FOUR prominent figures in Scottish public, political and business life have received knighthoods in this year's Queen's Birthday Honours
Glasgow entrepreneur William Haughey; former Holyrood Presiding Officer George Reid; veteran Liberal Democrat Malcolm Bruce MP; and Professor James McDonald, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Strathclyde University have been awarded the highest honour of its kind.
Glasgow entrepreneur Mr Haughey said he was "honoured, privileged and humbled" to receive his knighthood for services to business and philanthropy.
The 55-year-old, who has already received the OBE, is the head of Glasgow's City Refrigeration Group, which employs 11,000 people. His charitable trust donated more than £5 million in the past three years, mainly to charities in Scotland with youth opportunities, homelessness and health three priority areas.
Mr Haughey said he believed he had not yet encountered his biggest achievement. "I think it is probably still to come. You have to have goals and I will always keep making goals for myself. The next one for me is to come up with solutions to get more young people into work."
Mr Haughey, a former director of Celtic, said he had honed entrepreneurial spirit from a young age by taking up a milk round on his eighth birthday.
"I have always had a determination to succeed and that began when I was very young. I captained a youth football team too and it turns out I had a leadership quality I never knew I had."
He said the turning point in his success was going to Abu Dhabi in the early 1980s where he spent two-and-a-half years running a multimillion-pound contract for an American firm. He returned to Glasgow to set up City Refrigeration in 1985, which he runs with his wife Susan.
Mr Haughey is a long-term Labour donor and has spent more than £1m on the party.
Former Holyrood Presiding Officer George Reid, a former SNP MP for Clackmannan and East Stirlingshire, said he was honoured to be made a knight which he described as a "nice rounding" to his life. He was 73 last week.
Mr Reid, who was director of the International Red Cross for 12 years, said: "I'm very pleased that what I have tried to do in life, in terms of Scottish politics and things like my work with the International Red Cross, has been recognised in such a way.
"It's nice to feel that other people feel that you have made a difference in public life."
Mr Reid, who said his family was quietly pleased, has also worked on a review of governance in Northern Ireland and is currently reviewing pensions with the Welsh Assembly.
Veteran LibDem Mr Bruce is being knighted for public and political services. The MP for Gordon is the party's Scottish president and is involved with charities for the deaf.
Mr Bruce, whose daughter Caroline was born profoundly deaf, said: "I'd like to think the knighthood is not just for political longevity but for the work with charities. I got into that because of my daughter and hopefully it's of benefit.
"I've campaigned on behalf of deaf people ever since. It seemed the right thing to do. I'm also trying to get more MPs involved.
"I've been an MP since 1983, so I do owe a lot of this to the constituents."
Professor McDonald said his honour recognised the overall achievements of the university.
He said: "I am proud to be a 'Strathclyder' through and through, and I am equally proud of what our university has achieved for Scotland and on the international scene.
"I regard this honour as recognition not just for me, but for the university.
"This would not have been possible without the support and encouragement of my wife and family, my colleagues and our other partners in higher education, the public sector and industry."
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