UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday appointed financial advisor Laurie Magnus as his new ethics chief, a post that had remained empty since Christopher Geidt resigned in June during Boris Johnson’s tenure.
«Laurie will bring more than 40 years of experience in the financial services sector to the role of independent adviser, with a particularly relevant background in audit, compliance and corporate governance,» the UK government said in a statement.
Laurie, who was vice-chairman of the National Trust from 2005 to 2013 and later served as chairman of Historic England in 2013, will replace Geidt, who left the post after claiming that former Prime Minister Johnson may have breached the ‘ministerial code’ by attending a party as part of the ‘partygate’ controversy at 10 Downing Street.
«Laurie was until recently chairman of the Windsor Leadership Trust, an independent charity providing experiential leadership programs across all sectors of society, and vice-chairman of the Benefact Trust, which provides charitable financial support to churches and Christian charities in the UK and Ireland,» the British government added.
Among his other achievements, Sunak’s new ethics advisor was a member of the Board of the Culture Recovery Fund, established by the Government to provide financial support to the culture and heritage sectors during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sunak, who has taken months to appoint a replacement, acknowledged in October after taking office that it was a priority for his government to «restore integrity, professionalism and accountability at all levels,» the BBC has recalled.
Laurie will not be in charge of the investigation against UK Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab, who has several complaints against him for allegedly intimidating public officials, but instead will be handled by lawyer Adam Tolley, who was given that responsibility last month, according to the channel.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
