Rory Mair CBE has been elected as the new independent chair of Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) at the charity’s AGM in Edinburgh.

The meeting also elected a new Board, which is in place with immediate effect.

Dominic Notarangelo resigned as chair last year shortly before the publication of an independent governance review by accountancy firm Deloitte into the charity’s governance.

The umbrella organisation for the Citizens Advice service in Scotland revealed plans for the assessment in March following the departure of chief executive Margaret Lynch and the loss of finance director Jon Dye.

In a vote taken at a general meeting in February, CAS members backed 32 recommendations included in the governance review.

The charity said it now has in place a best practice model of governance, with a board comprising an independent chair, six external trustees and six trustees from the bureaux network.

Rory Mair was latterly chief executive of COSLA from 2002-15, having previously served in senior roles in Highlands & Islands Enterprise, Fife Council and Ross & Cromarty Council.

He said: “I am delighted to be elected to this position. Throughout my career I have always been aware of the enormous contribution the Citizens Advice network makes to Scotland, both in supporting individuals and campaigning for positive change. It is my strong belief that access to good advice underpins a fair and equal society.

“Already the service provides quality advice to over 300,000 citizens per year and a piece of advice is given every 19 seconds. In financial terms Citizens Advice volunteers and staff helped people who need it most to save or gain a total of £120m last year. As chair of Citizens Advice Scotland, I will use my skills and experience to support that valuable process and to ensure the voice of citizens continues to be heard by policy and decision makers.”

Agnes Robson, who was Mr Mair’s predecessor as acting chair, added: “We are very pleased that Rory Mair will be the chair of Citizens Advice Scotland. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience of the public sector, and his record is one of energy, action and delivery.

“He is the ideal person to take forward Citizens Advice in Scotland at a time when people, more than ever, need the impartial advice and advocacy provided by the service.”