Public appointment: Chair appointed to Scottish Water

The Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition today announced the appointment of Deirdre Michie as Chair of Scottish Water.

Chair

Deirdre Michie is a senior leader and business executive in the global energy industry with significant experience in both executive and non-executive roles including as CEO of Offshore Energies UK, a role she held for almost 8 years. Prior to that, Deirdre worked in senior leadership roles within Shell across a range of different areas from commercial to supply chain, communications and change management. During her tenure at 0EUK, Deirdre worked collaboratively across the industry and signed the landmark North Sea Transition Deal with the UK Government, aimed at helping to deliver UK net zero by 2050. Deirdre was awarded an OBE and a Fellowship from the North East Scotland College as well as an Honorary Doctorate from Robert Gordon University. Deirdre is a Burgess of Aberdeen and a member of the Board of Opportunity North East.

Appointment

This appointment will be for 4 years and will run 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2028.

This appointment is regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner.

Remuneration

This appointment is part-time and attracts a remuneration of £105,086 per annum for a time commitment of 2.5 days per week.

Other ministerial appointments

Deirdre Michie does not hold any other 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.   

Deirdre Michie has had no political activity within the last five years.

Background

Scottish Water is a public corporation established by the Water Industry (Scotland) Act 2002. It is accountable to the Scottish Government for the provision of all public water and sewerage services to more than 2.56 million households and around 153,000 businesses in Scotland. It is the fourth largest provider of water and sewerage services in the UK, with a workforce of more than 4000 and an annual turnover of roughly £1.4 billion. Its retail subsidiary Business Stream operates in the competitive retail market for non-household customers in Scotland and England.

The Water Industry Commission for Scotland, the independent economic regulator of Scottish Water, recently published its Final Determination for the next regulatory period 2021-27 setting the demanding financial limits within which Scottish Water must deliver the Objectives set by Ministers. Those Objectives include that it should make progress towards the achievement of net zero emissions by 2040. As part of its determination the Commission has also set out a radical new approach to regulation through ethical business practices which create new expectations for how Scottish Water works with its stakeholders and customers. The Commission will monitor and report on Scottish Water’s performance.