The Northern Ireland Office has announced the appointment of Fiona Ross as a Non-Executive Board Member. The appointment was made by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, the Right Honourable Chris Heaton-Harris MP, and will be effective from 1 March 2023.
Fiona Ross is a highly experienced professional and currently serves as the Chair of the Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ), Ireland’s Public Transport Provider. She also holds non-executive positions with Rail, the Scottish Government, and private enterprises such as SphereInvest and Smith & Williamson Europe.
In addition, she acts as an independent advisor to the Mayor of Bristol City Council. Prior to this, she served on the Board of the Irish Health Service Executive (HSE) for two years and was appointed in August 2021 to chair the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board.
The terms of Fiona Ross’s appointment specify that it is part-time for a term of three years. The position offers a fixed remuneration of £10,000 per year for a time commitment of approximately 15-20 days annually, including supporting the work of the department’s Audit, Risk & Assurance Committee.
It is important to note that the position is not pensionable.
Furthermore, this appointment is not regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. In terms of political activity, Fiona Ross has declared that she has not been politically active in the last five years. It is worth mentioning that non-executive Board members are appointed on merit, and political activity does not play any part in the selection process. However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees’ political activity in defined categories to be made public.
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