New Year Honours for chief executive and president of Scottish Chambers of Commerce

The chief executive and the president of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce (SCC) have both been recognised in the New Year Honours list.

Liz Cameron, director and chief executive of the SCC, has been honoured with a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to the promotion of Scotland and UK international trade. This follows on from Cameron’s 2013 honour where she was recognised with an Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to business and commerce.

Cameron has spearheaded new public/private partnerships with the Scottish Government which have onboarded hundreds of exporters, with those participating increasing turnover by up to £20 million and, in the last three years alone, creating in excess of 300 jobs.

She has led the expansion of trade relationships across the world, including the signing of 40 country-to-country market agreements and the establishment of new Scottish trade offices, with the first opened in Yantai, China in 2017.

Liz Cameron, director and chief executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, has been honoured with a CBE for services to the promotion of Scotland and UK international trade.

Cameron, who also serves as a GlobalScot trade ambassador, said: “This is a tremendous accolade and I am deeply honoured and humbled to be awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Honours List.

“I am so proud of how Scottish businesses and the Scottish Chambers of Commerce network have continued to forge ahead. This award is a tribute to all businesses who, even in times of crisis, push the boundaries of innovation and trade, and continue to seize the opportunities.

“I will continue to champion Scottish and British businesses to the world and remain steadfastly committed to working in collaboration with civic society to accelerate our recovery, growth and future position in the global marketplace.”

At the same time, Tim Allan has been honoured with a CBE in the latest Honours for services to business, charity and the arts.

The leading Scottish business figure holds a wide-ranging portfolio career spanning multiple sectors in business, education, arts and culture. He is a private equity and property entrepreneur through his investment business Tricorn Capital. He is also a founder and director of Motor Fuel Group, which has more than 900 stations across the UK.

Since 2017, Allan has served as president of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce.

He said: “Contributing to the business, arts and culture sectors has been a privilege and I am thrilled to receive such extraordinary recognition. I am profoundly grateful for this honour and I thank my colleagues and peers for their unwavering support, guidance and expertise throughout my career.

“The interconnectedness between the economy, arts and culture will be an important enabler of our economic recovery and I look forward to continuing to play my part in supporting these efforts.”

Allan also serves as chairman of the iconic V&A Dundee design museum.

Leonie Bell, director of V&A Dundee, said: “Tim has generously brought his energy, business insight and commitment to culture to support V&A Dundee over many years, as well as helping others in business and the arts to thrive. He is a champion of creativity and of its potential as a catalyst for change.”

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