Decision

Advice letter: Lieutenant General Sir Tyrone Urch, commission with Saïd Business School

Published 6 December 2021

1. BUSINESS APPOINTMENT APPLICATION: Lieutenant General Tyrone Urch, commission with Saïd Business School.

Lieutenant General Tyrone Urch (Lt Gen Urch), former Commander, Home Command & Standing Joint Command in the UK, sought advice from the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (the Committee) under the government’s Business Appointments Rules for former Crown servants (the Rules) on his proposal work with Saïd Business School (SBS) under his independent consultancy. The material information taken into consideration by the Committee is set out in the annex.

The purpose of the Rules is to protect the integrity of the government. Under the Rules, the Committee’s remit is to consider the risks associated with the actions and decisions made during Lt Gen Urch’s time in office, alongside the information and influence he may offer SBS.

The Rules set out that Crown servants must abide by the Committee’s advice^{[footnote 1]}. It is an applicant’s personal responsibility to manage the propriety of any appointment. Former Crown servants are expected to uphold the highest standards of propriety and act in accordance with the 7 Principles of Public Life.

2. The Committee’s consideration

The Committee^{[footnote 2]} considered this commission to be consistent with the description of Lt Gen Urch’s consultancy which he described as ‘…aimed at Non- Executive advisory roles in non-defence sectors and comprise of leadership, team building, mentoring, project delivery, and construction programming advice’.

When considering this application the Committee noted Lt Gen Urch attended the Major Projects Leadership Academy (MPLA) programme which is run by SBS. However, this was part of a training course and his contact was limited to that of an attendee of this programme. It took into account Lt Gen Urch had no official dealings with SBS and was not involved in any funding or contractual dealings with SBS and there is no relationship between the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and SBS. Therefore the risk is low that this commission was offered as a reward for actions taken while in service.

The Committee noted this role with SBS does not overlap with Lt Gen Urch’s time in service. However, the Committee noted there was an inherent risk he could have access to general privileged information that may provide an unfair advantage to SBS. This risk is limited though as the MOD have no concerns regarding his access to information and the organisation does not operate in the defence sector. The Committee considered the risks associated with his access to information would be sufficiently mitigated by the condition in place which prevents the use of privileged information.

There are also inherent risks attached to his network of contacts across the UK government/ Whitehall. The conditions below include a ban on lobbying the UK government and a restriction on providing advice on the terms of, a bid or contract relating directly to the work of the UK government, to mitigate the potential for unfair advantage to his clients if they apply for contracts or funding from the government.

Although this application has been made before Lt Gen Urch has left office the Committee is prepared to provide advice now. However, the Committee wishes to make clear its recommendation is made on the basis of the information provided. If Lt Gen Urch should become aware of any circumstances that would be relevant to his application and this advice, in the gap between receiving this advice and taking up this role, he should revert to the Committee for further advice.

The Committee’s advises, under the Government’s Business Appointment Rules, that this appointment, with Saïd Business School, should be subject to the same conditions which were previously applied to his independent consultancy:

• he should not draw on (disclose or use for the benefit of himself or the persons or organisations to which this advice refers) any privileged information available to him from his time in Crown service;

• for two years from his last day in Crown service, he should not become personally involved in lobbying the UK government, the UK MOD or any of its Arm’s Length Bodies on behalf of those he advises under his independent consultancy (including parent companies, subsidiaries, partners and clients); nor should he make use, directly or indirectly, of his contacts in the government and/or Crown service to influence policy, secure business/funding or otherwise unfairly advantage those he advises under his independent consultancy (including parent companies, subsidiaries, partners and clients);

• for two years from his last day in Crown service he should not provide advice to any company or organisation on the terms of, or with regard to the subject matter of, a bid or contract with, or relating directly to the work of the UK government, the UK MOD and its trading funds or any of its Arm’s Length Bodies; and

• for two years from his last day in Crown service, before accepting any commissions for his independent consultancy and or/before extending or otherwise changing the nature of his commissions, he should seek advice from the Committee. The Committee will decide whether each commission is consistent with the terms of the consultancy and consider any relevant factors under the Business Appointment Rules.

By ‘privileged information’ we mean official information to which a Minister or Crown servant has had access as a consequence of his or her office or employment and which has not been made publicly available. Applicants are also reminded that they may be subject to other duties of confidentiality, whether under the Official Secrets Act, the Civil Service Code or otherwise.

The Business Appointment Rules explain that the restriction on lobbying means that the former Crown servant/minister “should not engage in communication with Government (Ministers, civil servants, including special advisers, and other relevant officials/public office holders) – wherever it takes place - with a view to influencing a Government decision, policy or contract award/grant in relation to their own interests or the interests of the organisation by which they are employed, or to whom they are contracted or with which they hold office.”

I should be grateful if you would inform us as soon as Lt Gen Urch takes up employment with this organisation, or if it is announced that he will do so. We shall otherwise not be able to deal with any enquiries, since we do not release information about appointments that have not been taken up or announced. This could lead to a false assumption being made about whether he has complied with the Rules.

Please also inform us if Lt Gen Urch proposes to extend or otherwise change the nature of his consultancy as, depending on the circumstances, it may be necessary for him to make a fresh application.

Once the appointment has been publicly announced or taken up, we will publish this letter on the Committee’s website, and where appropriate, refer to it in the relevant annual report.

2.1 Annex - Material information

3. The role

SBS is the business school of the University of Oxford, named after Syrian billionaire Wafic Saïd. It is part of Oxford’s Social Sciences Division. Lt Gen Urch said he would offer SBS advice on course design, and lecturing

Lt Gen Urch said he would offer MPCT programme design advice and does not expect his role to involve contact with government.

Lt Gen Urch also informed the Committee SBS runs the Major Projects Leadership Academy (MPLA) programme on behalf of the Cabinet Office. The MPLA was developed and is run in partnership with the SBS. The academy builds the skills of senior project leaders across government, making it easier to carry out complex projects effectively. ‘In the future, no one will be able to lead a major government project without completing the academy programme’. Lt Gen Urch attended this programme which is an 18 month flag-ship course.

4. Dealings in office

Lt Gen Urch advised the Committee he did not meet with SBS while in service nor does his former department, MOD, have a relationship with SBS. As such he was not involved in any commercial or contractual decisions relating to SBS. He also told the Committee he did not have any involvement in any relevant policy development or decisions that would have affected SBS nor did he have access to sensitive information. He also confirmed he did not meet with competitors of SBS.

5. Department assessment

The MOD provided their views on this application. It confirmed the details provided by Lt Gen Urch and stated it had no concerns with the appointment. The MOD confirmed it sends its officers to SBS as part of government MPLA course. It recommended the appointment be subject to the same conditions attached to his consultancy.

1. Which apply by virtue of the Civil Service Management Code, The Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, The Queen’s Regulations and the Diplomatic Service Code ↩

2. This application for advice was considered by Jonathan Baume; Andrew Cumpsty; Sarah de Gay; The Rt Hon Lord Pickles; Richard Thomas; Mike Weir; Lord Larry Whitty and Dr Susan Liautaud. Isabel Doverty was unavailable. ↩