Guidance

UK National Contact Point (UK NCP) steering board: terms of appointment

Updated 18 October 2024

The terms of appointment listed below are applicable in full to UK National Contact Point (UK NCP) external Steering Board members. Where appropriate, these terms of appointment are also applicable to internal government department Steering Board members also.

This document sets out the principal terms and conditions of appointment.

1. Commencement of appointment

1.a. You are appointed by the Minister of State for International Trade. Your appointment begins on 20 March 2023.

2. Duration

2.a. Subject to earlier termination (if applicable) your appointment will be for a fixed period of 3 years. Your term of appointment will run from 20 March 2023 and will end on 19 March 2026.

2.b. Should the NCP Steering Board be dissolved, restructured or wound up during the period of your appointment, your appointment may be affected accordingly.

2.c. In order to maintain high standards of public life any appointments made under the terms of this note may be terminated in the event that an appointee is convicted of a criminal offence, and/or where it is evident that the appointee’s conduct or associations means that he or she is no longer a suitable person to participate on the NCP Steering Board.

3. Job title and duties

3.a. You are appointed as a member of the UK NCP Steering Board.

3.b. This appointment does not mean that you are an employee of the Department for Business and Trade or the Crown. Accordingly, nothing in this terms of appointment shall be construed as, or taken, to create a contract of employment between yourself and the department or His Majesty’s Government.

3.c. The role of the Steering Board, and its members, is to oversee and support the work of the NCP. It has 3 core functions:

• to ensure the NCP operates in line with its published procedures for handling complaints
• to review the NCP’s compliance with its procedures for handling complaints - these take place at the conclusion of the complaint process, where requested by either of the parties to the complaint
• to provide advice to the NCP on generic issues that emerge in the course of casework, which might have relevance for future complaints

Members may also be asked to advise on and support the NCP’s ‘outreach’ work, for example meeting foreign delegations or participating in stakeholder events.

3.d. The NCP Steering Board meets 4 times per year. The meetings themselves last approximately 2 hours (normally in the morning) and will usually be held in London. However, they may be attended virtually. In addition to this, the Steering Board may be required to meet on an ad hoc basis should there be a review required outside of the quarterly meetings. Alternate members need only attend should their corresponding full member be unable to.

4. Remuneration

4.a. No fee will be payable as a salary or equivalent for your role as a Steering Board member.

5. Expenses and subsistence

5.a. The department will not reimburse any expenses.

6. Reporting lines and Civil Service support

6.a. You will report to the Chair in respect of your duties pursuant to the appointment. The work of the Steering Board is supported by a Civil Service Secretariat. There is no provision of IT equipment, or office space for independent work, to undertake the role.

7. Notice and termination of these terms

7.a. The minister may in their absolute discretion terminate your appointment immediately at any time with or without notice, by giving notice in writing, if you are guilty of any conduct that means that you are unsuitable to continue to hold this appointment.

Reasons for termination include any one of the following:

• you are guilty of/responsible for any misconduct (whether criminal or civil) that makes you unsuitable to continue to hold this appointment; or
• your attendance becomes so erratic as to interfere with the good running of the Steering Board (refer to 13 a below); or
• your conduct brings or might bring the department and/or the work of the department into disrepute; or
• you are, in the opinion of the Chair of the Board, unable or unfit to discharge the functions of the appointment for any other reason

8. Grounds for renewal of appointment

8.a. Subject to a review of the position before the end of your current term, you may be eligible for reappointment for a further term. There is no guarantee of reappointment, and the maximum period of appointment must not exceed 10 years.

9. Conduct

9.a. It is essential that you are, and are seen to be, honest and impartial in the exercise of your duties.  You must not allow your judgement or integrity to be compromised or permit there to arise any reasonable grounds for suspicion as to the compromise of your judgement and integrity.  Your conduct in office should be at all times in accordance with the Nolan Report Recommendations, ‘The Seven Principles of Public Life’, and the Code of Conduct for Board Members of public bodies 2017 .

9.b. You should report the matter in writing to the minister responsible for the UK NCP or the Chair of the Steering Board if you believe you are being required to act in a way which:

• is illegal, improper, or unethical
•  is in breach of constitutional convention or a professional code
•  may involve possible maladministration
•  is otherwise inconsistent with the Seven Principles of Public Life

10. Conflicts of interest

10.a. You must declare, to the Chair of the Steering Board, any personal or business interest which may, or may be perceived (by a reasonable member of the public) to influence your judgement in performing your functions and obligations under this agreement. These interests include (without limitation) personal direct and indirect pecuniary interests and any such interests of your close family members and/or of people living in the same household as you or as your close family members. You are under a continuing duty to declare these interests during the term of your appointment.

10.b. The duty to declare conflicts of interest is an ongoing duty applicable throughout the term of your appointment.

10.c. You must inform the minister or chair, in advance, of any new appointments that may impinge on your performance of your functions and obligations under this agreement.

10.d. It is your responsibility to provide prior notification of any potential conflict you become aware of. If this is not possible, declare the conflict at the meeting and where necessary, withdraw from any discussions where you have any interests that may, or may be perceived to, influence your judgement.

10.e. All information on potential conflicts of interest will be held by the Secretariat and could be disclosed to the public under the Freedom of Information Act (2000). In entering into this agreement and accepting this appointment you thereby consent to this disclosure.

10.f. The UK NCP Secretariat will seek for you to provide an update annually on any personal or business interest which may, or may be perceived (by a reasonable member of the public) to influence your judgement in performing your functions and obligations under this agreement. This annual request for an update does not discharge you from your responsibility to inform the secretariat and chair of any perceived or real conflict as soon as you become aware.

10.g. To help you understand the arrangements in place for registering interests and conflicts of interest a copy of the policy is enclosed with this terms of appointment.

11. Transparency and openness

11.a. In line with the Cabinet Office Code of Conduct for Board Members of Public Bodies, the Steering Board will operate in an open and transparent manner. In the interests of transparency and openness, it is natural and right that you may wish to feed back to your constituency, subject to confidentiality requirements.

12. Confidentiality

12.a. The appointment carries with it a duty of confidentiality in relation to the information you receive. You must not disclose any information which is confidential in nature, or which is provided in confidence, without authority. Additionally, you must not use official information gained during the course of your duties for personal gain or political purposes. Confidentiality and misuse of information duties continue to apply after you have left the Steering Board.

13. Personal liability

13.a. You may be personally liable if you make a fraudulent or negligent statement which results in a loss to the third party, and you may commit a breach of confidence under common law or a criminal offence under insider dealing legislation if you misuse information gained through holding the offices.

14. Attendance

14.a. Each member of the NCP Steering Board is expected to attend the meetings regularly. The appointment may be terminated without notice if erratic attendance begins to interfere with the good running of the Steering Board.

15. Data processing

15.a. The department will process personal data relating to you in accordance with relevant departmental data protection policies

15.c. The department may transfer personal data and sensitive personal data outside the European Economic Area in accordance with the department’s data protection privacy notice