Public appointment: Chair reappointed to the National Library of Scotland Board

The Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture, Angus Robertson MSP, today announced the reappointment of Sir Drummond Bone as Chair of the National Library of Scotland.

 

Chair

Sir Drummond Bone was educated at Ayr Academy, Glasgow University and Balliol College, Oxford. He began his career as a professor of English, noted particularly for his work on Byron. After 20 years at the University of Glasgow, where latterly he was Senior Vice-Principal, he became Principal at Royal Holloway University of London, Vice-Chancellor at Liverpool and Master of Balliol College from which he retired in 2018. Sir Drummond was President of University UK and Chair of the UK Libraries Research Reserve Project as well as Chair of the Liverpool Capital of Culture Company, Vice-Chair of the Northern Way and Chair of its Science and Innovation Committee, sat on the CBI’s Technology and Innovation Committee and has been a consultant to many organisations involved in international Higher Education. Sir Drummond is currently Chair of the Wordsworth Trust. He has MA Degrees from Glasgow and Oxford Universities, a D.Univ from Glasgow and a D.Ed from Edinburgh, as well as a number of Honorary degrees in literature. He is an Honorary Fellow of Balliol College.

 

Reappointment

The reappointment is for three months from 1 October 2025 to 31 December 2025.

The reappointment is regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner.

 

Remuneration and time commitment

Appointments to the National Library of Scotland are not remunerated. The time commitment is up to four days per month.

 

Other Ministerial appointments

Sir Drummond 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.

Sir Drummond has had no political activity within the last five years.

 

Background

The National Library of Scotland is the guardian of the printed and recorded memory of Scotland, held on behalf of the nation.  It fulfils a statutory role as one of the nation’s most significant cultural and research organisations and operates within the context of the Scottish Government’s national outcomes and strategic objectives, including public service reform.

The Library is a major European research library and one of the world’s leading centres for the study of Scotland and the Scots. It is the largest library in Scotland with over 34 million items and is one of the six Legal Deposit Libraries entitled to claim a copy of every printed and electronic work published in the UK and Ireland under the terms of the Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2013.  The Library’s collections include rare books, manuscripts, maps, photographs, music, moving image and official publications.