John Mullin, the former Independent on Sunday editor, is to head the BBC's coverage of the Scottish independence referendum.
Mullin, who takes up his job as referendum editor next Monday (9 September), will be based in the Glasgow newsroom. He will lead the reporting and analysing of referendum matters across all the BBC's outlets in Britain.
He said: "This is going to be a historic year for Scotland and I'm delighted to be taking up this new role at the BBC. I'm really looking forward to working with some of the best journalists in the business and I can't wait to get cracking."
Mullin was appointed by BBC Scotland's executives. One of them, John Boothman, the head of news and current affairs, said: "I am delighted that our referendum team will be led by such a talented editor.
"I am confident that our coverage of this momentous event in Scotland's history will be world class."
The referendum is set for 18 September next year. The people of Scotland will be asked to answer one question: should Scotland be an independent country? Yes or no.
Mullin edited the Independent on Sunday for five years until February this year. He was previously deputy editor at The Independent and deputy editor at The Scotsman (2000-03). Before that, he worked for The Guardian as the paper's Ireland correspondent.
Source: BBC Scotland
