Extension of Non-Executive Member appointments to the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners 2020

Date published: 31 July 2020

The Department for Infrastructure Minister has announced that the appointment terms of nine Non-Executive Members of the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners have been extended.

The extensions are effective from 1 August 2020 to 31 March 2021.

Minister Mallon said:

“I want to take this opportunity to thank the Members for their ongoing commitment to their posts.”

These extensions have been made in accordance with the Commissioner for Public Appointments for Northern Ireland’s Code of Practice.

Notes to editors: 

  1. Belfast Harbour Commissioners is a Public Trust Port established by legislation. The Commissioners have responsibility, under a series of Harbour Acts and Orders, for developing, maintaining and operating Belfast Port to the highest standards of efficiency, financial prudence, environmental awareness, safety and security to the benefit of all stakeholders. The Constitution of the Commissioners was established under Schedule 1 of the Belfast Harbour Order (Northern Ireland) 2002.
  2. The Belfast Harbour Commissioners currently have a membership of a Chair, an Executive Member, nine Non Executive Members, and four Councillor Members. The Non-Executive Members currently receive remuneration of £14, 716 per annum.
  3. The Department for Infrastructure does not reappoint board members automatically to a second term. All appointments are made through open competition. These are extensions rather than re-appointments. 
  4. A recruitment competition to appoint nine Non-Executive Members will be launched shortly. The competition was temporarily suspended as a result of COVID 19.
  5. Dr Ed Vernon has served on the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners since 2012. He has a background in the IT sector. He was founder and Chief Executive of BIC Systems and a former Board Member of Invest NI. He is currently a Board Member of BT N Ireland and Deputy Chair of Queen’s University Foundation Board.
  6. Ms Rotha Johnston has served on the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners since 2012.  She has a background in both private and public sectors. She is a Director of Wildflower Property and a former Business Development Director for LEDU and co-owner of Variety Foods. She is currently Chair of NI Screen (2013 to date), for which she receives remuneration of £10,000 per annum.
  7. Mr Kyle Alexander OBE has served on the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners since 2016.  He has a background in the Public Sector. He was Chief Executive of Laganside Corporation which was responsible for the transformation of Belfast’s waterfront and Cathedral Quarter.  He is a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and is a Trustee of The Eastside Greenways Trust and has been involved with the Connswater Community Greenway since its inception. He is also a Trustee of Parkinson’s UK, representing Northern Ireland interests on the national charity’s board.
  8. Mrs Diana Fitzsimons has served on the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners since 2016. She is a planner and a development surveyor and a Fellow of both the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).  She formerly worked as a Senior Lecturer at the Ulster University; as a Principal Commissioner with the Planning Appeals Commission; as Office Director of the planning consultancy Turley; and as a part-time Inspector with the English Planning Inspectorate. She is currently Chair of Radius Housing Association (not remunerated) and a Visiting Professor in the Built Environment at Ulster University.
  9. Dr Gerard O’Hare CBE DL has served on the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners since 2012.  He is a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. He is the founder of Parker Green International, a private international investment and development company. He is a former President of Newry Chamber of Commerce and Trade and a former Board Member of Intertrade Ireland. He is a member of the Institute of Directors and the CBI. Dr O’Hare is also a Trustee of Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.
  10. Ms Deborah Lange has served on the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners since 2016. She is a Certified Public Accountant and has held a number of senior executive positions within the accounting and high-tech sectors. She was the Senior Vice President of Global Tax at Oracle Corporation and also chaired the Silicon Valley Tax Directors Group. She is currently a Board Member of Invest NI, for which she receives remuneration of £12,517 per annum. Ms Lange is also an Assessor for the Women in Business Northern Ireland Diversity Mark and was a member of the Board of the Queens University Foundation from 2017 to 2019.
  11. Mrs Jane Chambers has served on the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners since 2016. Mrs Chambers is a Chartered Civil Engineer, Chartered Environmentalist and Project Manager. She has had a wide career specialising in major infrastructure and property development. Most recently she has been delivering wastewater infrastructure in Dublin and during her career, has worked on major projects including the Integrated Wastewater framework for NI Water, the Kilkeel Harbour Sea Defence, Springvale Campus, Belfast and Bangor Olympic Swimming Pool and Leisure Complex.
  12. Mr Richard Everitt has served on the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners since 2016. He has a background in both public and private sectors. He is a former Chief Executive of the Port of London Authority and of National Air Traffic Services Limited. He was also a Director of BAA plc. He is a former Chairman of Air Partner plc and is currently the Chairman of Dover Harbour Board.
  13. Ms Christine Hayes has served on the Board of Belfast Harbour Commissioners since 2012. She currently chairs the Belfast Harbour Pension Fund. Her background is in the UK Finance and the Banking Sector. She is a former Director of Credit Management within the TSB Group and also the Risk Director at Egg plc. Additionally, she has worked as a business consultant and coach and currently volunteers as a business mentor with the Prince’s Trust.
  14. All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, the Commissioner for Public Appointments for Northern Ireland requires the political activity of appointees to be published. All appointees have declared that they have not undertaken any recent political activity.
  15. All media queries should be directed to the Department for Infrastructure Press at press.office@infrastructure-ni.gov.uk.
  16. The Executive Information Service operates an out of hours service for media enquiries between 1800hrs and 0800hrs Monday to Friday and at weekends and public holidays. The duty press officer can be contacted on 028 9037 8110.

 

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