Martin Booth, the former finance director of Glasgow City Council who was embroiled in a £1 million 'golden goodbyes' scandal, has been appointed to the board of the troubled nationalised Ferguson Marine shipyard. Booth, who served as the council's finance director for six years until late 2024, was praised for his 'deep expertise in finance and governance' when he joined the shipyard's board in April 2025.
Golden goodbyes scandal
Auditors from the Accounts Commission found that Booth was involved in the decision to award £1 million in 'golden goodbyes' to five senior council officials. SNP council leader Susan Aitken stated she had been 'personally misled' over the payments. The 2023-24 audit report noted an email from Booth to former council chief executive Annemarie O'Donnell, one of the five recipients, in which he expressed 'full support' for the payouts as 'consistent with council policy'. O'Donnell later repaid her £357,845 pension enhancement.
Teacher cuts cover-up row
Booth was also at the centre of a controversy over the alleged cover-up of teacher cuts in the council's budget. Glasgow councillor Fiona Higgins accused him of trying to 'wilfully and cynically mislead councillors' by masking cuts of up to 450 teaching jobs. Booth complained to the Standards Commission in 2024, claiming the comment breached the councillors' code of conduct. Higgins has since taken the watchdog to a judicial review, with the Court of Sessions set to hear her case on August 4.
Ferguson Marine appointment
Inverclyde-based Ferguson Marine was taken into public ownership in 2019 after failing to deliver two CalMac ferries on time. Booth was appointed as a non-executive director in April 2025 as part of efforts to 'strengthen its leadership team'. The shipyard's statement said his 'financial expertise and governance experience will be invaluable to Ferguson Marine as the company continues to focus on financial sustainability'.
Graeme Thomson, chair of Ferguson Marine, defended the appointment, stating: 'Martin has been a trusted adviser and dedicated member of the Ferguson Marine Board for over a year. His appointment was made following a robust, transparent, and competitive recruitment process managed by an external partner. As a qualified public finance professional with decades of experience managing complex public sector budgets, his expertise has been a vital asset to the Board as Ferguson Marine continues to drive forward improvements to its internal control environment and financial sustainability.'
Criticism from sources
A source commented: 'It's laughable to see Martin praised for his expertise in “governance” when he repeatedly featured in rows over transparency and accountability at the council. This doesn’t bode well for Ferguson Marine turning a corner.'
Thomson added: 'Since then, we have consistently evidenced enhanced internal controls backed up by external audit reports, annual accounts and securing a five year pipeline of work through a direct award from the Scottish Government. Improving and maintaining consistently high standards of corporate governance remains a core focus for the Ferguson Marine Board and leadership team. Martin will continue to be a key part of that.'
