A new Chair and Member have been appointed to sit on the Independent Remuneration Board of the Senedd.
Dr Elizabeth Haywood has been appointed as Chair of the Board whilst Hugh Widdis has been appointed as a Board member. They will begin their appointments to the Board in September 2020.
Dr Haywood is currently a Board member of Natural Resources Wales, Hendre Group and the charity Leonard Cheshire. She was previously a Board member of Scottish Power Energy Networks, an independent member of the Welsh Audit Office’s Remuneration Board, and inaugural Chair of WCVA Services Ltd. She also chaired the Welsh Government’s Ministerial Task Force on City Regions.
Mr Widdis is the Head of the Government Legal Service for Northern Ireland, and Departmental Solicitor for the Northern Ireland Executive. Between July 2017 and May 2018 he was appointed temporarily to the position of Permanent Secretary to the Department of Finance for Northern Ireland. He has 20 years of experience in parliamentary services and government legal services.
Dr Elizabeth Haywood said:
“I am delighted to have the opportunity to Chair the Independent Remuneration Board and I look forward to serving alongside other Board members. These are challenging times not only for elected Members of the Senedd, but everyone in Wales, and I am excited at the prospect of the task that lies ahead.”
The Welsh Parliament was the first in the UK to set up an independent body to determine the pay and allowances of Members.
The Board was established by the National Assembly for Wales (Remuneration) Measure 2010 and has the responsibility of setting the remuneration and financial support for Members of the Senedd to enable them to fulfil their roles effectively.
Chief Executive and Clerk to the Senedd, Manon Antoniazzi, said:
“I am delighted we have been able to appoint a new Chair and Board member with such extensive and broad experience.
“The exceptionally high standard of people we have serving on the next Remuneration Board will help to give the people of Wales confidence that public funds are spent with probity, accountability, value for money and transparency.”
The next Independent Remuneration Board, which takes office in September 2020, will also include three other Board Members. Mike Redhouse and Dame Jane Roberts have agreed to remain on the Board for another five-year term, whilst Ronnie Alexander was selected in 2017 and appointed until 2022.
