UK Payments Council Appoints Richard North as Chairman
The UK Payments Council has appointed Richard North as its new independent chairman. North, a former chairman of Woolworths and Britvic and chief executive officer (CEO) of InterContinental Hotels Group, takes over from interim chair, Professor Martin Cave.
In keeping with requirements set by the Office of Fair Trading’s Payment Systems Task Force, the chairman of the Payments Council is an independent, non-industry post. The selection of North was made by four directors of the Payments Council board, two of whom are independent directors. North succeeds Brian Pomeroy, who stepped down at the end of October 2009 to take up a non-executive director role on the board of the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
North said: “I am extremely pleased to be taking on this significant responsibility as the work of the Payments Council moves into a new phase. There is much to be done following the Council’s decision to set a target date for the closure of the cheque clearing. I intend that the Payments Council should provide clear leadership, especially in ensuring that the interests of all types of cheque user are taken into account; and in the short-term, ensuring that we set appropriate criteria for our decision in 2016 whether closure can proceed in 2018.”