[1] The first bishop of the new diocese was James Black who, prior to his appointment by Pope Pius XII, had been Vicar General of the Glasgow archdiocese.
Upon the death of Black in March 1968 Stephen McGill was translated by Pope Paul VI from the see of Argyll and the Isles and remained in Paisley until his retirement in March 1988 whereupon he was succeeded by John Mone an auxiliary bishop of Glasgow and an appointee of Pope John Paul II.
Following the retirement of Mone, Philip Tartaglia was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI to be the new bishop on 13 September 2005 and was consecrated at St Mirin's Cathedral on 20 November 2005.
On 8 February 2014 Pope Francis named John Keenan, the Catholic chaplain to the University of Glasgow, as fifth Bishop of Paisley.
[2] His episcopal ordination took place on Wednesday 19 March 2014, the Feast of Saint Joseph.