Author Archives: HM Government

Nick Pollard has had a distinguished career in British journalism and broadcasting spanning more than forty five years.

Nick began his career as a local newspaper journalist on Merseyside in 1968 and worked for BBC Radio and TV News during the 1970s. He joined ITN in 1980 and became Executive Producer of News at Ten and responsible for major story coverage in the UK and around the world. From 1996 to 2006 Nick was Head of Sky News during which time the channel won numerous awards for its reporting of events around the globe. From 2009 to 2015 Nick was Chief Executive of Services Sound and Vision Corporation, the charity that runs British Forces Broadcasting and other services for the UK’s armed forces. He became a member of the Content Board of Ofcom, the UK’s broadcasting and telecommunications industry regulator, in 2016. Nick is a Fellow of the Royal Television Society and in 2007 was awarded the RTS’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Television Journalism. He was Chairman of the Society’s annual Journalism Awards from 2008-2011. In 2012 he carried out the independent inquiry into the BBC’s handling of the Jimmy Savile affair, producing ‘The Pollard Report’ on the matter in December 2012.

The Board of Ofcom is appointed by the Secretary of State. Board Members are paid £42,519 per annum.

This appointment has been made by exception under the Cabinet Office’s Governance Code on Public Appointments. The appointments process is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. Nick Pollard was initially appointed to the Ofcom Board for an interim period of 6 months, from 14 November 2016. However, given the need for stability and continuity for Ofcom as it goes through a period of significant change and takes on additional responsibilities for regulating the BBC, the Secretary of State has decided to appoint Nick Pollard by exception for a period of 12 months to 13 May 2018.

In accordance with the Cabinet Office’s Governance Code on Public Appointments, any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years must be declared. This is defined as including holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation, or candidature for election. Nick has declared no such political activity.

Today, the Secretary of State, Rt. Hon. James Brokenshire MP, has announced plans for a shared UK-Ireland commemoration ceremony on 7 June 2017 to mark the centenary of the Battle of Messines Ridge. The battle has considerable historic and symbolic si… read more

Paul Newby, the Pubs Code Adjudicator, has today announced the latest figures on completed arbitration cases.

The total number of cases in which the Adjudicator has made awards has now reached 25, including the five first cases announced on 9 March 2017.

Mr Newby said: “We are making good progress in moving cases through the arbitration process and this rising figure of awards shows that our systems and resources are robust and working.

“We currently have 97 cases at different stages within the arbitration process. The timetable for resolving cases is largely in the hands of the parties to the dispute but my team and I are making all efforts to ensure the process moves forward as quickly as possible. This includes issuing prompts and reminders for information or actions whenever there are delays.

“I continue to encourage tenants and pub-owning businesses to sit down together and negotiate purposefully. As a result, in a number of cases this is achieving the desired result of a narrowing of the issues, a stronger negotiating position for tenants and swifter settlements.

“Arbitration awards remain private unless all parties to the dispute agree to release details. However, I am committed to identifying general principles where I can do so without breaching confidentiality and will share these with tenants and pub-owning businesses to help guide their future relationships.

“The PCA enquiry line remains open for tenants and others who want help understanding the Code and there is a wealth of information on the PCA website, including flowcharts and templates to guide tenants and their representatives through the processes. I urge them to read and understand this information.”

For further information contact Sheree Dodd on office@pca.gsi.gov.uk

Biography

Martin Esom became Chief Executive of Waltham Forest Council in October 2010, having previously been Deputy Chief Executive and Executive Director for Environment and Regeneration. An environmental health officer by training, he worked at 3 other London Boroughs in senior roles before joining Waltham Forest. He was awarded the Ronald Williams Gold Medal on graduation by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, where he later served as a Board Member and Trustee for 8 years.

During his time at the Council, Martin has led a number of community safety initiatives, including Waltham Forest’s award-winning gang prevention programme and a multi-agency Child Sexual Exploitation Strategy. Martin is also the Chair of the London Prevent Board, which continues to drive work in relation to counter-terrorism and anti-radicalisation across the capital.

He has led on the transformation of the William Morris Gallery, which has since been awarded the Art Fund Museum of the Year 2013. He has also taken forward the regeneration of the Borough, in particular rejuvenating high streets and the construction of the Borough’s new cinema and entertainment complex in Walthamstow, which opened in November 2014.

Martin has a Masters in Business Administration and holds technical qualifications in Health and Safety and Noise Control.

More information

Non-Executive Board members are entitled to an annual remuneration of £15,100 a year for approximately 30 days commitment.

Read further information about the HSE and its Board.

Thousands of employers are now required to publish their gender pay gap figures for the first time. You can see what information companies have published so far on the gender pay gap viewing service.

As part of the new regulations, by April 2018 employers will be required to:

Publish their median gender pay gap figures

By identifying the wage of the middle earner, the median is the best representation of the ‘typical’ gender difference.

Publish their mean gender pay gap figures

By taking into account the full earnings distribution, the mean takes into account the low and high earners in an organisation – this is particularly useful as women are often over-represented at the low earning extreme and men are over-represented at the high earning extreme.

Publish the proportion of men & women in each quartile of the pay structure

This data will show the spread of male and female earners across an organisation, helping to show employers where women’s progress might be stalling so they can take action to support their career development.

Publish the gender pay gaps for any bonuses paid out during the year

As there is a significant issue around bonus payments in some sectors, employers will also have to publish the proportion of male and proportion of female employees that received a bonus during the year.

Employers will also be encouraged to publish an action plan alongside the figures on their own website, demonstrating the steps they will take to close the gender pay gap within their organisation.