FCA and PSR Boards appoint new members to decision-making committees, including new chair and two deputy chairs

Press Releases First published: Last updated: 21/09/2015

The FCA and PSR Boards have appointed new members to four decision-making committees: the FCA’s Regulatory Decisions Committee (RDC) and Competition Decisions Committee and the PSR’s Enforcement Decisions Committee (EDC) and Competition Decisions Committee.

These four committees are responsible for taking certain regulatory decisions on behalf of the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) and PSR (Payment Systems Regulator). They are set up by the FCA and PSR, with members drawn from across a spectrum of business, consumer and industry experience.

In future changes, Andrew Long and David Ashton, two of the longest serving members of the RDC will leave the committee when they have completed their respective terms of office. Andrew Long was Chair (formerly Acting Chair) of the RDC between 2012-2014. David Ashton has been an Acting Deputy Chair since January 2015.

John Griffith-Jones, chairman of the FCA and PSR, commented:

“These committees play an extremely important role and I am delighted we have been able to attract members of such experience and quality. Their expertise will be central to helping both FCA and PSR achieve their respective objectives and raising standards.”

“I would also like to thank Andrew and David for the invaluable contribution they have given to the RDC over recent years.”

The new appointments:

Chair

  • Tim Parkes will become Chair of the RDC and EDC in January 2016.

Deputy Chair

  • Elizabeth France has been appointed as a Deputy Chair of the RDC and EDC.
  • John Hull will become a Deputy Chair of the RDC in January 2016.

Committee Members

  • Kevin Brown has been appointed as a member of the RDC and EDC.
  • Chris Cummings has been appointed as a member of the RDC and EDC.
  • Jonathan Haskel has been appointed as a member of the EDC and the FCA and PSR CDCs.
  • Stuart McIntosh has been appointed as a member of the EDC and the FCA and PSR CDCs.
  • Professor Robin Mason has been appointed as a member of the EDC and the FCA and PSR CDCs.Malcolm Nicholson has been appointed as a member of the EDC and the FCA and PSR CDCs.
  • Caroline Ramsay has been appointed as a member of the RDC and EDC.

Notes to editors

  1. You can read more about the work of the RDC, EDC and CDCs on the FCA and PSR websites, along with the biographies of current committee members.
  2. Tim Parkes will become Chair of the RDC and EDC in January 2016. He has been a partner at global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills LLP for more than 28 years, after serving 10 years as an associate and articled clerk. As a commercial disputes solicitor in the areas of litigation, arbitration and alternative dispute resolution, he practised in both London and Hong Kong, dealing most recently with complex, high-value disputes arising out of the global financial crisis, often involving regulatory considerations. He was the firm's Executive Partner, Asia Managing Partner and latterly Head of Commercial Litigation in London. He was also a member of the firm's governing Council for many years. Tim has worked as Legal Assessor to the London Stock Exchange's Quotations Committee and sat for a total of five years as an elected Council Member of the Law Society of Hong Kong. During his career he has taken a keen interest in legal pro bono work, which has included voluntary work in a CAB-linked legal advice centre. He is currently a trustee of the Army Museums Ogilby Trust.
  3. Elizabeth France is Chair of the Security Industry Authority, Chair of the Police Advisory Board for England and Wales, a member of the British Transport Police Authority, a member of the Ofgem Enforcement Decision Panel and a member of the General Assembly of Manchester University. Until 31 March 2014 Elizabeth was Chair of the Office for Legal Complaints. From 2002 to 2009 she was Chief Ombudsman and Chief Executive of the Ombudsman Service Ltd, which provided the Telecommunications Ombudsman Service (Otelo), the Energy Ombudsman Service and the Surveyors Ombudsman Service. She was a Non-Executive Director of the Serious Organised Crime Agency from 2005-2010. Elizabeth began her career in the Home Office, became the Data Protection Registrar in September 1994 and Information Commissioner in January 2001. She has been awarded honorary doctorates by the Universities of De Montfort, Loughborough and Bradford and is a Fellow of Aberystwyth University. In June 2002 she was awarded a CBE for services to data protection. Elizabeth has been appointed as a Deputy Chair of the RDC and EDC.
  4. John Hull has almost twenty years’ experience as a partner at two international law firms, including more than ten years with Latham & Watkins where he has served as Vice Chair of the Global Litigation Department, Chair of the London Litigation Department and led the firm’s London banking litigation practice. His areas of expertise include disputes in the areas of financial services, regulatory matters and professional negligence. He has been involved in some of the most complex and high-profile matters in the financial services sector, in a variety of jurisdictions. John has been a Deputy District Judge since 2013. He is also a CEDR accredited mediator. John will become a Deputy Chair of the RDC in January 2016.
  5. Kevin Brown brings over 35 years of experience in payment systems, cards, treasury, transaction banking and fund management gained in UK and international financial services.  He sits as a non-executive/independent member on a number of bodies. He is currently a Non-Executive Board member of  PhonepayPlus, Non-Executive Chairman of RBS (Luxembourg) SA and Senior Advisor, Global Payments, KPMG. He was also on the inaugural Advisory Panel for the newly formed UK Payment Systems Regulator until mid-2015. Kevin is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and was with RBS for 35 years until April 2014, formally Global Head of Transaction Services, he has a strong external profile as an industry expert and speaker on global transaction banking, payments and treasury/funds business and regulatory issues. He has represented RBS and the UK on a number of external bodies. He had direct involvement in the design/development of the UK’s Faster Payments service and became the inaugural Chairman of the UK Faster Payments Scheme in November 2011 (until 2013). Kevin has been appointed as a member of the RDC and EDC.
  6. Chris Cummings is the founding Chief Executive of TheCityUK, a post he has held since September 2010. He has led and launched two trade associations in the financial advice sector and written two books on financial services regulation. Chris has also held senior posts in banking, insurance and in consulting where he advised major global firms and public sector bodies. Chris is a member of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Diplomatic Excellence Panel and has advised the Treasury on regulatory matters. He is a member of Cass Business School’s Strategy Board and holds a Visiting Professorship from the University of South Wales. He is a Fellow of the CIM, a columnist, commentator and speaker on issues of international policy and regulation in financial and related professional services. Chris has been appointed as a member of the RDC and EDC.
  7. Jonathan Haskel is Professor of Economics at Imperial College Business School, Imperial College London.  He was previously Professor and Head of Department at the Department of Economics, Queen Mary, University of London. He has taught at the University of Bristol and London Business School and been a visiting professor at the Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College: Stern School of Business, New York University and the Australian National University. His research interests are growth, productivity and the knowledge economy and he has published papers on these topics in a number of journals.Jonathan is a research fellow of the Centre for Economic Policy Research and the IZA, Bonn and an Associate Editor of Economica. He has just finished his term as a Reporting Panel Member of the UK Competition Commission serving on market investigations into British Airports Authority, home credit and mobile telephones. He is an elected member of the Council of the Royal Economic Society. Jonathan has been appointed as a member of the EDC and the FCA and PSR CDCs.
  8. Stuart McIntosh is an economist with extensive experience in regulation and competition economics.He was previously an executive member of the board of Ofcom, the UK communications regulator. He had executive responsibility for Ofcom’s work on the economic regulation of the sectors overseen by Ofcom, encompassing both regulatory policy and enforcement. He was also responsible for the conduct of Competition Act investigations undertaken by Ofcom employing its powers as a concurrent regulator (with the Competition and Markets Authority).Stuart was previously a partner with Coopers & Lybrand/ PwC, where he led the firm’s telecommunications strategy consulting practice. He also held senior positions with IBM and BT. Stuart is currently a senior adviser to KPMG’s telecommunications practice and is also a member of the ManSat Advisory Board. Stuart has been appointed as a member of the EDC and the FCA and PSR CDCs.
  9. Professor Robin Mason is an academic economist with extensive experience in competition and regulation. He is Pro Vice Chancellor at the University of Exeter, and Executive Dean of the Business School and Professor of Economics. Previously he was Eric Roll Professor of Economics and Head of Economics at the University of Southampton. His area of academic expertise is industrial organization in general, and in particular the economics of regulation and competition. He is a Council member of the Chartered Association of Business Schools, a fellow of the Centre for Economic Policy Research, and a companion of the Chartered Management Institute. He has been a member of the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (formerly the Competition Commission) since 2009, and sits on the CMA’s specialist Communications Act panel, as well as its cost of capital advisory group. He has worked with several of the utility regulators in the UK, including Ofgem (on cost of capital, as part of their review of price controls) and Ofcom (where he served as a member of the panel of economic advisers). He has also advised the Prime Minister of Mauritius on competition legislation, and provided expert advice for ComReg, the Irish communications regulator. He has acted as an economic consultant and expert witness for a number of private sector clients. Robin also serves as a Governor of the Maynard School in Exeter, Devon. Robin has been appointed as a member of the EDC and the FCA and PSR CDCs.
  10. Malcolm Nicholson was a partner at Slaughter and May specialising in competition matters for over 25 years until his retirement in 2009. Since 2009 he has been a Panel member of the Competition and Markets Authority (formerly the Competition Commission). He was a non-executive director of the Cambridge University Hospitals NHC Trust from 2010 to 2012, and a director of the Solicitors Regulation Authority from 2009 to 2013. Since 2012 he has been a member of the Conduct Committee and Chair of the Case Management Committee of the Financial Reporting Council. Malcolm has been appointed as a member of the EDC and the FCA and PSR CDCs
  11. Caroline Ramsay is a Chartered Accountant with 20 years’ experience in insurance and investment management gained during her executive career in Finance and Audit. Caroline has previously been UK Chief Financial Officer for RSA and prior to that held a number of senior finance roles within Aviva, after spending the first 12 years of her career at KPMG where she qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1984.  In June 2015 Caroline retired from her role as Group Chief Internal Auditor, RSA Group, to develop her Non Executive portfolio. Caroline is the Non-Executive Audit Committee Chair at Aegon UK, a leading UK pensions provider. Caroline has been appointed as a member of the RDC and EDC.
  12. On the 1 April 2013 the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) became responsible for the conduct supervision of all regulated financial firms and the prudential supervision of those not supervised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA).
  13. The FCA has an overarching strategic objective of ensuring the relevant markets function well. To support this it has three operational objectives: to secure an appropriate degree of protection for consumers; to protect and enhance the integrity of the UK financial system; and to promote effective competition in the interests of consumers.
  14. Find out more information about the FCA.