Two Scots lawyers honoured with OBEs

Two Scots lawyers have been awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the New Year Honours list.

Joan Aitken, the Traffic Commissioner for Scotland, has been recognised for services to the Scottish transport system and road safety. A solicitor who has worked both in private practice and in local government, and who edited the Law Society of Scotland's Journal for some years, she has held her present post since 2003. She has also served as a part time chairman of employment tribunals, disability appeal tribunals and child support appeal tribunals in Scotland, and prior to her current appointment was Scottish Prison Complaints Commissioner.

Sheriff Colin Scott Mackenzie receives the OBE for services to the community in the Western and Northern Isles. Now retired from the shrieval bench, on which he served in Lerwick and Kirkwall from 1992 until 2004 and then in the Western Isles until he retired 10 years later, he is a director of Counselling & Family Mediation – Western Isles, and chairman of the Ui Church Trust (Urras Eaglais na h-Aoidhe), which cares for the historic site of St Columba's Church at Uidh, isle of Lewis. He was also at one time a director of The Harris Tweed Association. This year he set up a new competition for primary 7 pupils from schools in Lewis and Harris to encourage Gaelic-speaking pupils to improve their skills in the language. He has also served as chairman of the Western Isles Gallipoli Commemoration Committee.

An MBE was awarded to Carol Burt of Paisley, founder of charity I Am Me, for services to disability hate crime prevention.