| Peter Laidlaw |
 Peter Laidlaw was educated at The Edinburgh Academy carrying out his National service with the RAF in Singapore. He has a
business background with the engineering industry, having taken up mechanical engineering in 1956. He was a qualified combustion
engineer and worked in the industry until 1982.It was then that he responded to an advert for the position of Assistant Secretary
to The Marie Curie Memorial Foundation, Scotland. Peter had an interest in charities going back a long way. A keen horseman
himself, as a younger man he was chairman of the Edinburgh branch horse shows committee of the 'Riding for the Disabled' charity.
Peter worked as assistant secretary until 1985 when he became the secretary of Marie Curie Cancer Care, Scotland, as it had
then become. The interview looks at the development of the service in Scotland and his role within the organisation. He describes
the relationships between the two 'centres' in Glasgow and Edinburgh and also between Scotland and England. He defined this
as "working for Marie Curie in Scotland through Marie Curie in England". He recounts a period of absolutely rapid growth and
progress from 1986 to 1991 in the way Marie Curie was run and the way it affected Scotland was considerable. He reflects on
the many developments that happened during that time including the only sheltered housing unit in the UK for this group of
patients. He talks about his involvement in these changes and the impact they had on his role and relationships in the organisation.
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| Interview conducted by Gerry King, 11 April 2000 |
| Interview Duration: 1 hour |
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