BBC Scotland has named the Gary Smith’s successor as Head of News and Current Affairs.
Howard Simpson is a broadcast journalist with almost 20 years’ experience of leading news teams in the country and is currently Head of News Content.
“It’s a great honour to be appointed as Head of News and Current Affairs and to lead all the fantastic teams across the nation. I’m looking forward to working with my colleagues in news and the executive team as we evolve the production and delivery of our news services in the ever-changing digital age,” he said.
Simpson joined the BBC in 2017 as News Editor, before that he was Editor of STV’s News and Sport. During this time, he was responsible for News at Six, Scotland Tonight and the channel’s live football programmes.
He also ran the broadcaster’s Independence Referendum coverage, including the leaders’ debate and the overnight results show which was STV’s first pan-ITV network production.
At the BBC, he’s headed the news desk at Pacific Quay, before becoming Newsgathering Editor where he was responsible for reporters, correspondents, and producers across Scotland. He led teams through the Covid pandemic, a General and Holyrood Election campaign, as well as the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Since 2023 he has been the Head of News Content and accountable for multi-platform news coverage.
READ MORE – BBC Scotland’s Head of News steps down after almost a decade
“Over many years Howard has proved to be an outstanding leader of teams who’ve covered countless major stories in Scotland, delivered the highest quality programming, and introduced new services for audiences,” said Hayley Valentine, Director, BBC Scotland.
“I’m excited to be working with him to continue delivering the best journalism and finding new and innovative ways to serve all our audiences.
“His creativity, brilliant news judgement, and enthusiastic and skilled leadership, will be vital as we continue to meet our audiences’ expectations to provide impartial, informative, and insightful journalism.”
In March, Gary Smith announced he was stepping down from the role of Head of News and Current Affairs, and leaving the corporation after almost 40 years.
