Charles Hay, 16th Earl of Kinnoull

Charles William Harley Hay, 16th Earl of Kinnoull, Baron Kinnoull of the Ochils (born 20 December 1962), styled Viscount Dupplin until 2013, is a Scottish politician and hereditary peer who serves as a Crossbench member of the House of Lords and as Convenor of the Crossbench Peers. He was created a life peer in 2026 to allow him to remain in the House of Lords.

Biography Viscount Dupplin was educated at Eton College and studied chemistry at Christ Church, Oxford. where he was an open scholar.

He has been a member of The Queen's Bodyguard for Scotland (Royal Company of Archers) since 2000.

He succeeded his father as Earl of Kinnoull following the latter's death on 7 June 2013.

The Earl was elected to sit in the House of Lords at a crossbench hereditary peers' by-election on 4 February 2015, following the resignation of Lady Saltoun of Abernethy.

On 19 March 2015, he made his maiden speech in the House of Lords on a report of the Science & Technology Committee. In September 2019 he became Chair of the European Union Committee, and Principal Deputy Chairman of Committees of the House of Lords. He has served as a Deputy Speaker since becoming Principal Deputy Chairman of Committees. In January 2022 he was appointed Vice Chair of the UK delegation to the Parliamentary Partnership Assembly, the new joint body between the European and UK Parliaments. As such he was the leader of the House of Lords delegation.

In June 2017, he was promoted to Lt Col and became commanding officer of the Atholl Highlanders.

In April 2023, he became Convenor of the Crossbench Peers and as a consequence in June 2023 stepped down as Chair of the European Affairs Committee and as Vice Chair of the UK delegation to the Parliamentary Partnership Assembly. At the same time he was appointed to the House of Lords Commission.

On 10 December 2025, it was announced that a life peerage would be conferred on him as part of the 2025 Political Peerages. On 6 February 2026, he was created Baron Kinnoull of the Ochils, of Abernyte in the County of Perthshire.

Family He is the son of William Hay, 15th Earl of Kinnoull, and Ann (née Lowson), daughter of Sir Denys Lowson, 1st Baronet.

In 2002, he married Clare, daughter of the circuit judge William Hamilton Crawford, QC, and his wife, Marilyn Jean Colville. The couple has four children: Lady Alice Hay (b. 25 Sep 2003) Lady Catriona Hay (b. 25 Sep 2003) Lady Auriol Hay (b. 15 Mar 2007) William Hay, Viscount Dupplin (b. 24 Jun 2011)

Charity

Hay serves as president of the Royal Caledonian Ball Trust, which organises an annual ball to benefit Scottish charities. He is the chairman of the Red Squirrel Survival Trust, a wildlife conservation trust. He is also the chair of Culture Perth & Kinross, which is a Trust running museums and libraries.