Mark Logan, Chief Entrepreneurial Advisor to Scottish Government, said on Wednesday he has resigned from the role after “increasingly becoming a target for some in the right-wing of Scottish politics and their supporting publications.”

Logan is a former chief operating officer of Skyscanner and is a professor at Glasgow University’s School of Computing Science.

A right-wing London tabloid newspaper and Scottish Conservative MSP Stephen Kerr recently criticized Logan’s salary as Chief Entrepreneurial Advisor.

Logan wrote in a social media posting: ” … I’ve decided that four and a half years is long enough for me in this role, and that it is time for a change.

“And although I am not in a political role, I am increasingly becoming a target for some in the right-wing of Scottish politics and their supporting publications, which, just as intended, has become draining.

“So I’m stepping down from my role as Chief Entrepreneurial Advisor.

“There are no ‘musical differences’ or tensions with stakeholders behind that decision. I also believe that it is better to stop doing something while you are still enjoying it, and when it still hurts to leave it behind, as that way you take with you only good memories.

“So that is what I am going to do. I’m grateful to both First Minister John Swinney and Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes for their support and help throughout my appointment period, and for their understanding concerning my decision now.

“During the next few weeks, I’ll fulfil some remaining speaking commitments and transfer ongoing projects into safe and very capable hands, completing these steps by mid-November.

“After that time, I’m going to take a short break, other than from my teaching responsibilities in the School of Computing Science at the University of Glasgow. Going forward, I’ll continue to play my part in helping to develop Scotland’s economic potential, just in a less formal capacity.”

Logan joined Skyscanner in 2012 and helped grow the firm from 100 to 900 staff across 10 international locations and a £1.5 billion exit valuation.

In his social media post, Logan added: “My first significant start-up role was at Atlantech, in the mid-1990s, where I eventually became the VP of Engineering. In those days, we were one of few tech start-ups in Scotland. There was no real ecosystem around us like there is today; no incubators, conferences, meet-ups, scale-up programmes, playbooks, founder networks and the like.

“We made up the rules as we went along with, at times, surprising consequences. But, overall it worked out, and we sold that start-up to Cisco in 2000 for $180m.

“Later on, when Skyscanner was still a relatively small company, people would sometimes patiently explain to me why it wasn’t possible to grow a tech start-up into an international-scale company from a place like Scotland. I enjoyed being part of a team that demonstrated that you could, and that you can.

“In all the years since that first start-up, through all of those that I’ve worked in or with since, and today as Chief Entrepreneurial Advisor to the government, I’ve always believed in Scotland’s ability to be a world-class start-up nation. And I’ve devoted my career, in different ways at different times, to doing my best to help realise that potential.

“So, when Kate Forbes called me in May 2020, during the darker days of the Covid crisis, and asked me to write what became the Scottish Technology Ecosystem Review (STER), I was grateful for the opportunity to contribute to that goal in a new way. At that time, I had intended to hand over the completed STER report and then to continue with my originally planned projects. However, that didn’t happen, and here I am, four and a half years later, still working with the government on entrepreneurial policy development and implementation.

“In the intervening period, I’ve had the precious opportunity to work with very many wonderful people, in government, in parliament, in our agencies, in our schools and universities, our ecosystem builders, and, of course, in our start-ups and social enterprises. It’s been a privilege to witness the commitment that so many in our community have towards enriching our big little country, and to creating high-quality opportunities and employment for its citizens.

“We’ve done good things together in that time, including the TechScaler start-up incubation and learning network, the Ecosystem Fund, the Pathways initiative to improve the gender balance in entrepreneurship, the Pathways Fund, the Entrepreneurial Campus initiative, Computing Science in schools improvements including the formation of Scottish Teachers Advancing Computing Science (STACS), and the Deeptech Supercluster initiative …

“We’ve made progress in these and other areas despite operating in a challenging financial environment. People outside Scotland are increasingly noticing this progress, and our start-ups will benefit from their interest. It’s down to all of our combined efforts, and I’ve enjoyed being part of that.”