives remuneration of £210.12 per day, for a time commitment of upto 15 days per annum.

Mr Rennie does not hold any other ministerial public appointments.

Political Activity

All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process.  However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees’ political activity within the last five years (if there is any to be declared) to be made public.

Mr Rennie and Mr McAllister have had no political activity within the last five years.

Background

NHS Forth Valley is responsible for meeting the health needs of around 300,000 people living in Forth Valley, and provides a comprehensive range of primary, community-based and acute hospital services for populations covering a geographic area from Killin and Tyndrum in the North and Strathblane and Bo’ness in the South.