Simon Dallas Cairns, 6th Earl Cairns, CVO, CBE (born 27 May 1939), styled Viscount Garmoyle between 1946 and 1989, is a British businessman.
Cairns is the son of Rear-Admiral David Cairns, 5th Earl Cairns, and Barbara Jeanne Harrison Burgess.[1] He was educated at Ludgrove, Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge.[2][3]
Cairns was Managing Director of S. G. Warburg & Co. between 1979 and 1985, of Mercury Securities plc between 1981 and 1984, Chairman of Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) between 1981 and 1992, Vice-Chairman of Mercury Securities plc between 1984 and 1986, and a Director of S. G. Warburg & Co. between 1985 and 1995.[3] He succeeded his father in the earldom on 21 March 1989.[4] He was Receiver-General of the Duchy of Cornwall between 1990 and 2000.[3] He was Chief Executive of S. G. Warburg & Co. between 1991 and 1995. He was Chairman of CDC Group plc from 1995.[3]
He was chairman of BAT plc between 1995 and 1998, and was Vice-Chairman of Zurich Allied AG and Zurich Financial Services between 1998 and 2000. He was Chairman of Allied Zurich between 1998 and 2000.[3]
He was appointed Chairman of the African telecommunications company Celtel in October 2007 and was a board member of the charity The Mo Ibrahim Foundation until 2016, alongside Mary Robinson and Kofi Annan.[5]
He was invested as a Commander, Order of the British Empire (CBE), in 1992. Cairns was invested as a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (C.V.O.) in 2000.[3]
Lord Cairns married Amanda Mary Heathcoat-Amory, daughter of Maj. Edward Fitzgerald Heathcoat-Amory (a son of Maj. Ludovic Heathcoat-Amory) and Sonia Myrtle Denison, on 4 February 1964.[3] They have three sons: