Ex-Lord Provost Bob Winter & businessman Willie Haughey recognised in Queen's honours

Jun 15 2012

Tartan Day, Bob Winter

GLASGOW entrepreneur Willie Haughey says he's overwhelmed at hearing he was being knighted for services to business and philanthropy.

He founded a refrigeration company in 1985 with his wife Susan and has seen it grow from having only four employees into a global giant with 11,000 members of staff.

As well as building City Refrigeration Holdings into a successful business, he has also established the City Charitable Trust to bring together his charity work.

Since being set up it has donated around £5 million to good causes, with the bulk going to local charities.

The 55-year-old said: "Obviously I feel very honoured but I also feel privileged, humbled and overwhelmed. I was absolutely thrilled to receive the letter. It's amazing, you never expect for a minute it could happen to you and when it does it's a shock.

"I'm sure everybody close to me will be delighted and they should all share in it because they have been a part of it. I'm sure they will all be over the moon."

Mr Haughey was born in the Gorbals, Glasgow and moved his company headquarters to a site on which his childhood home once stood, where he grew up with his two brothers and sister.

He became a director at Celtic and although he later resigned this role when the club was on a firmer financial footing, he remains a passionate supporter.

Among the many charities to benefit from his trust are Yorkhill Hospital, Castlemilk Youth Project and Maggie's Centre. He says he also visits numerous schools and youth groups throughout Scotland to help motivate and inspire the next generation.

Also honoured in today's list was former Glasgow Lord Provost Bob Winter said he is proud and delighted to be honoured with an OBE for services to local government and the local community.

He was Lord Provost for four years to 2011 and held the position of Lord Lieutenant of the city, acting as the Queen's representative.

He said: "I think the honour is a reflection of the importance of civic leadership of a city like Glasgow. The honour was real surprise. I'd just come in from walking the dog, picked up this letter and there it was.

"Of course, behind these honours given by the Queen are the people who nominated you who think you have made a good contribution, and that's always nice to know.

""I'm very much looking forward to seeing the Queen again. In the course of the job of Lord Lieutenant, I think I met virtually every member of the royal family except Kate. I was at the royal wedding but I didn't get to meet her. It was one of the privileges and pleasures of the job."

Getting an MBE is Glasgow comic book writer Grant Morrison. His Batman book Arkham Asylum has sold more than 600,000 copies worldwide and is the most successful original graphic novel to be published in the US.

The writer, educated at Glasgow's Mosspark Primary and the Allan Glen School for Boys and who has homes in both his home city and Los Angeles in the US, has won a series of industry awards. In 1997 he became the first comic book writer in Entertainment Weekly's top 100 creative people in the US.