Non-Executive Directors

Non Executive Directors are contactable via the Departmental Secretariat, 4th Floor, Caxton House, 6-12 Tothill Street, London, SW1H 9NA.

Ian Cheshire – Lead Non-Executive Member of the Departmental Board

Ian Cheshire was appointed as the Lead Non-Executive Member of the Departmental Board on 1 February 2011.

Biography

Ian was appointed Group Chief Executive of Kingfisher plc in January 2008. Prior to this he was Chief Executive of B&Q from June 2005. His previous roles at Kingfisher include Chief Executive of International and Development, Chief Executive of e-Kingfisher and Group Director of Strategy and Development. Before joining Kingfisher in 1998 he worked for a number of retail businesses including Sears plc where he was Group Commercial Director.

Ian is also a member of:

• The Prince of Wales’ Corporate Leaders Group on Climate Change
• The Employers’ Forum on Disability President’s Group

John Clare

John Clare was appointed to the Departmental Board in April 2011. He is also the non-executive Chair of the Jobcentre Plus Board. 

Biography

John joined Dixons in 1985 as its Marketing Director, and became its Managing Director the following year. He was appointed to the Group Board in 1988, became Group Managing Director in 1992 and Group Chief Executive in 1994. John retired from DSGi in September 2007. He was a non-executive on the Board of JJB between July 2009 and December 2010.

John is the Chairman of Dreams Plc. He is also a non-executive director of Dyson Ltd and Digital Technology Ltd; and he is a Member of Edinburgh University Development Board.

John has also worked with the Board of Hammerson and the President of the Incorporated Society of British Advertisers.

Dame Clara Furse

Dame Clara Furse was appointed to the Departmental Board in June 2011.

Biography

Dame Clara Furse is a non-executive Director of the Legal and General Group, Nomura Holdings (and its FSA regulated subsidiaries) and Amadeus IT Holdings; she is Chairman of Nomura Bank International, Amadeus’ Remuneration and Nominations Committee and is a member of two Audit and two Risk Committees. Previously Dame Clara was the Chief Executive of the London Stock Exchange between 2001 and 2009. Before that she was the CEO of Credit Lyonnais Rouse and worked at UBS for 15 years.

David Lister

David Lister was appointed to the Departmental Board in June 2011.

Biography

David Lister has been Group CIO at National Grid since 2009, during which time he has been leading a transformation in Grid’s technology strategy.

Prior to joining National Grid, David has held Senior Leadership positions across a wide range of industries including time at RBS, Reuters, Boots, Glaxo Welcome, Diageo, Amec and Coopers & Lybrand, working across most global markets. He studied Architecture at The University of Edinburgh and is currently a member of the CIO Board of E-Skills UK, having previously been a Non-Executive Director of iXEurope.

Willy Roe

Willy Roe was appointed to the Departmental Board in April 2011.  He is also the non-executive Chair of the Pension, Disability and Carers Service Board. 

Biography

Willy has chaired the Board of Highlands and Islands Enterprise since 2004. In 2008, the Scottish Government appointed Willy to be Scotland Commissioner on the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, a post that he holds until March 2012. In August 2010, the Scottish Government appointed Willy to lead an independent review of vocational training and education in Scotland.