The Lord Provost of Aberdeen is an ancient office with its roots in the 13th century. The Lord Provost acts as Convener of the City Council, Civic Head and His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Aberdeen.
The current Lord Provost is Councillor David Cameron.
The Lord Provost’s family moved from Glasgow to Middlefield in Aberdeen when he was 15 years old. In 1962 he became the first Aberdeen scout to achieve the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award.
He started a career in food safety as a laboratory technician and then as a quality manager before attending the University of Aberdeen, graduating in 1973. He was a Senior Lecturer in the School of Nutritional Science at the Robert Gordon Institute of Technology (now the Robert Gordon University).
In 1990, Dr Cameron launched his own food safety consultancy, which was Grampian Small Business of the Year 1994. He was twice the President of the Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland has provided food safety advice to industry, including oil and gas, around the world.
Dr Cameron has been a councillor for the Kingswells, Sheddocksley and Summerhill ward of Aberdeen City Council since 2012.
Immediately prior to becoming a councillor, he completed two terms of office as the Chairman of NHS Grampian Board, having been a Board Member since January 2005. He was also a UK board member of the Food Standards Agency and Chair of the Scottish Food Advisory Committee.
Convener of Aberdeen City Council
First and foremost, the Lord Provost is Convener of Aberdeen City Council. At any meeting of the full Council, the Lord Provost presides.
As Convener, the Lord Provost is responsible for ruling on procedural matters, accepting motions and questions, ensuring free and fair debate, using a casting vote when required, and maintaining order in the chamber. The Standing Orders of the Council contain the ‘house rules’ along with technical details on how business should proceed.
Civic Head
The Lord Provost also acts as the figurehead of the city and is often referred to as “Aberdeen’s First Citizen”. This role is wide-ranging, involving all sectors of the local community in addition to regional, national, and strong international elements.
As Civic Head, the Lord Provost’s role is to engage with the community through active involvement in all areas of city life, encouraging good citizenship, promoting the city at home and abroad, and giving recognition to the achievements of citizens and local organisations.
His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Aberdeen
August 1899 saw the constitution of the city of Aberdeen as a ‘county of a city’ by Queen Victoria. Following this, the office of Lord-Lieutenant was established in Aberdeen and linked to the office of Lord Provost.
In its modern form, the Lord-Lieutenant is the monarch’s first representative within the city boundary. Their principal duty is to represent the Crown within the Lieutenancy area and to uphold its dignity. In practical terms this means facilitating Royal visits, promoting the honours system and liaising with the armed forces.
Contact the Lord Provost
To send invitations to the Lord Provost and for further information, please contact:
Lord Provost's Secretariat
Aberdeen City Council
Town House
Aberdeen AB10 1LP
01224 069225
lordprovost@aberdeencity.gov.uk