Scotland’s chief medical officer has been knighted in the New Year Honours list.
Dr Gregor Smith, a trusted voice during the coronavirus pandemic, said he was “surprised and honoured” about being made a Knight Bachelor.
The GP was deputy CMO from 2015 to April 2020, but took over from predecessor Dr Catherine Calderwood after she resigned for breaking coronavirus travel rules.
He has advised the Scottish Government on its public health response to the pandemic and attended press briefings alongside Nicola Sturgeon.
He spent most of his GP career at a practice in Larkhall before becoming the medical director for primary care at NHS Lanarkshire.
Dr Smith said: “I am surprised and feel honoured to receive a knighthood in The Queen’s New Year Honours list for services to public health.
“This means a huge amount to me but it is a reflection of the work that a good number of us have undertaken during the course of the coronavirus pandemic.
“I want to thank everyone who I have worked with, in the Scottish Government and associated organisations, for their contribution to this response.
“It is a privilege and a pleasure to serve as the chief medical officer for Scotland. As we face further challenges ahead, I especially want to thank my colleagues across the country for their professionalism, their support and their commitment to caring for the people of Scotland.”
Other knighthoods have been awarded to long-serving former Glasgow MP Tommy McAvoy for his political and public service.
Lord McAvoy, who was the MP for Glasgow Rutherglen from 1987 to 2010, spent much of his time at Westminster with roles in the Labour Party’s whips office, serving in both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown’s governments.
He has been in the House of Lords since 2010 and is currently a senior whip and spokesman for both Scottish and Northern Irish issues.
Former Ayr MSP John Scott is also being made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire after 21 years at Holyrood.
Scott, 70, was first elected as the area’s Conservative MSP in a 2000 by election, holding the seat in four subsequent elections.
A former farmer, he overcame pancreatic cancer – the same illness that killed his wife just nine months after he was first elected to the Scottish Parliament.
Glasgow-born swimmer Duncan Scott has been made a Member of the Order of the British Empire after becoming the first British athlete to win four medals at an Olympic games with a gold and three silvers at Tokyo 2020 this year.
Paralympic gold medallist Owen Miller from Fife has also been made a Member of the Order of the British Empire following his victorious debut in Tokyo in the T20 1500m, for athletes who compete with learning or intellectual impairments.
There is an MBE for Kathleen Dawson from Fife, who swam backstroke as part of the world record-beating mixed 4x100m relay team to win gold for Team GB at the Olympics in July.
Former chairman of St Johnstone, the businessman Geoffrey Brown, who rescued the football club from financial difficulty in 1986 has been made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to Scottish Football and to the community in Perth.
Dr Liz Cameron, director of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, has been made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to the promotion of Scotland and UK international trade.
To sign up to the Daily Record Politics newsletter, click here.
