Royle is the CEO of The Cochrane Collaboration.  He graduated with a Bsc in Mining Engineering from Leeds University in 1983, and was awarded an MBA by Edinburgh University Management School in 1997.  Previously, he worked in the mining and computer industries and served as an officer in the armed forces.  Most recently he was Head of Drug and Alcohol Strategy at the Scottish Prison Service. Royle has served on Government advisory committees on drug and alcohol misuse and chaired a UK security agencies committee on drug detection technology.