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Appointment of New Civil Service Commisioners for Northern Ireland

The Secretary of State Shaun Woodward MP today announced the appointments of Tony Hopkins and Vilma Patterson as Civil Service Commissioners for Northern Ireland.

Announcing the new appointments, Shaun Woodward said: “I have no doubt the incoming Commissioners will continue the important work of the Commissioners to guard the merit principle in selection, to uphold the Civil Service’s core values of integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality, and to promote equality, fairness and diversity in the Northern Ireland Civil Service.”

The Civil Service Commissioners for Northern Ireland

The Civil Service Commissioners for Northern Ireland are independent of Government and the Civil Service, and have a statutory responsibility to uphold selection on merit for appointments to the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS). The Commissioners also hear appeals under the NICS Code of Ethics. Commissioners work in partnership with the NICS and other stakeholders to uphold the merit principle and promote public confidence in recruitment.

Biographies of Appointees:

Tony Hopkins

Mr Hopkins is Chair of The Northern Ireland Higher Education Council.

He was Chair of Laganside Corporation from 1997 until 2007 when Laganside completed its task of securing the regeneration of the riverside area of Belfast and Cathedral Quarter.

He was a public servant for 21 years working in the field of industrial development first in the Northern Ireland Development Agency and later with the former Industrial Development Board for Northern Ireland where he was Chief Executive from 1988 until 1992. From 1992 – 2001 he become Senior Partner of Deloitte in Belfast. He was NI Chair of the Chartered Institute of Management for six years.

He has served on the Boards of The Northern Ireland Tourist Board and of the N I Probation Service.

He is currently Chair of Ulster Garden Villages, a large local charitable and philanthropic organisation, and was previously involved with a number of other charities.

Vilma Patterson MBE

Mrs Patterson has spent over 30 years in the construction industry, in sports ground construction, consultancy, research and network development and is Director of John G Duff (Annadale) Ltd.

She was a member (1996 to 2008) and Chair (1999 - 2002) of the Independent Monitoring Board for HMP Maghaberry and Chair of Northern Ireland Association of the Independent Monitoring Boards for Northern Ireland for five years. She is also the former Chair of the Women in Business Network working with the private, public, voluntary and community sectors. She is currently a member of the Parades Commission.

Terms of Appointment

Tony Hopkins and Vilma Patterson will take up appointment from Monday 2nd February 2009. Each appointment is for a three year term.

Commissioners’ fees will be £300 per day in respect of Commissioner business and £300 per day attendance in relation to chairing Senior Civil Service appointment competitions. These fees plus expenses are subject to tax and employer deductions as appropriate.

These are Crown Appointments.

Political Activity

All appointments 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 appointees’ political activity in defined categories within the last five years to be made public.

None of the appointees has declared any such political activity in the past five years.