Mr Michael Deane, Proprietor of Deanes Restaurant Group; Mr Thompson Keating, Director of Corporate Services of the South Eastern Regional College; and Dr Sally Montgomery, Chief Executive of W5, will serve on the Board for a period of three years, effective from 1 July 2008.
A further five new appointees will take up their positions from 1 January 2009 – Mr Clive Gordon, Managing Director of the Environment and Development Company; Mr Howard Hastings, Managing Director of Hastings Hotels; Mr Alistair McGowan, former Director of Rural College/Derrynoid Centre, Draperstown; Mr Donald Price, recently retired Chief Executive of the Northern Bank; and Mr Martyn Todd, Director of Recreation with Down District Council.
Commenting on the appointments, the Minister said: “The new members are joining the NITB Board at an important time for local tourism.
“The Executive’s Programme for Government has set stretching targets to increase tourism levels here, which include increasing the number of tourists visiting the region from 1.98million to 2.5million by 2011 and increasing tourism revenue from £370million to £520million.
“The wide range of skills and experiences that the new members will bring to the Board, can assist the NITB in its pursuit to grow and develop Northern Ireland tourism. I wish the new members well in their appointments.”
The appointments have been made in accordance with the Code of Practice of the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments for Northern Ireland.
Membership of the Board of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board carries a remuneration of £4,845 per annum.
Notes to Editors:
1. Pen Pictures
MR MICHAEL DEANE
Mr Deane is the proprietor of Deanes Restaurant Group employing 109 people.
Since 2006 he has been the Leader of ‘Get Into Cooking Initiative’ in NI as part of the Prince’s Trust UK Scheme.
He has undertaken a number of public speaking engagements at home and in London to support the education sector and tourism industry in the areas of nutrition and quality of the food offering.
Public appointments held: None
Mr Deane has not been engaged in any political activity in the last five years.
MR THOMPSON KEATING
Mr Keating is the Director of Corporate Services of the South Eastern Regional College. Prior to this he was Deputy Director at North Down and Ards Institute.
He is currently a Director of the North Down Local Strategic Partnership a Director of the North Down Business Village and a member of the Construction Industry Training Board.
He has also been Head of Estates and Risk Management at North Down and Ards Institute as well as Estates Manager and Building Supervisor at QUB.
Public appointments held: Member of the Construction Industry Training Board. remuneration £144 per day.
Mr Keating has not been engaged in any political activity in the last five years.
DR SALLY MONTGOMERY
Dr Montgomery is the Chief Executive of W5. Prior to taking up this post she was Head of Education at the Ulster Museum before being seconded as Project Director for the development of the Science Centre now known as W5.
She is a currently a Board member of the Multi-Cultural Resource Centre and a member of the RSPB Advisory Panel in NI assisting with developing and implementing local strategic plans and a Board member for Tall Ships.
Other appointments include membership of Ofcom’s Northern Ireland Advisory Panel.
Public appointments held: None
Dr Montgomery has not been engaged in any political activity in the last five years.
MR CLIVE GORDON
Mr Gordon is currently Director of the Environment and Development Company and Director of the Sustainable Development Trust.
He was formerly a Director of Development for Center Parcs and an Assistant Director for Nottinghamshire County Council.
From 2001-2006 Mr Gordon held senior positions at the National Museums of Science and Industry incorporating the Science Museum in London and Swindon, National Railway Museum in York, and National Media Museum in Bradford.
He was Vice Chairman of the Tourism Society from 1996-1999. From 1992-2002 he was Chairman of the Environment Committee of the Institute of Hospitality. From 1999-2002 he was a member of the Communication in the Food Chain Task Force for the Office of Science and Technology Foresight Programme.
Mr Gordon has not been engaged in any political activity in the last five years
MR HOWARD HASTINGS
Mr Hastings is currently the Managing Director of Hastings Hotels. He is also a Director of Merrion Hotel Ltd (ROI) and a Director and Chairman of the Board of Governors at Rockport School Ltd.
During the 1990’s he was Chairman of the Institute of Directors and Founding Chairman of the Northern Ireland Hotels Federation.
He has also been a member of Castlereagh College governing body and a Board Member of Business in the Community and the Bank of Ireland Advisory Board.
Previous public appointments include Tourism Ireland, T&EA, Investors in People, New Deal Task Force and the Tourism and Hospitality Training Council.
Mr Hastings has not been engaged in any political activity in the last five years
MR ALISTAIR MCGOWAN
Mr McGowan is the CEO of the RUC Athletics Association with responsibility for the development and maintenance of sport, recreation and business services for 10,000 members.
In 2007 he led the team which secured the World Police & Fire Games for Belfast in 2013, this is the third largest multisports event in the world, which will attract around 12,000 competitors from 100 countries.
From 1997-2003 he was Director of Rural College/ Derrynoid Centre, Draperstown, he was Chairman of Sperrins Tourism and a Foundation Governor of Sperrin Integrated College. He was Deputy Director of the NI Growth Challenge with responsibility for the operation of the organisation.
From 1986-1995 he held various roles with Northern Ireland Electricity
Mr McGowan has not been engaged in any political activity in the last five years.
MR DONALD PRICE
Mr Price was Chief Executive of the Northern Bank since 1998 until his retirement in June. Prior to this he has held a number of senior management positions in Northern Ireland and overseas.
From 1995-1998 he was Managing Director (MD) of Belfast Telegraph Newspapers and for 3 years previous to that he was MD with Northern Ireland Railways Company Ltd. He worked for BP for over 18 years in a variety of commercial management roles including Chief Executive BP Africa, MD BP in Hamburg, Director BP Switzerland and Commercial Manager BP in the Far East (Tokyo).
He also currently holds the position of non-executive director to the Board of NI Water with a remuneration of up to £21,000 per annum.
Mr Price has not been engaged in any political activity in the last five years
MR MARTYN TODD
Martyn Todd is currently the Director of Recreation with Down District Council where he is responsible for a budget of £6million and, with a department of around 100 people, manages a range of recreational amenities which attract visitors to the Down District area. These include beaches, parks and other recreational tourist attractions in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
From 2002 – 2007 he was Business Improvement Manager with Invest NI helping client companies become more effective. Prior to this he spent six years as a Senior Executive with LEDU leading the Management Development Team.
In 2000 he was awarded an MBE for co-ordinating the voluntary project that involved 1000 young people in erecting the Strangford Stone, the tallest megalith in Ireland.
Mr Todd has not been engaged in any political activity in the last five years
2. None of the appointees carried out any political activity in the past five years.
3. The Northern Ireland Tourist Board was originally established under the Development of the Tourist Traffic Act (NI) 1948. Its constitution and continuation were affirmed in the Tourism (NI) Order 1992. NITB is funded by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment from monies provided by Parliament. The aims of the NITB are to:
- encourage tourism;
- encourage the provision and improvement of tourist accommodation and tourist amenities and· advise the Department generally on the formulation and implementation of its policy in relation to the development of tourism about passenger transport, coal, natural gas and electricity.
4. Under the provisions of the Order, the Board of the NITB shall consist of 9 members, including a Chairman.
5. All appointments and reappointments 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 the political activity of appointees (if any declared) to be published.
6. For media enquiries please contact the DETI Press Office, telephone 028 9052 9297.7. Outside office hours, please contact the Duty Press Officer via pager number 07699 715 440 and your call will be returned.
