Merlin Sereld Victor Gilbert Hay, 24th Earl of Erroll (born 20 April 1948), is a

crossbench A crossbencher is an independent or minor party member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and oppositi ...

member Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

of the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

of the

Scottish clan A Scottish clan (from Goidelic languages, Gaelic , literally 'children', more broadly 'kindred') is a kinship group among the Scottish people. Clans give a sense of shared identity and descent to members, and in modern times have an official ...

Hay Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, either for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep, or for smaller domesticat ...

, and

hereditary Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic inform ...

Lord High Constable of Scotland The Lord High Constable is a hereditary, now ceremonial, office of Scotland. In the order of precedence of Scotland, the office traditionally ranks above all titles except those of the Royal Family.p60-61, Bruce, Alistair, Keepers of the King ...

Early life and education

Lord Erroll, elder son of

Diana Hay, 23rd Countess of Erroll Diana Denyse Hay, 23rd Countess of Erroll (5 January 1926 – 16 May 1978, Oban, Scotland) was a British noblewoman. Early life Diana was the only child of Josslyn, Earl of Errol and his first wife Lady Idina Sackville. She was born in Kenya. ...

and Sir Iain Moncreiffe of that Ilk, was a

Page Page most commonly refers to: * Page (paper), one side of a leaf of paper, as in a book Page, PAGE, pages, or paging may also refer to: Roles * Page (assistance occupation), a professional occupation * Page (servant), traditionally a young m ...

to the

Lord Lyon The Right Honourable the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grant ...

in 1956. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

before going up to

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

Earl of Erroll

Succeeding his mother, the

Countess Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility.L. G. Pine, Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty'' ...

, in 1978 as

Earl of Erroll Earl of Erroll () is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1453 for Sir William Hay. The subsidiary titles held by the Earl of Erroll are ''Lord Hay'' (created 1449) and ''Lord Slains'' (1452), both in the Peerage of Scotland. ...

, and in 1985, his father as a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

, Lord Erroll now serves as a member of the Council of the

Hereditary Peerage Association The Hereditary Peerage Association is a British representative body for hereditary peers in the United Kingdom formed in 2002 in the wake of the House of Lords Act 1999. Aims It aims to provide a representative voice for hereditary peers thus a ...

. Whilst Lord Erroll inherited Chieftanship of Clan Hay via his mother, their father's Chieftanship of

Clan Moncreiffe Clan Moncreiffe is a Highland Scottish clan.Way, George and Squire, Romily. ''Collins Scottish Clan & Family Encyclopedia''. (Foreword by The Rt Hon. The Earl of Elgin KT, Convenor, The Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs). Published in 1994. Pa ...

devolved to his younger brother Peregrine.

Marriage and family

He married Isabelle Jacqueline Laline Astell Hohler (

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, 22 August 1955 – 13 January 2020), daughter of Major Thomas Sidney Hohler and his wife, heiress to the Astell family, of Everton House, Bedfordshire, in 1982. The Countess was a

Patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

ess of the

Royal Caledonian Ball The Royal Caledonian Ball is a ball held annually in London for the benefit of Scottish charities. With few exceptions, the Royal Caledonian Ball has been held annually since 1849, and is the oldest charity ball in the world. History The ball ...

and served as

High Sheriff of Bedfordshire This is a list of High Sheriffs of Bedfordshire. Pre-Conquest pre-1042: Aelfstan 1042-1066; Godric, Ralph Talgebose Bondi the staller 1066–1125 *1066-c.1084: Ansculf de Picquigny * Ralph Taillebois *c. 1080 Hugh de Beauchamp *1124 Rich ...

in 2015. The Earl and Countess had two sons and two daughters: * Harry Thomas William Hay, Lord Hay (b.

Basingstoke Basingstoke ( ) is the largest town in the county of Hampshire. It is situated in south-central England and lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon, at the far western edge of The North Downs. It is located north-east of Southa ...

, 8 August 1984); married Clementine Travis in 2017. * Lady Amelia Diana Jacqueline Hay (b. Basingstoke, 23 November 1986) * Lady Laline Lucy Clementine Hay (b. Basingstoke, 21 December 1987); married Major Jeremy Sudlow in 2017. * Hon. Richard Merlin Iain Astell (b. Basingstoke, 14 December 1990); took the surname "Astell" by

Royal Licence Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

in 2015.

Military and business career

The Earl of Erroll became a Lieutenant at the

Atholl Highlanders The Atholl Highlanders is a Scottish ceremonial infantry regiment. They are the only remaining private army in Europe, and act as the personal bodyguard to the Duke of Atholl, chieftain of the Clan Murray, a family that has thrived in Perthshire ...

since 1974, and is a Member of the

Royal Company of Archers The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a perso ...

. He served in the 21st SAS Artists Rifles (V) Territorial Army from 1975 to 1990, and was an Honorary Colonel of the Royal Military Police (Territorial Army) from 1992 to 1997. Lord Erroll has worked as a marketing and computer consultant, is a

Freeman of the City of London The Freedom of the City of London started around 1237 as the status of a 'free man' or 'citizen', protected by the charter of the City of London and not under the jurisdiction of a feudal lord. In the Middle Ages, this developed into a freedom or ...

, and Prime Warden of the

Worshipful Company of Fishmongers The Worshipful Company of Fishmongers (or Fishmongers' Company) is one of the 110 Livery Companies of the City of London, being an incorporated guild of sellers of fish and seafood in the City. The Company ranks fourth in the order of precede ...

(2000–01). He continues to head the

Puffin's Club Puffin's is a private members' luncheon club, established in the 1960s by the historian Sir Iain Moncreiffe of That Ilk. Named after his first wife, Diana Hay, 23rd Countess of Erroll (whose nickname was ' Puffin'), it started as an informal soc ...

, founded by his father. He was President of ERADAR, an

e-business Electronic business (or "Online Business" or "e-business") is any kind of business or commercial transaction that includes sharing information across the internet. Commerce constitutes the exchange of products and services between businesses, grou ...

consultancy, and is Chairman of the Digital Policy Alliance (EURIM). He was a director of LASSeO, a

not-for-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

technical

standardization Standardization or standardisation is the process of implementing and developing technical standards based on the consensus of different parties that include firms, users, interest groups, standards organizations and governments. Standardization ...

and

interoperability Interoperability is a characteristic of a product or system to work with other products or systems. While the term was initially defined for information technology or systems engineering services to allow for information exchange, a broader defi ...

membership organisation for

smartcard A smart card, chip card, or integrated circuit card (ICC or IC card) is a physical electronic authentication device, used to control access to a resource. It is typically a plastic credit card-sized card with an embedded integrated circuit (IC) c ...

technologies.

Politics

Lord Erroll was one of 90 excepted hereditary peers elected to remain in the

following the

House of Lords Act 1999 The House of Lords Act 1999 (c. 34) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the House of Lords, one of the chambers of Parliament. The Act was given Royal Assent on 11 November 1999. For centuries, the House of Lords ...

. A programmer and system designer by trade, he sits as a

crossbencher A crossbencher is an independent or minor party member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and oppositi ...

and usually speaks on matters relating to cybersecurity and information technology. He was a member of the

Science and Technology Committee Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence fo ...

and criticised

Gordon Brown James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...

's government for what he said was a failure to curb

cybercrime A cybercrime is a crime that involves a computer or a computer network.Moore, R. (2005) "Cyber crime: Investigating High-Technology Computer Crime," Cleveland, Mississippi: Anderson Publishing. The computer may have been used in committing the ...

after four government agencies, including the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

and

HM Revenue and Customs HM Revenue and Customs (His Majesty's Revenue and Customs, or HMRC) is a non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial Departments of the United Kingdom Government, department of the His Majesty's Government, UK Government responsible fo ...

, reported massive losses of data in 2008. Most recently he was a member of the

Information Committee The Information Committee was a select committee of the House of Lords appointed to consider its information and communications services, including the House of Lords Library and the Parliamentary Archives subject to the strategic and financial fra ...

from 2007 to 2012.

References

External links

* ''Burke's Peerage & Baronetage'' *
Official Profile
on the

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

website
Earl of Erroll
Open Rights Group * {{DEFAULTSORT:Erroll, Merlin Hay, 24th Earl of 1948 births Living people People from Sandy, Bedfordshire People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Special Air Service officers Crossbench hereditary peers 24 Scottish clan chiefs Members of the Royal Company of Archers Hereditary peers elected under the House of Lords Act Artists' Rifles officers Royal Military Police officers 20th-century British Army personnel Prime Wardens of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers