Kenneth Borthwick CBE DL JP (1915–2017) was a 20th-century Scottish businessman and Tory politician who served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1977 to 1980 and as Chairman of the 1986

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

Life

He was born in

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

in the final months of 1915. He was educated at Hermitage Primary School south of

Leith Links Leith Links ( gd, Fìghdean Lìte) is the principal open space within Leith, the docks district of Edinburgh, Scotland. This public park is divided by a road into two main areas, a western section and an eastern section, both being largely flat ...

, then, due to his father's death, won a place at George Heriot's School as a foundationer. He joined the

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

police force in 1935 and served there for 12 years, also serving in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

as a

navigator A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation.Grierson, MikeAviation History—Demise of the Flight Navigator FrancoFlyers.org website, October 14, 2008. Retrieved August 31, 2014. The navigator's primar ...

in the RAF. In 1947 he emigrated to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

with his young family, setting up business as a confectioner, but returned to Scotland in 1956, to avoid his children being educated in the

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

system. He then became interested in local politics, serving both on the

Lothian Regional Council Lothian (; sco, Lowden, Loudan, -en, -o(u)n; gd, Lodainn ) is a region of the Scottish Lowlands, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills and the Moorfoot Hills. The principal settlement is the Sc ...

and Edinburgh District Council. During this period he did much to promote sport in the city, helping to create both the

Commonwealth Pool The Royal Commonwealth Pool is a category-A-listed building in St Leonard's, Edinburgh, Scotland that houses one of Scotland's main swimming pools. It is usually referred to simply as the Commonwealth Pool and known colloquially as the 'Commie' ...

and Hillend Ski Centre. In 1977 he was elected Lord Provost of the city. He retired from the Council in 1980, then taking on the role of Honorary Consul of

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...

. He was also Dean of the Edinburgh and Leith Consular Corps. In 1986 he was appointed Chairman of the Commonwealth Games. However this Games was heavily affected by boycotts due Britain's alleged collusion South Africa's apartheid scheme. He died peacefully at

Edinburgh Royal Infirmary The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, or RIE, often (but incorrectly) known as the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, or ERI, was established in 1729 and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest v ...

on 4 September 2017 aged 101. He was Edinburgh's longest lived Lord Provost.

Family

In 1942 he married Irene (d.2009). They had three children, Gilroy, Jean and Andrew. Their son Gilroy (Gil) Borthwick (1946-1999) was a talented rugby player.Glasgow Herald (newspaper) 5 June 1999

References

1915 births 2017 deaths Lord Provosts of Edinburgh People from Leith People educated at George Heriot's School Politicians from Edinburgh {{Scotland-bio-stub