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Board directors’
biographies
Sir Derek Wanless
Chairman
Sir Derek Wanless was appointed to the Board as an independent non-executive director in December 2003. He joined the board of NWL in January 2006, and, in July 2006, became Chairman of NWG and NWL. Sir Derek chairs the Nomination Committee and is a member of the Remuneration Committee. He became a director of National Westminster Bank in 1991 and its Group Chief Executive in 1992. He retired from this position in 1999. Sir Derek is currently Chairman of Legal and General plc’s Longevity Science Advisory Panel and a member of the Board for Actuarial Standards at the Financial Reporting Council.
John Cuthbert
Managing Director (until 31 March 2010)
John Cuthbert was appointed to the Board in May 2003. John joined the water industry in 1991 and was appointed Managing Director of North East Water plc in 1993. Following the acquisition of the former Northumbrian Water Group plc by Lyonnaise des Eaux in 1995, he transferred within the Group to become Managing Director of Essex & Suffolk Water plc. John took over as Managing Director of the former Northumbrian Water Group plc, and also of NWL, in 2001 and up until 31 March 2010, was a member of the Nomination Committee. John retired from the Group on 31 March 2010.
Heidi Mottram OBE
Chief Executive Officer (from 1 April 2010)
Heidi Mottram was appointed to the NWG and NWL boards, as an Executive Director, on 1 March 2010, and became Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Nomination Committee on 1 April. Heidi began her career with British Rail as a General Management Trainee in the mid 1980s. Her first senior position was that of Station Manager in Harrogate in 1986 and she then held a number of roles before joining Midland Mainline in 1999 as Operations Director.
Heidi was Commercial Director for Arriva Trains Northern from January 2004, before joining Serco-NedRailways in November 2004 as Managing Director, Northern Rail Limited. Heidi was named Rail Business Manager of the Year in 2009 and was awarded an OBE this year, for services to the rail industry.
Chris Green
Finance Director
Chris Green was appointed to the Board in May 2003. Chris joined the former Northumbrian Water Group plc in January 1990 and was initially involved in its diversified business activities before being appointed as Group Finance Director in 1997. Chris was appointed as Finance Director of NWL in April 2000 following the merger of that company with Essex & Suffolk Water plc.
Sir Patrick Brown
Senior Independent Non-executive Director
Sir Patrick Brown was appointed to the Board in May 2003 and to the board of NWL in January 2006. Sir Patrick chairs the Audit Committee and is a member of the Nomination and Remuneration Committees. He held various positions in the Department of Transport and the Department of the Environment, becoming Second Permanent Secretary and Chief Executive of the Property Services Agency in 1990. He was Permanent Secretary for the Department of Transport from 1991 to 1997. Sir Patrick became a non-executive director of the Go-Ahead Group plc in 1999 and its Chairman in 2002. He is also Chairman of the Advisory Committee of Alexander Proudfoot UK.
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Margaret Fay CBE
Independent Non-executive Director (from 1 June 2010)
Margaret Fay was appointed to the boards of NWG and NWL on 1 June 2010. Margaret was formerly Managing Director of Tyne Tees Television until she took early retirement in December 2003 in order to take up her current position as Chairman of One North East, the Regional Development Agency. She is a Board Member of the new Homes and Communities Agency, Patron of Tees Valley Community Foundation and, the Prince of Wales’ Ambassador for the North East of England. Margaret was awarded an OBE for services to broadcasting in 2004 and, in 2010, a CBE for services to regional development.
Claude Lamoureux
Non-executive Director
Claude Lamoureux was appointed to the boards of NWG and NWL on 1 December 2006. Claude was, until 1 December 2007, President and CEO of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board (OTPP). Previously, he spent 25 years as a financial executive with Metropolitan Life in Canada and the US. He is Chairman of Cordiant Capital and is also a director of Xstrata plc, Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services Inc, Maple Leaf Foods Inc, Atrium Innovations Inc. The Learning Partnership and the York University Foundation. OTPP holds 27% of the issued share capital of Northumbrian Water Group plc and Claude is, therefore, not regarded as an independent director.
Martin Nègre
Independent Non-executive Director
Martin Nègre was appointed to the Board in May 2003 and to the board of NWL in January 2006. Martin is a member of the Audit, Remuneration and Nomination Committees. He was, between April 2000 and April 2001, the CEO of the former Northumbrian Water Group plc and the chief corporate representative of its parent company, Suez, in the UK. He currently the chairs Ecofin Global Utilities Hedge Fund Limited, Ecofin Special Situations Utilities Fund and Ecofin North American Hedge Fund. His other directorships include Ecofin Water & Power Opportunities plc, Bolux Utilities (Sicav Luxembourg), Mercurius Utilities (Liechtenstein), EFMI Global Utilities and Infrastructure Funds plc and EFMI UBAM Global Utilities 130/130 Fund. All the above funds are focused on utilities. In 2005, he became a director of Promethean plc, an AIM-listed investment company and he sits on the supervisory board of Jean-Philippe Hottinguer & Cie.
Alex Scott-Barrett
Independent Non-executive Director
Alex Scott-Barrett was appointed to the Board of NWG in September 2006, having previously joined the board of NWL in November 2005. Alex chairs the Remuneration Committee and is a member of the Audit and Nomination Committees. Alex qualified as a chartered accountant with 1981 and joined Cazenove in 1982. He worked initially as an analyst and transferred to the corporate finance department in 1986, becoming a partner in 1988. In 1996 he became a director of the firm’s fund management division and, from 2000 to 2003, was the Chief Operating Officer of that division. Alex left Cazenove in 2003. He is a non-executive director of Lighthouse Group plc and is a Trustee of L’Arche and Help for Heroes.
Jenny Williams
Independent Non-executive Director
Jenny Williams joined the Board in May 2004, and the board of NWL in January 2006 and is a member of the Audit and Nomination Committees. She is a Commissioner and Chief Executive of the Gambling Commission and a Trustee of the charity, Connections at St Martins. She was Head of Water Finance and Flotation at the time of water privatisation and has held various directorships in Government departments, including the Home Office, the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions and the Inland Revenue. She was a Director-General of the Lord Chancellor’s Department (now the Department for Justice). Jenny will retire from the boards of NWG and NWL on 29 July 2010.
Martin Parker
General Counsel and Company Secretary
Martin Parker was appointed as Company Secretary of NWG in May 2003. Martin joined the former Northumbrian Water Group plc in 1990, concentrating on acquisitions, overseas projects and contracts with industrial customers, before being appointed Head of Group Legal Services in 1998 and General Counsel and Company Secretary of NWL in 2000. Martin is Secretary of all the Board committees.