The Earl of Erroll | |
---|---|
Member of the House of Lords | |
as an
elected
hereditary peer 11 November 1999 | |
Election | 1999 |
Preceded by | Seat established |
as a hereditary peer 30 June 1978 – 11 November 1999 | |
Preceded by | The 23rd Countess of Erroll |
Succeeded by | Seat abolished |
Lord High Constable of Scotland Chief of Clan Hay | |
Assumed office 16 May 1978 | |
Preceded by | The 23rd Countess of Erroll |
Personal details | |
Born | Merlin Sereld Victor Gilbert Hay 20 April 1948 |
Spouse |
Isabelle Astell
(
m. 1982; died 2020) |
Children | 4 |
Parents |
|
Residence(s) | Woodbury Hall, Sandy, Bedfordshire |
Occupation | Programmer |
Merlin Sereld Victor Gilbert Hay, 24th Earl of Erroll (born 20 April 1948), is a crossbench member of the House of Lords, chief of the Scottish clan Hay, and hereditary Lord High Constable of Scotland. [1]
Lord Erroll, elder son of Diana Hay, 23rd Countess of Erroll and Sir Iain Moncreiffe of that Ilk, was a Page to the Lord Lyon in 1956. He was educated at Eton College before going up to Trinity College, Cambridge. [2]
Succeeding his mother, the Countess, in 1978 as Earl of Erroll, and in 1985, his father as a baronet, Lord Erroll now serves as a member of the Council of the Hereditary Peerage Association. [3] Whilst Lord Erroll inherited Chieftainship of Clan Hay via his mother, their father's Chieftainship of Clan Moncreiffe devolved to his younger brother Peregrine.
He married Isabelle Jacqueline Laline Astell Hohler ( Brussels, 22 August 1955 – 13 January 2020), daughter of Major Thomas Sidney Hohler and his wife, heiress to the Astell family, of Everton House, Bedfordshire, [4] in 1982. The Countess was a Patroness of the Royal Caledonian Ball [5] and served as High Sheriff of Bedfordshire in 2015. [6]
The Earl and Countess had two sons and two daughters:
The Earl of Erroll became a Lieutenant at the Atholl Highlanders since 1974, [2] and is a Member of the Royal Company of Archers. [10] He served in the 21st SAS Artists Rifles (V) Territorial Army from 1975 to 1990, and was an Honorary Colonel of the Royal Military Police (Territorial Army) from 1992 to 1997. [11]
Lord Erroll has worked as a marketing and computer consultant, [2] is a Freeman of the City of London, [2] and Prime Warden of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers (2000–01). [12] He continues to head the Puffin's Club, founded by his father. [13] He is President of ERADAR, an e-business consultancy, [14] and is President of the Digital Policy Alliance (EURIM). [15]
He was a director of LASSeO, a not-for-profit technical standardization and interoperability membership organisation for smartcard technologies. [16]
Lord Erroll was one of 90 excepted hereditary peers elected to remain in the House of Lords following the House of Lords Act 1999. [17] A programmer and system designer by trade, [18] he sits as a crossbencher and usually speaks on matters relating to cybersecurity and information technology. He was a member of the Science and Technology Committee and criticised Gordon Brown's government for what he said was a failure to curb cybercrime after four government agencies, including the Ministry of Defence and HM Revenue and Customs, reported massive losses of data in 2008. [18] Most recently he was a member of the Information Committee from 2007 to 2012. [17]
Lord Erroll served as Lord High Constable of Scotland at the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in 2023. [19] [20]
The Earl of Erroll | |
---|---|
Member of the House of Lords | |
as an
elected
hereditary peer 11 November 1999 | |
Election | 1999 |
Preceded by | Seat established |
as a hereditary peer 30 June 1978 – 11 November 1999 | |
Preceded by | The 23rd Countess of Erroll |
Succeeded by | Seat abolished |
Lord High Constable of Scotland Chief of Clan Hay | |
Assumed office 16 May 1978 | |
Preceded by | The 23rd Countess of Erroll |
Personal details | |
Born | Merlin Sereld Victor Gilbert Hay 20 April 1948 |
Spouse |
Isabelle Astell
(
m. 1982; died 2020) |
Children | 4 |
Parents |
|
Residence(s) | Woodbury Hall, Sandy, Bedfordshire |
Occupation | Programmer |
Merlin Sereld Victor Gilbert Hay, 24th Earl of Erroll (born 20 April 1948), is a crossbench member of the House of Lords, chief of the Scottish clan Hay, and hereditary Lord High Constable of Scotland. [1]
Lord Erroll, elder son of Diana Hay, 23rd Countess of Erroll and Sir Iain Moncreiffe of that Ilk, was a Page to the Lord Lyon in 1956. He was educated at Eton College before going up to Trinity College, Cambridge. [2]
Succeeding his mother, the Countess, in 1978 as Earl of Erroll, and in 1985, his father as a baronet, Lord Erroll now serves as a member of the Council of the Hereditary Peerage Association. [3] Whilst Lord Erroll inherited Chieftainship of Clan Hay via his mother, their father's Chieftainship of Clan Moncreiffe devolved to his younger brother Peregrine.
He married Isabelle Jacqueline Laline Astell Hohler ( Brussels, 22 August 1955 – 13 January 2020), daughter of Major Thomas Sidney Hohler and his wife, heiress to the Astell family, of Everton House, Bedfordshire, [4] in 1982. The Countess was a Patroness of the Royal Caledonian Ball [5] and served as High Sheriff of Bedfordshire in 2015. [6]
The Earl and Countess had two sons and two daughters:
The Earl of Erroll became a Lieutenant at the Atholl Highlanders since 1974, [2] and is a Member of the Royal Company of Archers. [10] He served in the 21st SAS Artists Rifles (V) Territorial Army from 1975 to 1990, and was an Honorary Colonel of the Royal Military Police (Territorial Army) from 1992 to 1997. [11]
Lord Erroll has worked as a marketing and computer consultant, [2] is a Freeman of the City of London, [2] and Prime Warden of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers (2000–01). [12] He continues to head the Puffin's Club, founded by his father. [13] He is President of ERADAR, an e-business consultancy, [14] and is President of the Digital Policy Alliance (EURIM). [15]
He was a director of LASSeO, a not-for-profit technical standardization and interoperability membership organisation for smartcard technologies. [16]
Lord Erroll was one of 90 excepted hereditary peers elected to remain in the House of Lords following the House of Lords Act 1999. [17] A programmer and system designer by trade, [18] he sits as a crossbencher and usually speaks on matters relating to cybersecurity and information technology. He was a member of the Science and Technology Committee and criticised Gordon Brown's government for what he said was a failure to curb cybercrime after four government agencies, including the Ministry of Defence and HM Revenue and Customs, reported massive losses of data in 2008. [18] Most recently he was a member of the Information Committee from 2007 to 2012. [17]
Lord Erroll served as Lord High Constable of Scotland at the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in 2023. [19] [20]