William Haughey, Baron Haughey Explained

Honorific Prefix:The Right Honourable
The Lord Haughey
Birth Date:1956 7, df=y
Birth Place:Gorbals,[1] Glasgow, Scotland[2]
Occupation:Chairman, City Refrigeration Holdings UK Ltd
Party:Labour

William Haughey, Baron Haughey, (born 2 July 1956) is a Scottish businessman, philanthropist and chair of City Facilities Management Holdings Ltd.

Career

Haughey was educated at Holyrood Secondary School followed by Langside College. He then worked in the refrigeration and air-conditioning industry in Abu Dhabi before returning to Scotland to set up his own business with £70,000 of savings he had accrued. He founded City Refrigeration, a refrigeration equipment and maintenance supplier, with his wife Susan in 1985.[3] [4]

After securing a service contract with the Tennent's company in the 1980s which led to agreements with further breweries, he sold a majority stake to the 3i equity firm. A downturn in the financial situation caused Haughey to sell two other small companies he had established back to City to increase turnover and broaden the range of services provided by the firm. In 1997 the firm signed a deal with Asda to maintain refrigeration equipment in stores throughout the United Kingdom. Due to the success of that venture, Haughey and his wife found themselves able to buy back almost full control of City from 3i in 1999, allowing them to have decisive input on its future strategic direction; a gradual, continuous expansion of its operations followed over the subsequent decades.[5]

Haughey backed the Entrepreneurial Spark start-up accelerator, hosting the Glasgow 'hatchery' in his City Refrigeration Headquarters.[6]

While the City technical division is located in Clydesmill Industrial Estate near to Cambuslang, its corporate headquarters are at Caledonia House in Gorbals, Glasgow, having relocated from nearby Shawfield in 2009 when those premises were demolished for construction of the M74 motorway completion.[6] The new site was virtually on the site of Haughey's childhood home which had been demolished years earlier[7] with the family moving on to the newly built Toryglen neighbourhood a short distance to the south.

By 2017, the company had been rebranded as City Facilities Management and launched a European arm, headquartered in Paris.[8] Their international clients include Coles Supermarkets in Australia.[6]

In 2020, Lord Haughey, who helped rescue Celtic from going into receivership in the early 1990s, flatly rejected suggestions that he was interested in a plan to acquire Rangers.[9]

Personal life and awards

Haughey married Susan in 1978; Lady Haughey was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Lanarkshire in 2017. He has one son Kenny.[6] In his spare time he enjoys playing golf and tournament poker. He once revealed that he winds down every Friday night with a fish supper.[10]

Haughey is a Celtic F.C. season ticket holder and was formerly a non-executive director of the club.[11] He was close friends with former Celtic player Jimmy Johnstone before his death,[10] [12] [13] and is a collector of club memorabilia,[14] much of which (including the medal collections of Johnstone and Tommy Gemmell) he has loaned back to Celtic for display in their museum.[15] [16] [17] [18]

Haughey also provided £2 million in funding to the Scottish Cup while the tournament did not have a main sponsor between 2008 and 2010, with the Scottish Government allowed to use the 'branding space' competition to promote their Homecoming Scotland 2009[12] [19] and Active Nation[20] initiatives.

Haughey gave over £5 million to charity over a five-year period.[21] In January 2011 Haughey presented a cheque for £100,000 to UNICEF ambassador Sir Alex Ferguson to support the charity's work with child flood victims in Pakistan.[22] [23] In 2010 alone, he made charitable donations of £1.3 million.[21]

Haughey donated over £1 million to the Labour Party between 2003 and 2010.[24] He was awarded an OBE in 2003 and was knighted in the 2012 Birthday Honours for services to business and philanthropy. On 1 August 2013, it was announced he was going to be a Labour peer in the House of Lords. On 18 September 2013 he was created a life peer taking the title Baron Haughey, of Hutchesontown in the City of Glasgow.

Haughey has been named in several newspaper reports in connection with the resignation of Steven Purcell, the leader of Glasgow City Council until 2010.[25] [26] [27] [28] [29] [30] [31]

In 2011, Haughey had planning permission for the conversion of Greenleeshill Farm,[32] situated on greenbelt land in South Lanarkshire, with panoramic views over Glasgow[33] into a mansion resembling the White House US presidential residence.[34]

The 2017 edition of the Sunday Times Rich List estimated Haughey's family's fortune at £265 million.[35]

In 2018, Haughey was reported as having become involved in discussions between the Scottish Football Association and Queen's Park F.C. over the future use of Hampden Park, the stadium used by the former but owned by the latter. With the SFA threatening to move their matches to Edinburgh and unwilling to pay more than £2 million to buy Hampden from Queen's Park while the club demanded £6 million, Haughey stepped in with an offer to 'split the difference' by adding a contribution to raise the purchase offer to £4 million, in order for Scotland matches and cup finals to remain in their traditional Glasgow home.[36] [37] He had already donated funds to Queen's Park a decade earlier to help improve the facilities at their Lesser Hampden training ground,[38] which would become the first team match venue in 2021 once the sale of the main stadium was completed.[39] Also in 2018, Lord Willie Haughey has been elected overall winner of the "2018 EY Entrepreneur of the Year for Scotland".[40]

Honours and arms

Knight Bachelor (2012)

Officer, Order of British Empire (2003)

Escutcheon:Per chevron flory of three on the upper edge Gules and Or.[41]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Schemes and dreams: Big Specky Haughey . 15 September 2013 . 27 March 2018 . BBC Radio Scotland.
  2. http://www.pressteam.co.uk/index.php/news/tycoon-unveils-house-plans PressTeam Scotland Ltd – Tycoon unveils house plans
  3. News: Sir Willie Haughey's City Refrigeration sees profits up . BBC News. 20 June 2013.
  4. News: About City . City Facilities Management . 27 March 2018.
  5. Web site: Stroke of Genius. Willie Haughey: An Inspirational Scottish Businessman. https://web.archive.org/web/20121102234903/http://www.williehaughey.com:80/city-refrigeration-expands.aspx. 2 November 2012. 6 April 2018.
  6. News: The Big Profile Blast from the Past: Sir Willie Haughey, City Refrigerations Holdings. Scottish Business Insider. 1 May 2013. 6 April 2018.
  7. Web site: The Early Years. Willie Haughey: An Inspirational Scottish Businessman. https://web.archive.org/web/20120614163553/http://www.williehaughey.com:80/city-refrigeration-early.aspx. 14 June 2012. 6 April 2018.
  8. News: Sir Willie Haughey's City Refrigeration Holdings launched new European venture. Scottish Business Insider. 17 July 2017. 6 April 2018.
  9. Web site: Former Celtic director Lord Haughey rejects Craig Whyte claims he bid for Rangers. Wright. Scott. 15 February 2020. Herald Scotland. 1 June 2020.
  10. News: I may be a millionaire but there's nothing I like better than a fish supper on a Friday night. Evening Times. 16 January 2017. 3 October 2007.
  11. News: Five-hour Celtic boardroom row as Haughey quits. 30 April 1997. 27 March 2018 . The Herald.
  12. Web site: Memories of a giant wee man. The Herald. 13 December 2008 . 22 May 2018.
  13. Web site: Jimmy Johnstone's family reveal his struggle after being let go by Jock Stein at Celtic. Daily Record. 18 September 2016. 22 May 2018.
  14. News: Gold replica of the European Cup won by Celtic in 1967 bought for £58k at auction. 1 June 2016. 27 March 2018 . Glasgow Live.
  15. Book: McColl. Graham. Gemmell. Tommy. Tommy Gemmell: Lion Heart. 2012. Random House. 9781448132454.
  16. News: Lisbon Lion selling his coveted winner's medal. 2 September 1999. 27 March 2018 . The Herald.
  17. News: Cambuslang businessman ensures Willie Maley medals will remain at Celtic Park. 8 March 2017. 27 March 2018 . Daily Record / Rutherglen Reformer.
  18. Web site: Rare Celtic artefacts returned to Paradise . 2 June 2016. 27 March 2018 . Celtic F.C..
  19. News: Homecoming Scottish Cup Unveiled. 14 October 2008. BBC Sport. 11 January 2008.
  20. News: Scottish Cup given new branding. 21 September 2009. BBC Sport. 21 September 2009.
  21. Web site: City Charitable Trust. Willie Haughey: An Inspirational Scottish Businessman. https://web.archive.org/web/20120912042755/http://www.williehaughey.com:80/city-charitable-trust.aspx. 12 September 2012. 6 April 2018.
  22. Web site: Willie Haughey Donates £100,000 to UNICEF | RSS Press Release . 10 January 2011 . 4 June 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110604043044/http://www.beattiegroup.com/prclients/pr-press-releases.aspx?news=31&id=10839 . dead .
  23. News: Willie Haughey donates £100,000 to UNICEF's work in Pakistan. 27 January 2011. UNICEF UK. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110219164424/https://www.unicef.org.uk/Latest/News/Willie-Haughey/. 19 February 2011.
  24. Web site: Labour donor wants contract probe . BBC News . 22 March 2010 . 20 June 2024.
  25. News: Resignation is a hammer-blow for Scottish Labour so close to a general election. 3 March 2010. The Scotsman. 28 March 2010. Edinburgh.
  26. News: Steven Purcell: Fall of a High Flier. 7 March 2010. Scotland on Sunday. 28 March 2010. 8 June 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110608203521/http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/comment/Steven-Purcell-Fall-of-a.6130367.jp. dead.
  27. News: Labour donor Willie Haughey in 'cash for favours' row. 14 March 2010. Sunday Times Scotland. 28 March 2010 . London . Jon . Ungoed-Thomas . Mark . MacAskill.
  28. News: Company linked to Purcell in £700,000 land deal with Labour donor. 21 March 2010. The Herald. 28 March 2010.
  29. News: Firm caught up in Purcell furore pulls out of Labour party conference. 23 March 2010. The Herald. 28 March 2010.
  30. News: Heartland attack. 25 March 2010. The Economist. 28 March 2010.
  31. News: Labour in little local difficulty. 28 March 2010. Sunday Times Scotland. 28 March 2010 . London . Mark . MacAskill.
  32. Web site: Greenleeshill Farm, Cambuslang . 27 March 2018 . Hawthorne Boyle Ltd.
  33. News: Fridge tycoon gets go-ahead for new home after earlier cold shoulder from planners . 25 January 2011 . 27 March 2018 . The Scotsman.
  34. News: Tycoon aims to make his 'White House' the country's finest home . 6 December 2007 . 27 March 2018 . The Scotsman.
  35. Web site: Rich list 2017 – Wealthiest in Scotland. The Sunday Times. 6 April 2018. 6 April 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180406163747/http://nuk-rich-list-ui-2017-uk-prod.eu-west-1.elasticbeanstalk.com/richlist/view/group17. dead.
  36. News: Scottish FA close to £4m purchase of Hampden Park – reports . 10 September 2018 . 11 September 2018 . The Scotsman.
  37. News: Lord Haughey insists no strings were attached to Hampden donation . 2 May 2019 . 4 May 2019. The Scotsman.
  38. https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12381967.to-play-for-the-sake-of-playing/ To play for the sake of playing
  39. https://reglasgow.com/glasgow-football-club-kick-off-1700-seater-stadium-plan/ Glasgow Football Club Kick Off 1,700-Seater Stadium Plan
  40. Web site: Lord Willie Haughey is EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2018 Scotland overall winner. Symon. Ken. 22 June 2018. Insider. 1 June 2020.
  41. Web site: Sir William Haughey, Baron Haughey of Hutchesontown . 23 May 2018 . Heraldry Society of Scotland . 8 August 2019.