This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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New Head of Environment and Rural Affairs Department
09/11/2004
Richard Wakeford has been appointed Head of the Executive's Environment & Rural Affairs Department (ERAD) following an open competition and an appointment board chaired by the First Civil Service Commissioner.
He will take up post in early January.
Mr Wakeford, 51, has almost 30 years experience with central government bodies, specialising in environment and rural issues as well as land use and development to create sustainable communities.
He has been Chief Executive of the Countryside Agency in England since 1999 and was previously Chief Executive of the Countryside Commission (1996-1999).
He has been a Non-Executive Director on the Management Board of DEFRA since 2001. He is also currently a member of the UK Sustainable Development Commission, an appointment he will give up on his return to the civil service.
As Head of Department, Mr Wakeford will be a member of the Executive's Management Group where he will contribute to the formation of corporate policies and provide visible leadership in communicating and driving delivery of those policies.
He will also play a substantial role in engaging at a senior level with stakeholders across the range of Scottish society, to develop the exchange of knowledge and expertise in furtherance of Scotland's interests.
He will also lead the departmental team supporting the Minister for Environment and Rural Development across several broad areas including:
- The Executive's sustainable development and rural policies
- Specific responsibility for the agriculture and fishing industries
- Protection of the natural environment and oversight of the water industry
Permanent Secretary John Elvidge said:
"Scotland will benefit from Mr Wakeford's experience across many of the main challenges facing the Department and it's work."
Mr Wakeford has a BSc (Hons) degree from the University of London, Kings College and was awarded an Honororary Doctorate of Philosophy by Gloucestershire University in 2002.
He is an Honorary Member of the Royal Town Planning Institute, a Member of the American Planning Association and a Fellow of the RSA.
In his senior civil service career, Mr Wakeford worked mainly in the predecessors of the present DEFRA and ODPM, in a range of roles culminating in appointment to the Cabinet Secretariat in Whitehall.
The open competition, which was advertised in national newspapers in July 2004, attracted a field of applicants from both public and private sectors.
The appointment board's recommendation has been agreed by the First Minister and approved by the Prime Minister.
Mr Wakeford's salary will be in the current Senior Civil Service pay band 3 which has a minimum of £90,867 and a maximum of £192,424.
Reporting to the Permanent Secretary, who is the most senior civil servant in Scotland, Mr Wakeford will have line management responsibility for around 1,000 staff within the Environment and Rural Affairs Department.
He will have substantial responsibilities in relation to the external expenditure for which the Department is responsible - £1.3 billion in the current financial year - as well as for the sponsorship of the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency and Scottish Natural Heritage.