Queen Elizabeth Memorial Committee – Scotland Legacy Group: terms of reference

The Queen Elizabeth Memorial Committee (QEMC) has been established by the UK Government and Royal Household to develop, consult and advise on a national memorial to Queen Elizabeth, to mark her extraordinary 70 year reign and life of public service. The committee will consider options for both a permanent memorial and national legacy programme. 

The location of the national memorial site was announced in September 2024 as St James’s Park, London, incorporating the area adjacent to The Mall at Marlborough Gate, and land surrounding the pathway down to the lake, including the Blue Bridge. The committee is expected to report final recommendations for the design of the memorial to the Prime Minister and His Majesty The King in 2026. 

The UK Government have confirmed that additional funding will be made available to contribute towards devolved nations’ own unique memorial projects should they wish to develop them. 

The legacy programme, that will be UK wide, will continue to be developed by the QEMC in parallel. 

The QEMC Scotland Legacy Group was established in April 2025 to act as a mechanism to manage Scotland’s communication with the QEMC in order to engage with the memorial project and UK wide legacy programme; including how to develop proposals for both elements based on local engagement. 

Membership 

• Dr Joseph Morrow, The Right Honourable the Lord Lyon King of Arms (Chair)
• Dr Anna Keay OBE; Member of the Queen Elizabeth Memorial Committee, and Director of the Landmark Trust
• Professor Chandrika Kaul, Professor of Modern History, University of St Andrews
• Lt Col (retired) Johnny Stewart, Lord Lieutenant of Clackmannanshire
• Leonie Bell, Director of V and A Dundee
• Anne Lyden, Director General, National Galleries of Scotland
• Helen Webster, Deputy Director for Cabinet, Parliament and Governance and Secretary for Commissions, Scottish Government

Membership of the Scotland Legacy Group will be kept under review and may change over time as work on any Scottish memorial and the engagement with the UK wide Legacy programme progresses, in order to ensure membership remains relevant and current.

Relevant experts or SG policy leads may be invited to attend meetings to provide input in relation to specific elements of the memorial or legacy programmes as needed. 

Role of the group 

Remit 

• to make recommendations to the First Minister for his onward conferral to The King for any fitting permanent memorial project within Scotland for Queen Elizabeth. 
• to bring together specialist expertise and subject matter experts to advise the group as required
• 3to develop and agree timescales for any Scottish memorialisation programme and to ensure it progresses in line with those agreed timelines, aligning as far as is possible with plans for UK wide memorial project
• with respect to any permanent memorial in Scotland, to engage with key sectors and the wider public, to ensure views and ideas are captured and activity is coordinated
• to advise the First Minister as required on the mechanisms and propriety for augmenting any central resource provided by the UK Government for the physical memorial in Scotland including through private donations and/or crowdsourcing
• to liaise with the QEMC to ensure that the UK wide Legacy programme is developed based on local engagement in Scotland and with due recognition of the existing funding and community development landscape and infrastructure
• to oversee appropriate risk mitigation measures as they relate to the development of the memorialisation and legacy proposals

It will be for the Scottish Government and the Royal Household to consider and take forward the implementation of the recommendations, coordinated through the Secretariat, and to ensure the programme to deliver any permanent memorial is delivered in line with value for money principles and good practice. 

Term 

This terms of reference is effective from April 2025 and continues until the completion of the recommendations or agreement by the group that it is no longer needed. 

Roles and responsibilities 

The members of the group will commit to: 

• aiming to attend all scheduled group meetings or, if they are unable to do so, ensuring relevant advice and actions are taken forward before the meeting and fed into the secretariat
• championing the group’s work with their networks/the group/organisation/sector they are representing and raising awareness as appropriate with their networks of any actions they need to take
• where relevant, seeking feedback before or after group meetings from their networks/the group/organisation/sector to gather information in order to inform the group’s discussions; 
• respecting each other’s views and working to find solutions where disagreements arise

Meetings 

All meetings will be chaired by Dr Joseph Morrow. Decisions will be made by consensus. 

The SG will act as secretariat. Meeting agendas and minutes will be provided by staff from the Protocol and Honours Unit. This includes:

preparing agendas and supporting papers 
preparing meeting notes and information 

The group may need to hold two or three initial meetings fairly close together but should then be able to move to less regular meetings until most or all recommendations have been implemented or are in progress (likely quarterly or biannual). 

Accountability, governance and support 

The group is not established on a statutory basis. It is therefore not subject to the formal public appointments process. However, group members should declare to the Chair if they have a conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest in relation to any aspect of the group’s remit; if necessary, they may be asked not to participate in sections of meetings discussing particular activity. 

Participation in the group will not be remunerated. 

In the event that any group member is asked to speak to the press about or relating to the work of the group, they should ensure they make clear to the journalist whether they are speaking as a representative of the group or in another capacity. If they wish to speak as a representative of the group, they should agree this beforehand with the Chair (or if the Chair is unavailable with the group secretariat). 

The group’s first meeting will be in person in Edinburgh. Thereafter, meetings will primarily take place online through Microsoft Teams. If the group wishes to meet in person, a Scottish Government / Court of Lord Lyon venue may be used. Any expenses such as travel and subsistence will be paid at normal Scottish Government rates, unless this is already covered by attendees’ regular travel and subsistence arrangements. 

Amendment, modification or variation 

This terms of reference may be amended, varied or modified in writing after consultation and agreement by members.