APPOINTMENTS TO THE COMPETITION COMMISSION REPORTING PANEL

11 Sep 2001 12:00 AM

Melanie Johnson, Minister for Competition, Consumers and Markets, today announced the appointment of 21 new members to the Competition Commission''s Reporting Panel.

Melanie Johnson said:

''I am pleased to announce the appointment of 21 new members to the Commission''s Reporting Panel.

The Government''s recent White Paper ''Productivity and Enterprise: a World Class Competition Regime'' proposed the creation of strong, proactive and independent competition authorities with strengthened roles. This major recruitment exercise, which began early this year, has led to the appointment of able and experienced individuals who, I am confident, will greatly assist the Commission in its enhanced role.''

Biographical details

Christopher Clarke, 56, is an independent non-executive director of the Weir Group PLC and a corporate and financial adviser. Until 1998, he was a director of HSBC Investment Banking and from 1982-1996 a main board director of Samuel Montagu. He has advised various government departments and other organisations on restructuring and privatisation issues in sectors such as rail, water, electricity, coal and steel and aerospace. He has similarly advised certain overseas governments. Mr Clarke also has considerable experience of mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures disposals financing, and regulatory matters.

Dr John Collings, 55, was until December 2000, Director of Regulation at Powergen, before which he was a partner of Coopers & Lybrand (1987-1994) and Commercial Regulation Adviser at BT (1986-87). He has also lectured at Aston and Hull universities and been an Economic Adviser in the Government Economic Service. He led Powergen''s inquiry team when its proposed acquisition of MEB was referred to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission.

Dr Diane Coyle, 40, is an Economic Consultant and freelance writer. She was, until recently, Economics Editor of The Independent and a Visiting Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Performance at the LSE. She has also been European Editor of Investors Chronicle. Dr Coyle worked as Senior Economic Assistant to the Treasury in 1985-6. She has published several books on economics and is a member of various bodies such as the Council of the Royal Economic Society, the Executive Committee of the Centre for Economic Policy Research, and she is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Laurence Elks, 52, is a qualified solicitor and member of the Criminal Cases Review Commission. He was a partner at Nabarro Nathanson from 1984 to 1995 during which time Mr Elks worked on a number of high profile merger cases. He has worked in the area of competition law and written and lectured on the subject. He also chaired a committee of the CBI competition group developing proposals for refocusing EU competition laws. He has been involved in a wide range of voluntary activities.

Gwynneth Flower, FIEE, 63, is Chairman of CMB Technologies, Chairman of UK Transplant Authority and Vice Chairman of Charteris Mackie and Baillie. She was Managing Director of Action 2000. She was Chief Executive of Centec from 1990 to 1997 and Director of Sales and Marketing at GEC-Marconi from 1986 to 1990. Mrs Flower was a member of the GEC Takeover Team for the acquisition of Plessey and subsequently led a team on the integration into the Marconi business. She has several appointments and memberships including Vice Presidency and Membership of the Council of the Royal Institution of Great Britain. She also is a regular contributor to various radio and TV programmes on financial and business matters.

Christopher Goodall, 45, is a researcher and writer on technology, telecommunications and media, and a provider of strategy consulting services in the technology and media industries. His consultancy work has been with some of the world''s largest media, entertainment and technology businesses. He also writes reports on companies, sectors and technologies for the investment community. Prior to 1996, Mr Goodall specialised in strategy for world-wide media and entertainment businesses, working with amongst others Channel 5, Department of Culture, Media and Sport, Viva TV in Germany and Vaiacom and Time Warner. He is a non- executive director of Which? Ltd.

Professor Alan Gregory, FCMA, 47, is Professor of Corporate Finance at the University of Exeter and Acting Head of School. He was previously Professor of Business Studies at University of Wales and Professor of Accounting and Finance at the University of Glasgow. Professor Gregory has been a consultant to the Treasury on the Government Profit Formula. He has many publications to his name.

Diana Guy, 58, is a consultant solicitor to Theodore Goddard, specialising in competition law. She was a partner in the firm from 1973-1995 and has been involved in some significant competition cases before the MMC and the European Commission. Mrs Guy has for ten years been legal adviser to Airport Co-ordination. She is President of the Law Society''s European Group and a Member of the City of London Solicitors'' Company, Competition Law Sub-Committee.

Professor Alan Hamlin, 50, is Professor of Economics and Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Southampton. His main research and teaching interests are in political economy, public economics and microeconomic policy analysis. He has held visiting appointments at of a number of overseas universities, has published widely on a range of topics in economics and politics, and is currently editor of the journal Constitutional Political Economy.

Professor Jonathan Haskel, 38, is Professor of Economics at the Department of Economics, Queen Mary College, University of London. He has also taught at Bristol University, London Business School and Stern School of Business at New York University. He has worked as a consultant to OFT and DfEE and HM Treasury. Professor Haskel is on the Editorial Boards of Economica, the Journal of Industrial Economics, and New Economy. He is a research fellow of the Centre for Economic Policy Research and a research associate of the Institute of Fiscal Studies.

Richard Holroyd, 54, was a Senior Executive in Shell International heading the Oil Products Marketing futures Department. Prior to joining Shell in 1996 he worked for Reckitt & Colman becoming Regional Director, Europe and then Managing Director of Colman''s of Norwich. He had responsibility for managing the divestment of Colman''s and has dealt with competitive issues arising from various mergers and acquisitions both nationally and internationally. In 1998/9 Mr Holroyd led a team responsible for reviewing Shell''s global strategy for the consumer facing retail business.

Professor Paul Klemperer, 45, is Edgeworth Professor of Economics at Oxford University. His work is focused on industrial economics and auction theory. He has been an adviser to several government departments and the Competition Authorities, and has also advised the US government on merger and competition cases and policy. He has spent several years working in the private sector, and has served on the Board of Advisors of, and as a consultant to, a number of private companies. He has published many papers, edited eleven academic journals, and is a Fellow of the British Academy and of the Econometric Society and a member of the Council of the Royal Economic society. He has also held visiting positions at M.I.T., Stanford, Berkeley, Yale and Princeton.

Professor Bruce Lyons, 48, is professor of economics and was Dean of the School of Economics and Social Studies at the University of East Anglia until recently. He is also a past lecturer in economics at St John''s College Cambridge. Since 1994 he has been a member of the Academic Advisory Group to the Competition Directorate of the European Commission. He recently set up the Centre of Competition and Regulation at UEA, and is involved in a research programme on the economics of competition policy. Professor Lyons has been an external examiner at some UK universities and is Associate Editor of Economica. He has published various papers and articles.

Dame Barbara Mills, DBE, QC, 61, is The Adjudicator for the Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise, having been from 1992 to 1998, the Director of Public Prosecutions. As Director of the Serious Fraud Office Dame Barbara dealt with the BCCI case. In 1986 she was a DTI inspector under the Financial Services Act and has been a member of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board, a Legal Assessor to the General Medical Council and a member of the Parole Board amongst others.

Professor Peter Moizer, 49, FCA is Professor of Accounting at Leeds University Business School where he is also the Head of the Division of Accounting and Finance. He was a lecturer in accounting at University of Manchester and before that, assistant audit manager at Price Waterhouse. Professor Moizer has advised DTI on issues related to the audit profession and has given strategic advice to the Greater Manchester Pension Fund on how to structure investments. He has sat on a number of committees of the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Christopher Smallwood, 54, is a capital markets consultant. He was formerly a Competition Partner at Brunswick Group Ltd and a partner at Makinson Cowell Ltd. Prior to that he was Strategic Development Director and Chief Economist at TSB Group. Mr Smallwood was Economics Editor of The Sunday Times from 1986-89 and from 1983 to 1986 was Chief Economist and Head of Financial Strategy and Planning for BP. He has been an Economic Adviser to the Treasury and a Special Adviser at the Cabinet Office. He has also served as a member of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission.

Peter Stoddart, FCA, 56, was a member of the board and Director, Finance Services of Nissan Motor Manufacturing (UK) Limited until his retirement in August 2000. Involved in treasury and business planning he raised over #1 billion to finance the Sunderland plant. He also handled an MMC inquiry into the car industry on behalf of Nissan. Earlier Mr Stoddart was Finance Director of Cammell Laird Shipbuilders. Recently he has also been Interim Director of Operations of the NE Regional Development Agency. He has held various non-executive appointments e.g. at FE Colleges and an NHS Trust and was involved in the work of leading business and educational societies in the North East of England.

Robert Turgoose, 54, is a corporate finance partner in Price Waterhouse Coopers. He has worked on mergers and acquisitions, regulation and design of markets especially in utilities. He has been particularly involved in work related to introducing competition into the gas and electricity industries and was a member of the team that advised regional electricity companies in the creation of a competitive market post- privatisation. He has also provided advice to various governments and companies overseas on energy sectors and has acted as a consultant on a review of business planning at the Post Office, privatisation of the National Bus Company and a review of the bulk supply tariff on behalf of the Electricity Council.

Professor Catherine Waddams, 53, is Professor of Regulation and Director of the Centre for Competition and Regulation at the University of East Anglia. She is a Life Fellow of Clare Hall, Cambridge and was a Visiting Fellow at the University of Leicester and Visiting Professor at the University of Copenhagen. She has advised government bodies, competition authorities, regulators and private companies and chaired an Oftel Public Hearing on price control proposals. Professor Waddams has published or contributed to many papers and books concentrating on utility regulation. From 1989 to 1994 she was Dean and Budget Centre Manager for the Social Science Faculty at the University of Leicester, and from 1995 to 2000 she was Director of the Centre for Management under Regulation and Professor at the University of Warwick.

Stephen Walzer, 58, is Assistant General Counsel, International legal Affairs at British American Tobacco plc (BAT). Until 1992 he undertook corporate practice in house with British Petroleum (BP) where he specialised in competition law and policy issues. He advised BP on numerous cases before the European Commission and the UK competition authorities, including the Kuwaiti Investment Office acquisition of shares in BP and petrol pricing. With BAT he has been involved in successful merger activity covering former group financial services interests and the acquisition of Rothmans. Mr Walzer is chairman of the International chamber of commerce committee on law and practices relating to competition. He is also co-rapporteur to its parent Committee at the International Chamber''s headquarters in Paris and is a senior member of the CBI Competition Panel. He also sits on various other competition related committees.

Professor Stephen Wilks, FCA, 52, is Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Professor of Politics at the University of Exeter. He has been a Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Law, University of Kyoto and was Reader in Politics at the University of Liverpool. His research interests have included the study of British and comparative competition Policy, theories of regulation, and regulation of utility industries. He has published extensively including books on the UK competition authorities. Professor Wilks is a member of the Economic and Social Research Council. He has been an external examiner at several UK universities.

Notes for Editors

1. The Competition Commission''s Reporting Panel investigates and reports on matters referred to it under the Fair Trading Act 1973, the Competition Act 1980 and the Broadcasting Act 1990 relating to mergers, monopolies and anti-competitive practices. Under the proposals in the White Paper its role will be considerably strengthened and widened.

2. The White Paper ''Productivity and Enterprise: A World Class Competition Regime (Cm 5233) was published on 31 July 2001 and is available on the DTI website at: http://www.dti.gov.uk/cp/ukcompref.htm

3. Reporting Panel members will be paid at a rate of #250 per diem when they are serving on inquiries.

4. None of the appointees have undertaken any political activity within the last five years or hold any other public appointments except as noted below.

6. Laurence Elks is a part time member of the Criminal Cases review Commission for which he receives a pro rata remuneration of #68,000 per annum.

7. Gwynneth Flower is a part-time non-executive director of Ordnance Survey for which she receives remuneration of #6,500 pa and part time Chairman of the UK Transplant Authority for which she is remunerated #10,300 pa.

9. Christopher Goodall held the office of Treasurer of a local Labour Party branch in the 1997 General Election and canvassed and spoke on behalf of local Parliamentary and County Council candidates

10. Diana Guy canvassed on behalf of a Conservative Party candidate in the 1997 general election.

11. Dame Barbara Mills is The Adjudicator for the Inland Revenue, Customs and Excise and the Public Guardianship Office for which she receives a remuneration of #397.03p per diem. She is also the Independent Complaints Assessor for the Driving Standards Agency, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, the Vehicle Certification Agency, the Traffic Area Network and the Highways Agency for which she receives payment of #40 per hour. Dame Barbara is also a part time non- executive director of the Royal Free Hospital NHS Trust for which she receives approximately #5,000 pa.

12. Professor Stephen Wilks has canvassed on behalf of the Green Party

13. All members of the Competition Commission are subject to the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975, which disqualifies holders of scheduled public offices from membership of the House of Commons.

14. The information in paragraphs 3 - 12 above is supplied in accordance with the guidance on appointments to public bodies issued by the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

15. The recruitment was carried out fully in line with the guidelines issued by the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments in April 1996 regarding public appointment to Non-Departmental Public Bodies. The posts were advertised in The Sunday Times on February 22nd, the Economist and The Times Higher Supplement on February 23rd and The Times on February 25th. 2001.

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