INDEPENDENT, non-party business group Scottish Business UK (SBUK) has announced the addition of Kenneth MacKenzie, Pamela Nash and Bill Toner as the newest members of its Advisory Council.
The appointments further strengthen the formidable group of leaders from business, politics economics, academia and journalism that has been brought together to support the business case for keeping Scotland in the UK.
Welcoming the appointments, SBUK founder and chairman Robert D. Kilgour said:
“I am delighted to welcome leaders of the calibre of Ken, Pamela and Bill to SBUK’s Advisory Council. Their input comes at a vital time for businesses in Scotland worried the ongoing campaign to partition the Union will only block recovery in the face of Covid-19 when we badly need all parts of the UK to be working together.”
Kenneth MacKenzie is founder and chief executive of Target Fund Managers Ltd, a Stirling-based business focussed on senior living, with clients and stakeholders primarily located in England. Born and brought up in Inverness he trained as a chartered accountant in Aberdeen, and has worked in Inverness, Aberdeen and in the US. He has been focussed on senior living for the last 18 years, including the creation of Target’s client funds as well as overseeing fundraising and investor liaison for Target Healthcare REIT, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Commenting on his appointment Kenneth said:
“It has always seemed strange to me that we Scots would raise barriers with our natural partners, and investors across the UK with whom we share language, values and have a shared culture and history. Creating distance with any partner or investor is a recipe for dissonance and discord. And lower benefits for all. We are continually engaged in the care market across the United Kingdom and the last thing we need is more complexity and confusions from our politicians.”
Pamela Nash is chief executive of Scotland in Union, the campaign for Scotland to remain in the UK formed in 2017, which now boasts more than 32,000 registered supporters. Previously Pamela served as the Labour MP for Airdrie and Shotts from 2010-2015. As the youngest MP she was Baby of the House and served on the Scottish Affairs Committee and Shadow Scotland team. She led campaigning in her constituency for Scotland to stay in the UK in the lead up to the 2014 referendum.
Pamela said:
“As a political campaigner, over the years many business owners across Scotland have expressed to me their concerns about the SNP’s campaign for Scotland to leave the UK. Businesses are at the forefront of efforts to rebuild our economy and create jobs, and the last thing that employers need is further uncertainty. I have been supportive of the work of SBUK since its establishment as it provides the support and safety in numbers to allow business owners to make their voice heard and make clear that Scotland is better off in the UK. I am delighted to join the Advisory Council.”
Bill Toner is Chief Executive of Royal Warrant-holding, national catering company, CH&CO. A proud Scot, Bill spent his early career learning the hospitality trade in Scotland and he rapidly moved up the corporate ladder with Gardner Merchant. He relocated to London with the company in the 1990s but has maintained strong links with Scotland ever since running businesses with strong Scottish presences working with clients in business and industry, education and the offshore sector.
Bill commented:
“I have the great pleasure of managing a UK business that by March this year employed over 11,000 people and understand how valuable Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland working together contributed to our success. The hospitality sector has been crippled by Covid-19 but as it targets recovery, I feel even more passionately than ever that Scotland should remain focused on creating and protecting jobs. Each political body owes it to the great British people to work together to get through these unprecedented difficult times.”