Ofcom advisory appointments in Scotland for Leonard and Mckay

A FORMER BBC producer who now operates her own video production company, plus the Scottish chair of the Institute of Directors, have both been appointed to a Scotland-only committee that advises the broadcasting regulators, Ofcom.

The watchdog has today announced the appointment of two new members of its advisory committee for Scotland: Liz Leonard and Ian Mckay.

Says Ofcom, in a media release: “Ofcom has established an advisory committee for each nation of the UK. These committees offer information and advice to Ofcom on aspects of its work, and of communications in general, which are of particular importance to each nation.”

Adds Ofcom about each of them:

“Liz worked in the public and charity sectors, before joining a commercial radio station in Nottingham, Trent FM, as a producer/presenter. She then moved to the BBC where she worked for 16 years, as producer and then series producer.

“Liz left the BBC in 2009 to set up her own audio and video production company, LizLeonardMedia, in Glasgow. Liz now works for a variety of clients, including Strathclyde University, Antenna International and Canongate Publishers, as well as the BBC. At her last staff job at the BBC, Liz was responsible for media literacy and digital participation throughout Scotland and currently she is a member of the Cross Party Group on Digital Participation at the Scottish Parliament.

“Liz has two non-remunerative roles: as a director of the Scottish Refugee Council and as a committee member for Scottish Women in Business. She also contributes regularly to RNIB’s Insight Radio, for the blind and partially-sighted.”

And about Mckay:

“Ian is Scottish chair of the Institute of Directors and owner of a consultancy firm, Otherhand Ltd, which specialises in high-level facilitation and mediation in Scotland. Ian was previously the director of the Royal Mail Group in Scotland, and held senior positions with the Educational Institute of Scotland and at Stevenson College Edinburgh.

“Ian is currently chair of the Board of Edinburgh College, the largest Further Education college in Scotland, and a board member at Lothian Buses plc where he chairs the Remuneration Committee.

“Prior to his role as IoD chair, Ian was a long-standing member of the Scottish Council of the CBI and the Executive Committee of the Scottish Council for Development and Industry. Ian also served as a member of the UK NHS Pay Review Body from 2006 to 2012 and has in the past been a board member at the Scottish Business Crime Centre, the Centre for Confidence and Well-Being, the Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature Trust and Arts & Business in Scotland.”