Sir William Duncan Paterson Stewart (born 6 June 1935) was President of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

from 1999–2002 and Chairman of the Microbiological Research Authority.

Education

Stewart was educated at Bowmore Junior Secondary School,

Dunoon Grammar School Dunoon Grammar School is a secondary school in Dunoon, Cowal Peninsula, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It was founded in 1641. It is currently a non-denominational comprehensive school which covers all stages from S1 to S6 (ages 12–18). Building ...

and the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

, where he gained

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

and

Doctor of Science Doctor of Science ( la, links=no, Scientiae Doctor), usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D., or D.S., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries, "Doctor of Science" is the degree used f ...

degrees.

Career

From 1990 to 1995 Stewart was Chief Scientific Adviser, Cabinet Office, and the first Head of the UK

Office of Science and Technology The Office of Science and Technology (OST), later (briefly) named the Office of Science and Innovation, was a non-ministerial government department of the British government between 1992 and 2007. The office was responsible for co-ordination of ...

(1992–1995). Stewart is also Chairman of the

National Radiological Protection Board The National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) was a public authority in the UK created by the Radiological Protection Act 1970. Its statutory functions were to conduct research on radiological protection and provide advice and information on th ...

(NRPB) and Chairman of the

Health Protection Agency The Health Protection Agency (HPA) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom. It was an organisation that was set up by the UK government in 2003 to protect the public from threats to their health from infectious diseases and envi ...

. He has held a number of other high-profile appointments including: Architect of the Government's Technology Foresight Programme, which was launched in 1995 and Chairman of the Independent Expert Group on Mobile Telephones and Health, which reported in 2000. He is a biologist by training. He was Chairman of

Tayside Tayside ( gd, Taobh Tatha) was one of the nine regions used for local government in Scotland from 15 May 1975 to 31 March 1996. The region was named for the River Tay. It was created by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, following recom ...

University Hospital A university hospital is an institution which combines the services of a hospital with the education of medical students and with medical research. These hospitals are typically affiliated with a medical school or university. The following is a l ...

NHS Trust An NHS trust is an organisational unit within the National Health Services of England and Wales, generally serving either a geographical area or a specialised function (such as an ambulance service). In any particular location there may be several ...

but resigned following a critical report from the Tayside Task Force. He has served on numerous advisory committees, including the

Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution The Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution in the United Kingdom was created under Royal Warrant in 1970 to advise the Queen, Government, Parliament and the public on environmental issues. It was closed on 1 April 2011, as part of the Coali ...

and the

Natural Environment Research Council The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) is a British research council that supports research, training and knowledge transfer activities in the environmental sciences. History NERC began in 1965 when several environmental (mainly geogr ...

. Stewart was Chief Executive of the

Agricultural and Food Research Council The Agricultural and Food Research Council (AFRC) was a British Research Council responsible for funding and managing scientific and technological developments in farming and horticulture. History The AFRC was formed in 1983 from its predecessor, ...

, a former Vice-President of the

Royal Society of London The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

and is a Past President of the

British Association for the Advancement of Science The British Science Association (BSA) is a charity and learned society founded in 1831 to aid in the promotion and development of science. Until 2009 it was known as the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA). The current Chie ...

Personal

Stewart is married to the former Elizabeth Smales, a senior medical officer at the Scottish Executive.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stewart, William Duncan Paterson 1935 births Living people Scottish biologists Knights Bachelor Chief Scientific Advisers to HM Government Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh People from Islay Presidents of the British Science Association Academics of the University of Nottingham Academics of the University of London Academics of the University of Dundee