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HM Treasury appoints new Non-Executive Board Members

HM TREASURY News Release (87/08) issued by The Government News Network on 6 August 2008

The Treasury today announces three new non-executive appointments to the Treasury Board. The appointments have been approved by the Chancellor of the Exchequer following an open competition involving the independent Office of the Civil Service Commissioners.

The new non-executive members of the Treasury Board will be:

* Dame Deirdre Hutton CBE

* Sir Callum McCarthy; and

* Michael O'Higgins

The appointments take effect from 1 October 2008 for a period of three years. The Treasury Board shapes the vision, strategy and priority of the Treasury Group to deliver Ministers' objectives and communicates these to staff and other stakeholders.

Nick Macpherson, Treasury Permanent Secretary and Chair of the Treasury Board said:

"I am delighted to welcome Deirdre, Callum and Michael to the Board. They bring extensive experience to supporting and challenging the Board's work and I look forward to working with them".

Notes for Editors

1. Dame Deirdre Hutton CBE has been Chair of the Food Standards Agency since July 2005 and was Deputy Chair of the Financial Services Authority until December 2007. She has led a number of bodies in the public sphere and has considerable experience of governance and organisational change. Prior to her appointment at the Food Standards Agency, she served on the Better Regulation Task Force and is familiar with regulatory approaches both generally and in the context of specific areas such as financial services and food. Prior to the Food Standards Agency, Deirdre was Chair of the National Consumer Council, having formerly chaired the Scottish Consumer Council. She has been involved in many of the key discussions concerning the future of the agricultural industry including membership of the Policy Commission on the Future of Farming and Food and has recently been appointed Honorary vice-President of the Trading Standards Institute. Deirdre is currently engaged in an independent review of postal services at the request of The Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform.

2. Sir Callum McCarthy is Chairman of the Financial Services Authority, stepping down in September. He joined the FSA in September 2003 from the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets where he was Chairman and Chief Executive. He had previously held senior positions in Barclays Bank, BZW and Kleinwort Benson, as well Department for Trade and Industry. He is an economist and graduate of the School of Business at Stanford University, where he was a Sloan Fellow.

3. Michael O'Higgins has been Chairman of the Audit Commission since October 2006. For the previous ten years, Michael was a Managing Partner with PA Consulting Group, leading its Government and IT Consulting Groups, latterly as an International Board Director. He was previously a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, worked at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in Paris and held academic posts at the University of Bath, the London School of Economics, Harvard University and the Australian National University. Michael is also currently the Chair of Centrepoint, having been on the Board of Trustees since 2002, became a Trustee of the National Centre for Social Research early in 2007, and a member of the Cabinet Secretary's Capability Review Moderation Panel in May 2007.

4. Dame Deirdre, Sir Callum and Michael succeed Sir Peter Gershon CBE and Sir David Varney, who have stepped down after reaching the end of their terms; and Stella Manzie CBE, who is now Director General Finance and Corporate Services in the Scottish Executive.

5. Sir Callum's appointment as a Treasury Non Executive Board Member will commence following his stepping down from the Financial Services Authority in September.

Non-media enquiries should be addressed to the Treasury Correspondence and Enquiry Unit on 020 7270 4558 or by e-mail to public.enquiries@hm-treasury.gov.uk

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