Candidate to head investment bank turned down role, Swinney tells MSPs

A candidate tipped to take over as head of Scotland’s publicly funded investment bank turned down the role when it was offered, Deputy First Minister John Swinney said.

Former chief executive Eilidh Mactaggart quit the Scottish National Investment Bank almost a year ago, prompting questions from opposition parties and a recruitment process to find her successor.

Ms Mactaggart eventually released a statement saying she had left for “personal reasons”.

When asked for an update on the process, Mr Swinney told the Economy and Fair Work Committee a prospective candidate had changed their mind about the role, meaning the process had to be restarted.

“The process has been taken forward… a candidate emerged but then decided not to take the post, I think that’s the fairest way for me to capture that,” he said when questioned by Conservative MSP Jamie Halcro Johnston.

“Sarah Roughead continues to exercise chief executive responsibilities under the leadership of Willie Watt as the chair of the Scottish National Investment Bank, and the bank continues to make the progress that the Government envisages.

“The recruitment process continues to be taken forward.”

When asked if the process had to restart, Mr Swinney added: “It’s a process that’s been undertaken with recruitment consultants, so I think the short answer is yes.”

Mr Swinney said he would like to see the process completed “as soon as possible but only with the right candidate”, and did not give an estimate of when an appointment would be made.