The editor-in-chief of Scotsman Publications John McLellan will join a panel of industry heavyweights in a Question Time-style debate next month.

The event is part of the Journalism Skills Conference, run by the National Council for the Training of Journalists, in Glasgow on 3 and 4 December.

John will be joined by the head of training at the BBC College of Journalism Alex Girlis, The Guardian’s head of multimedia Tom Happold, head of news with STV Gordon Macmillan and group editorial manager of Newsquest Margaret Strayton.

It will be chaired by BBC Scotland presenter Aasmah Mir and receive questions from an audience of editors, senior journalists and journalism trainers at the NCTJ’s second annual skills conference.

John said: “Journalists need to display flexibility, not only because newsrooms are converging and demand for information to be provided in different ways is growing, but in an age when opportunities are more scarce than ever no-one can rely on one set of skills to provide them with a career for life.

“I am very much looking forward to the debate about how best to equip journalists for the challenges of the future.”

The debate will take place on the first day of the conference at BBC Scotland’s new home in the Pacific Quay area of Glasgow.

It will be followed by a tour of the £188m centre, which was opened in 2007, and evening reception to include presentation of awards to the top performing and most improved NCTJ-accredited courses as well as a prize for services to journalism training.

On day two the conference will switch Scotland’s national stadium Hampden Park which plays host to international football matches and the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Delegates will be invited to contribute to interactive sessions focussing on media trends, the gold standard for training and the future structure and content of multimedia journalism qualifications.