David Willetts appoints new Student Loans Company Chair
Mr Christian Brodie appointed as new Non-Executive Chair of the Student Loans Company.
Minister of State for Universities and Science, David Willetts, announced the appointment of a new Non-Executive Chair of the Student Loans Company (SLC) today (3 February 2014), Mr Christian (Chris) Brodie. The appointment was made jointly by English, Welsh, Northern Irish and Scottish Ministers.
Chris holds the position of Chair of Council at the University of Sussex and retired in July 2013 from the role of Vice Chairman of UBS Investment Bank. Besides his role at the University of Sussex, he is Chairman of the Chelsea and Westminster Health Charity, a National Health Service Charity supporting the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.
David Willetts, Minister for Universities and Science, said:
I am delighted to be appointing Chris as the new Chair of the SLC. He brings with him a wealth of experience at the highest levels from across the public, private and higher education sectors. His appointment will provide support and leadership to the SLC as it embarks on a major programme of transformation, replacing its ageing core ICT systems and fully embracing digital technologies to improve radically the way it delivers services to customers.
I would also like to convey my deepest appreciation to Professor Dame Glynis Breakwell for her work and commitment over the past three months as the interim Chair of the SLC.
The appointment is also in accordance with the code of practice for the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA).
Notes to editors
1.Chris Brodie will be appointed for 3 years from 1 February 2014. He is Chair of Council of the University of Sussex for 3 years from 1 August 2013. He was appointed as an independent member of Council in 2009 and its Vice-Chair (Finance) in 2011. He has held various positions in UBS from 1985 to 2013, including:
- Business Group Vice Chairman of UBS AG
- Vice Chairman of UBS Investment bank
- Chairman of UBS Senior Advisers
- Head of the Investment Banking Division for Europe, Middle East and Africa
- Head of Investment Banking for Australia
- UBS Investment Bank Board.
Chris is also a qualified solicitor and has practised in the UK.
2.The appointment succeeds Professor Dame Glynis Breakwell who steps down as interim Chair at the end of January 2014.
3.The Student Loans Company Ltd is incorporated under the Companies Acts. It has been designated an executive non-departmental public body (NDPB) by the Cabinet Office. Its Board is made up of a non-executive Chairman, the Chief Executive Officer, the Company Secretary and Non-Executive Directors.
4.The main functions of the company are administering the Higher and Further Education loans and grants scheme to students throughout the United Kingdom and, working in partnership with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, administering the repayment of student loans.
5.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. The appointee has not been involved in any political activity in the last 5 years.
6.The non-executive chair attends 11 Board meetings per year and participates in committees of the Board, receiving a fixed rate remuneration of £50,000 per annum. The Student Loans Company will apply PAYE deductions in respect of Income Tax and National Insurance.
7.This press notice relates to England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
8.The government’s economic policy objective is to achieve ‘strong, sustainable and balanced growth that is more evenly shared across the country and between industries’. It set 4 ambitions in the ‘Plan for Growth’, published at Budget 2011:
- to create the most competitive tax system in the G20
- to make the UK the best place in Europe to start, finance and grow a business
- to encourage investment and exports as a route to a more balanced economy
- to create a more educated workforce that is the most flexible in Europe
Work is underway across government to achieve these ambitions, including progress on more than 250 measures as part of the Growth Review. Developing an Industrial Strategy gives new impetus to this work by providing businesses, investors and the public with more clarity about the long-term direction in which the government wants the economy to travel.