St Andrews
Kevin Dunion OBE

Elected in 2008, the Rector of the University of St Andrews is currently Kevin Dunion OBE.

Kevin is the Scottish Information Commissioner, based on Doubledykes Road in St Andrews. Appointed by the Queen, he is responsible for upholding and promoting Freedom of Information Laws in Scotland. Since the Act came fully into force on 1 January 2005, Kevin has taken over 600 formal decisions in respect of appeals, including high profile decisions such as requiring the disclosure of MSPs' expenses claims. Kevin champions the spirit and principle of freedom of information, and is frequently asked to speak and write on the Scottish experience. Kevin was for many years a prominent campaigner for freedom of information. He established two research projects with funding from the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust into the performance of public bodies in Scotland with regards to providing access to information, employed Scotland's only full time Freedom of Information campaigner and gave evidence to the Justice Committee scrutinising the passage of the Bill through the Scottish Parliament.

Prior to his appointmen as Information Commissioner, Kevin worked as Chairperson of Friends of the Earth International, heading delegations to the United Nations and the European Commission. With 65 member coutries, Friends of the Earth International is the world's largest environmental network, and the Chairperson must balance an extensive range of conflicting interests and styles to ensure that satisfactory decisions are reached. Kevin was awarded an OBE for his work with Friends of the Earth International, and is widely respected for his time with them.


Following spells in the civil service and in university administration, Kevin worked as Oxfam Campaigns Manager from 1984-1991, which involved extensive international travel to often volatile and dangerous countries. He has written three books; 'Living in the Real World: The International Role for Scotland's Parliament', 'Troublemakers: The Struggle For Environmental Justice In Scotland', and 'The Democracy of War: Anstruther and Cellardyke in the First World War'.

Kevin was born in December 1955 in Bridge of Allan, and brought up in Alloa and Glenrothes. He was educated at the University of St Andrews (MA (Hons) Modern History 1978) and at the University of Edinburgh (MSc (Dist) African Studies 1991).