Public appointment: Members reappointed to the NHS 24 Board

The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, Neil Gray MSP today announced the reappointments of David Howe and Carol Gillie as Members of the NHS 24 Board.

 

Members

David Howe currently works in the private sector leading an ESG management consultancy. He previously held senior executive roles at Microsoft, where he led large-scale digital and engineering programmes across global markets. With over 20 years of leadership experience, he has built a track record in driving transformation at the intersection of technology and organisational strategy. His expertise spans digital innovation, operational excellence, and sustainable growth. In his role as a Non-Executive Director, he brings strategic insight and governance experience to support NHS 24’s digital transformation and service delivery. 

 

Carol Gillie is Counter Fraud Champion on the NHS 24 Board as well as Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee, a member of the Integrated Governance and Performance and Planning Committees and previously served on the Staff Governance Committee. She worked for over 35 years in the NHS, gaining a breadth of experience in a number of areas including finance, capital planning, procurement, estates and facilities. She graduated from the University of Edinburgh with a degree in modern languages. Following completion of the NHS finance training scheme, she qualified as an Accountant (member of the Charter Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy). The majority of her career has been spent working in NHS Boards. She retired from the post of Director of Finance in 2020. 

 

Reappointments

These reappointments will be for 4 years and will run from 1 September 2025 to 31 August 2029.

These reappointments are regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner.

 

Remuneration

These reappointments are part-time and attract a remuneration of £14,352 for a time commitment of one day per week.

 

Other ministerial appointments

David Howe and Carol Gillie do 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.   

David Howe and Carol Gillie have had no political activity within the last five years.

 

Background

NHS 24 delivers a high quality online and out of hours telephone service providing access to health advice and information at any time across Scotland. Its core unscheduled care service handles successfully about 1.7 million calls out of hours each year, providing clinical advice and care when GP surgeries are closed, and people are too ill to wait until they re-open. Working with Health Boards and other partners NHS 24 also provides a range of other health information services to inform and support people in maintaining their health and managing ill health, including NHS Inform which provides the public with a wide range of online services including a health encyclopaedia and local services database.