Communications and telecomms
BBC Trust appointments
Sonita Alleyne and Aideen McGinley have been appointed to the BBC Trust, Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt announced today.
Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and The Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP
Sonita Alleyne and Aideen McGinley have been appointed to the BBC Trust, Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt announced today. The appointments are for 4 years and begin on 1 November.
He has also reappointed Anthony Fry for a second term of 3 years.
The BBC Trust is the governing body of the BBC, responsible for representing the interests of licence fee payers. It applies the principle of public value in holding to account the Executive Board, which is responsible for the day-to-day management of the BBC. The Trust also ensures that the BBC's activities are not anti-competitive and are consistent with a vibrant and dynamic broadcasting market.
Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, Jeremy Hunt, said:
"I am pleased Sonita Alleyne is joining the BBC Trust. With her long and distinguished history of involvement with the radio and the broadcasting sector she will make a most valuable contribution.
"I welcome Aideen McGinley's appointment as BBC Trust member for Northern Ireland. She brings with her 25 years of experience in central and local government, community service and economic development, and working with the voluntary and community sectors."
Sonita Alleyne holds a number of governance roles including the London Legacy Development Corporation, the British Board of Film Classification, regional newspaper group Archant and The University of the Arts London. Sonita has served as a Non-Executive Board member for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport during London's bid for the 2012 Games and has also chaired Creative Skillset's Radio Sector Skills Council. A Fellow of The Royal Society of the Arts and the Radio Academy, she was awarded an OBE for services to broadcasting in 2004.
Aideen McGinley is Chief Executive of Ilex, the Urban Regeneration Company for Derry-Londonderry, on secondment from her post as Permanent Secretary of the Department of Employment and Learning, prior to which she was Permanent Secretary of the Department of Culture, Arts & Leisure in Northern Ireland. She is currently a member of the Northern Ireland British Council, the Northern Ireland Chief Executives Forum, a Trustee of Fermanagh Trust, and a Governor of St Michael's College in Enniskillen. Aideen is also Director of the Culture Company 2013. She was awarded an OBE in the Millennium Honours List (2000), honorary membership of the Royal Society of Ulster Architects (2004) and the Ulster Business Award for her role in UK City of Culture 2013 (2010).
Anthony Fry is currently chair of Dairy Crest, CALA Group and Espirito Santo Investment Banking in London. He has held numerous non-executive positions in both the private and non-profit sector. During his time as Head of Global Media and European Telecoms at BZW/CSFB, he developed a deep understanding of the UK and global media industries before moving to Lehman Brothers as head of UK operations. He joined investment banking boutique Evercore Partners in 2008, where he was senior adviser until 2011.
The BBC Trust is led by the Chairman and has 11 other members including the Vice-Chairman. All members are responsible for representing the public interest as a whole. The Trust includes four members formally designated as members for each of the constituent nations of the United Kingdom.
Trust members are remunerated at a level of £35,935 for a two day per week time commitment. Trust members currently take a voluntary reduction of 8.3 per cent from their fees. The reduced rate for this position is £32,952.
The level of fees for Trust members for the UK nations is £41,070 a year. BBC Trust members are currently taking a voluntary reduction in their fees. The reduced level of fees is £37,660 a year.
These appointments and reappointment have been made in accordance with the Code of Practice of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees' political activity (if any declared) to be made public. No political activity has been declared by Sonita Alleyne, Aideen McGinley and Anthony Fry.