About us
Members
- Malcolm Burr - Convener
- Peter Hessett
- Jim Doig
- Robert Nicol
- Andrew Kerr OBE
- Jim Savege
- Mark Adam
- Pippa Milne
- Kenneth Lawrie
Malcolm Burr - the Convener
Malcolm Burr, Chief Executive and Returning Officer of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, was appointed Convener of the Board in July 2018, taking over from Mary Pitcaithly OBE, the Board’s the first Convener.
Malcolm has been Chief Executive in Western Isles since November 2005. He was previously Assistant Chief Executive and Depute Returning Officer of Orkney Islands Council and began his career in Legal Services (including Elections) in Strathclyde Regional Council. Malcolm is a former Chair of SOLACE Scotland, the representative body for Local Government Chief Executives, and is currently a member of the First Minister’s Standing Council on Europe.
Malcolm hails from Edinburgh and has degrees in Law from the Universities of Edinburgh and Cambridge.
Peter Hessett
Peter Hessett was appointed to the EMB as a Returning Officer member from June 2024. He is Chief Executive and Returning Officer for West Dunbartonshire Council.
Peter started a legal career as a Trainee Solicitor with Renfrew District in 1993, being involved in elections since the beginning of his career and managing them since 2011. As a qualified Solicitor he worked for East Ayrshire Council before moving on to more senior roles at Renfrewshire Council and then West Dunbartonshire Council where, prior to his appointment as Chief Executive, he was Depute Returning Officer. Peter is a former President of The Society of Local Authority Lawyers and Administrators in Scotland.
Peter Hessett RO for West Dunbartonshire
Jim Doig - Vice Convener (ERO)
Jim qualified as a Chartered Surveyor in 1995 and after 6 years in private practice in North West England, joined the Assessor and Electoral Registration Officer for Dumfries & Galloway. He was appointed Assessor and Electoral Registration Officer in 2016.
He is a member of the Association of Electoral Administrators and holds the Certificate in Electoral Administration. Jim has been a member of the Scottish Assessors Association since 2008 and is currently the Vice Chair of the SAA Electoral Registration Committee.
In August 2023 Jim was appointed as Vice Convener (Electoral Registration Officer) of the EMB, to support the Convener and add resilience to the EMB's work.
Robert Nicol
Robert Nicol was appointed to the EMB as an Electoral Registration Officer representative in May 2024, He is Electoral Registration Officer for East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde and Renfrewshire.
Robert started his involvement with Electoral Registration as a Divisional Assessor and Assistant Electoral Registration Officer with Renfrewshire VJB in 2007 before becoming Depute Assessor and Electoral Registration Officer for Dunbartonshire Argyll and Bute VJB in 2013. He returned to Renfrewshire as Assessor and Electoral Registration Officer in 2021.
He is a member of the Association of Electoral Administrators and holds the Certificate in Electoral Administration and is currently Chair of the SAA Electoral Registration Committee.
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Andrew Kerr OBE
Andrew Kerr took up post as Chief Executive of the City of Edinburgh Council on 27 July 2015. He has previously been Chief Executive of Cornwall, Wiltshire and North Tyneside councils, and Chief Operating Officer in Cardiff.
A former international athlete, Andrew’s professional background is in Leisure and Sport and he was Director of Leisure and Culture at Birmingham Council (2000/2004) and Head of Participation at Sports Council for Wales for six years. Known for his work on Social capital, with an interest in developing communities, a reputation for his approach to change management and large scale joint ventures for economic benefit, he is one of the most experienced local government leaders working today.
In June 2021 Andrew was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, for services to the public sector.
Jim Savege - Vice Convener (RO)
Jim started his career training as a teacher in Liverpool before working in management consultancy across a range of sectors including defence and utilities. His career in local government spans nearly two decades with previous roles at Staffordshire County Council and Cumbria County Council.
Jim took up post as Chief Executive with Aberdeenshire Council in February 2015. He is Returning Officer for Aberdeenshire Council and Clerk to the Lieutenancy of Aberdeenshire.
Jim is Chair of the Scottish Resilience Partnership and a past chair of Solace Scotland.
In August 2023 Jim was appointed as Vice Convener (Returning Officer) of the EMB, to support the Convener and add resilience to the EMB's work.
Mark Adam
Mark qualified as a Chartered Surveyor in 1993 whilst working for the Grampian Assessor and was Depute Assessor & Electoral Registration Officer in Grampian from 2009 until he succeeded Ian Milton, himself a former member of the EMB,
as Assessor & Electoral Registration Officer in 2021. He is a member of the Association of Electoral Administrators and holds the Certificate in Electoral Administration. Mark has been a member of the Scottish Assessors Association since 2004 and is currently the secretary of the SAA Electoral Registration Committee.
Pippa Milne was appointed as Chief Executive of Argyll and Bute Council in November 2019. Prior to that Pippa was Executive Director of Development and Infrastructure. In that capacity With 28 years’ experience working for councils across the UK, Pippa brings with her wide ranging experience to take forward the organisation’s vision that Argyll and Bute is a place people choose to live, learn, work and do business.
As Chief Executive Pippa is responsible for providing a diverse range of public services with a dedicated team of about 4,000 people and her focus is on working in partnership to deliver the best possible outcomes for our communities. Pippa is passionate about Argyll and Bute’s potential and promotes the many and varied opportunities there are here whenever possible.
Pippa was appointed as an RO member of the EMB for a four year term from 1 September 2023.
Kenneth Lawrie
Kenneth is Chief Executive of Falkirk Council and is appointed as Returning Officer for elections to that local authority and for the UK Parliamentary constituency of Falkirk. For Scottish Parliamentary elections, Kenneth is Returning Officer for two constituencies, Falkirk East and Falkirk West. Prior to joining Falkirk as Chief Executive in August 2018 Kenneth had held senior posts at Dartford Borough Council in Kent and Scottish Borders Council before being appointed Chief Executive of Midlothian Council in September 2009.
In May 2019 Kenneth was appointed as Regional Returning Officer for the Electoral Region of Scotland for the final European Parliamentary Elections that would include the UK before the state left the EU. In that role he was responsible for the delivery of the election across the whole of Scotland, overseeing the nomination process, the work of the 32 Local Returning Officers and the collation and declaration of the final results.
Kenneth was appointed as a Returning Officer member of the EMB for a four year period from 1 November 2019.