Eton-educated Earl who carried the royal standards at King Charles' coronation appears in court after he was charged with driving while more than double the legal alcohol limit

A Conservative peer was in court yesterday after being charged with driving while more than double the legal alcohol limit.

The 12th Earl of Dundee appeared in the city’s sheriff court under the name Alexander Scrymgeour to face a charge of drink-driving.

The Eton-educated accused, who is Chief of the Clan Scrymgeour, is alleged to have driven a Toyota Hilux truck while he was under the influence of alcohol. 

Lord Dundee's farming company manages around 2,000 acres across Fife and Angus. 

He has spoken in the House of Lords on farming and health issues.

The charge alleges that the sitting member of the House of Lords drove in St Michaels, Fife, on 12 May this year, when his alcohol reading was 50 microgrammes.

The legal limit is 22 microgrammes.

Scrymgeour, 75, Birkhill House, Balmerino, did not enter a plea to the charge and the case was continued to a case management hearing on 5 July.

He was educated at Ludgrove School and Eton College, before attending the University of St Andrews, and was a Page of Honour to Queen Elizabeth II.

Lord Scrymgeour's first active experience as a Conservative politician was as the party's candidate in the Hamilton by-election in 1978.

He has sat in the House of Lords since his father's death in 1983, and served as a the Conservative Party whip in the House of Lords from 1986 to 1989.

He served as Government Spokesperson for Education (1986-1988), Government Spokesperson for Scottish Affairs (1986-1989), and Government Spokesperson for Home Affairs and for Energy (1987-1989).

In 1999, he was made an elected hereditary peer and took the title Earl of Dundee.

He has served as the UK delegate to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe from 1992 to 1997.

He was also a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the Western European parliament from 1992 to 1999.

The Earl is honorary consul for Croatia in Edinburgh, and is involved with a Trust which distributes humanitarian aid to some of the poorest parts of the Balkans.

Lord Dundee is also the Hereditary Royal Standard Bearer of Scotland, Constable of Dundee, and Chief of the Name and Arms of Scrymgeour.

He was one of the peers who carried the Royal Standards at the 2023 Coronation of King Charles.

His father, the 11th Earl of Dundee, spent a period as Deputy Leader of the House of Lords.