Obesity Action Scotland was established in 2015 to provide clinical leadership and independent advocacy on preventing and reducing overweight and obesity in Scotland. It is funded by a grant from the Scottish Government and hosted by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow on behalf of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges and Faculties.
The main aims of the Unit are:
To raise awareness and understanding of what drives obesity and the health problems associated with obesity and overweight with health practitioners, policy makers and the public
To evaluate current research and identify strategies to prevent obesity and overweight based on the best available evidence
To work with key organisations in Scotland, the rest of the UK and worldwide, to promote healthy weight and wellbeing
The Steering Group of Obesity Action Scotland includes members from various disciplines involved in preventing and tackling obesity and its consequences e.g. clinicians, public health experts, epidemiologists, nutritionists and dieticians, GPs and weight management experts.
Steering Members
Dr Andrew Fraser
Andrew was Director of Public Health in NHS Highland from 1994-97, Deputy Chief Medical Officer in the Health Department of the Scottish Office, then Scottish Executive from 1997-2003. He was responsible for advice on Public Health Policy, taking a particular interest in health protection matters, alcohol-related harm, public health laws and, increasingly, health inequalities and the health of marginalised groups. He worked in the Scottish Prison Service from 2003-2012 as Director of Health and Care, also advising the government and World Health Organisation on prison-related health matters, alcohol and drugs policy. From 2012 until 2021 he was Director of Public Health Science at NHS Health Scotland until it became Public Health Scotland, when he took on Medical Director and Senior Adviser roles. Throughout, his focus has been on effective ways to narrow health inequalities in Scotland, creating the conditions for change in healthy eating and active living to improve Scotland's health.
Professor Simon Capewell
Simon trained in general, respiratory and cardiovascular medicine in Newcastle, Cardiff, and Oxford, then in public health in Edinburgh and Glasgow. He was appointed as the first Professor of Clinical Epidemiology in the University of Liverpool in 1999. Simon manages a research programme mainly involving cardiovascular disease (CVD) and food policy. Funding thus far totalling over £20 million, with over three hundred peer-reviewed papers, many in top journals. Simon is President of the Society for Social Medicine, and Vice President (Policy) for the UK Faculty of Public Health. He is also a Trustee for the Faculty, for the UK Health Forum, and for Heart of Mersey, a large regional CVD primary prevention charity. He contributes to policy development and service work. He has recently chaired/participated in a dozen national /international policy and prevention committees, including Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (Obesity), British Heart Foundation (Prevention & Care), NICE (CVD prevention), UK Faculty of Public Health, European Society of Cardiology and WHO.
Dr Emilia Crighton
Emilia is the Interim Director of Public Health for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. She was instrumental in setting up OAS while honorary secretary to the Scottish Academy of Royal Colleages, to advocate for effective interventions in reducing the obesity burden on the Scottish population’s health.
Sheila Duffy MA, Cert.Ed, DipLIS, HonMFPH
Since 2004, Sheila has been Chair of the Scottish Coalition on Tobacco (SCOT) and represents ASH Scotland on various Scottish Government Groups on Tobacco Control. She also represents ASH Scotland on networks such as the Global Alliance for Tobacco Control and the European Smoke-free Partnership. Prior to becoming Chief Executive, she was Director of Information & Communications at ASH Scotland from 2003. In this role she was responsible for influencing the development of the Scottish legislation that ended smoking in most enclosed public places. In 2015 she was given honorary membership of the Faculty of Public Health and is active in the advocacy group. Strategically, ASH Scotland is working towards creating a generation free from tobacco, and tackling the inequalities that tobacco causes. Current priorities include tobacco and the cost of living crisis, and youth uptake of e-cigarettes.
Ashley Goodfellow, MFPH
Ashley is a Consultant in Public Health and Health Policy in NHS Lothian, with a particular interest in maternal, child and family health and wellbeing. Ashley is a qualified nutritionist and public health specialist and has held various positions in the NHS, local authority and third sector.
Her current role involves place-based working with community planning partners to improve population health and reduce levels of inequality. Ashley also has strategic leadership responsibility for driving forward public health priorities on maternal, children and young people’s health, and eating well, physical activity and healthy weight.
Retired Consultant in Dental Public Health. Honorary Senior Lecturer University of Edinburgh and University of Dundee, Honorary Professor ADEMA, University of the Balearic Islands. Dental adviser to the Falklands Island Government.
Colwyn Qualified from Edinburgh University as a Bachelor of Dental Surgery in 1981 and worked as a clinician across the UK and in Denmark, completing postgraduate studies in Cardiff Dental School, Glasgow Dental School and Manchester Dental School. He is a Cochrane Collaboration Oral Health Group member, Past President of the European Association of Dental Public Health and Past President of the British Association for the Study of Community Dentistry. He is a Fellow of the Faculty of Public Health. He has published on a variety of dental and public health subjects but most recently has been looking at the social determinants of oral health and oral health inequalities, and the effectiveness of interventions to overcome them.
Professor Vittal Katikireddi
Vittal is Professor of Public Health & Health Inequalities at the University of Glasgow and an honorary Consultant in Public Health at Public Health Scotland. His chief research interests are in improving the development and application of evidence to inform healthy public policy. He initially studied at the University of Edinburgh, completing degrees in Medical Sciences (Genetics), Medicine and Public Health Research and completed his PhD on the relationship between evidence and public health policy at the University of Glasgow. After initially working in hospital medicine, he carried out his public health training at NHS Lothian. He has published over 250 academic papers, with his chief research interests focusing on evaluating policies and health inequalities. His work has been recognised through the Littlejohn-Gairdner prize from the Faculty of Public Health, the Thomas C Chalmers award from the Cochrane Collaboration and Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
Dr Daphne Varveris
Dr Daphne Varveris is a Consultant Anaesthetist in the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow and Scottish CMO Speciality Advisor for Anaesthesia and Intensive Care. Daphne trained in Manchester, London, and Glasgow prior to taking up a consultant post in 2002. She served as a College Tutor for six years and continues to support training as an educational supervisor.
Daphne's speciality interests include anaesthesia for both head and neck and colorectal surgery. As the Chair of the RCoA Scottish Board, she leads the quality and safety workstreams, representing the Scottish Board on the Safety Anaesthetic Liaison Group (SALG) and co-chairing the Scottish Anaesthetic Quality and Safety Group. As a steering group member of the Obesity Action Scotland and Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems, she provides speciality input into wider health issues.
Dr Hamish Foster
Hamish is a General Practitioner and Clinical Research Fellow based in the General Practice and Primary Care research group (GPPC) at the University of Glasgow. He work as a General Practitioner at Drs Foster, Logan, and Macdonald Practice in Glasgow. He is interested in health and social inequalities, lifestyle/health behaviours, obesity, and mixed methods.
Hamish's current research interest focusses on the socioeconomic influence on combinations of lifestyle/health behaviours and associated adverse health - the topic of my PhD. In 2019 he was awarded a Medical Research Council Clinical Research Training Fellowship entitled 'Understanding interactions between lifestyle and deprivation to support policy and intervention development' (grant number MR/T001585/1). In 2024 he was awarded an NRS CSO Fellowship to develop funding applications to create a digital tool to support healthy living in communities affected by socioeconomic deprivation.
Dr Ruth Campbell, RD, MPH, ProfD
Ruth qualified as a dietitian in 1991 and has specialised in public health nutrition for the last 27 years. Prior to joining NHS Ayrshire & Arran in 2010, Ruth was the national Infant Nutrition Co-ordinator at the Scottish Government where she led the development of the Maternal and Infant Nutrition Framework. In her current role Ruth is responsible for a range of public health nutrition programmes across the lifecourse, including child and adult healthy weight, maternal and infant nutrition and diabetes prevention. Ruth has a key role in working alongside local authority colleagues to develop whole system approaches to healthy weight.
Dr Linda Irvine
As Interim CEO, Linda has provided business continuity and stability for the College through her values-driven leadership.
During her tenure as Interim CEO, the College has achieved greater financial sustainability through efficiencies, growth of our global membership and increases in the provision of high-quality education and assessment.
As part of the College Leadership Team, Linda works closely with the College President, trustees, staff and the many clinical volunteers to realise our goals. She is a role model of our values and associated behaviours.
Prior to taking on the position of Interim CEO, Linda was Deputy CEO and Director of Membership and Engagement. Linda joined the College in July 2012 and since that time the membership community has almost doubled in size and now extends to more than 100 countries.
Linda has held leadership roles in both commercial and third sector organisations. She has also served as a trustee of one of Scotland’s largest charities.
Staff Members
Robin Ireland, PhD, MPH, MFPH
Robin Ireland is the Interim Head of Obesity Action Scotland.
Ireland has worked in public health since 1984, beginning his career at Princes Park Health Centre in Liverpool 8 and Mersey Regional Health Authority. He is the former Chief Executive of the Health Equalities Group (HEG) charity which he was tasked to establish in 2002, followed by Healthy Stadia in 2004 and Food Active in 2013, both part of HEG. He gained his MPH at the University of Liverpool in 2007. Ireland was engaged internationally in this period including acting as an NCD consultant for the World Health Organisation between 2008 and 2012. Ireland was elected Member of the Faculty of Public Health through Distinction in 2015. He is Honorary Director of Research with HEG. Ireland has worked extensively with local authorities and NHS organisations in England to promote healthier weight environments.
Ireland was awarded a PhD student scholarship at the University of Glasgow in 2017, graduating in 2021. His doctoral thesis was on Commercial Determinants of Health in Sport. Ireland became an Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Health and Wellbeing at the University of Glasgow in 2023. Ireland has worked for OAS previously as National Co-ordinator for Whole Systems Approaches to Diet and Healthy Weight from October 2022 – June 2023.
Ireland has had two books published, ‘Sport, Sponsorship and Public Health’ in 2023, and ‘Cutting the Mustard’ (August 2025).
