Former Railpen chief executive Chris Hitchen is one of three new appointments to the board of the Pensions Regulator (TPR), it announced this week.
Also joining is Tracey McDermott, a former senior director at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). TPR’s executive director of market oversight, Ben Gunnee, has also been named to the board.
McDermott and Hitchen replace Alison Hatcher and Kirstin Baker as non-executive directors. Hatcher left the regulator’s board last year, while Baker will step down after concluding her spell as interim chair. Emma Douglas will take over as chair of TPR on 1 July.
Baker said the new appointments “bring strong leadership experience and deep pensions, regulatory and financial services expertise” to support the board and Douglas when she takes up her role.
The regulator has refreshed its structure and made several new senior appointments over the past 18 months in preparation for changes being made through the Pension Schemes Act. TPR will publish a new five-year strategy next month in response to the act’s contents.
The new faces on TPR’s board
Hitchen worked at Railpen for 19 years, including as chief investment officer and latterly CEO. He is a former chair of Pensions UK, and has held a number of non-executive and trustee positions in recent years, including at Nest and Border to Coast Pensions Partnership.
Hitchen is currently chair of the Nuclear Liabilities Fund and a member of the investment committee at Guardian Media Group, which owns The Guardian and The Observer newspapers.
“My longstanding experience representing the pensions industry and working across large, complex schemes has forged my commitment to better long-term outcomes for pension scheme members, their employers and for the UK as a whole,” Hitchen said. “I look forward to working with the board and industry colleagues to deliver strong, flexible governance and high standards across the sector.”
Chris Hitchen spoke to Pensions Expert’s sister title LAPF Investments last year as he prepared to step down from the board of Border to Coast.
McDermott, meanwhile, spent 15 years at the FCA and its predecessor, the Financial Services Authority, holding several senior roles, including director of enforcement and financial crime, director of supervision and authorisations, and acting CEO.
After leaving the FCA, McDermott worked at Standard Chartered on its global management team. She chairs the board of trustees of the Standard Chartered Foundation and is a member of the management team of Wolfsberg Group, a global banking lobby group.
Ben Gunnee joined TPR in February as interim executive director of market oversight and has subsequently been given the role on a permanent basis.
He said: “People expect a secure, sustainable income in retirement. At this vital moment for pensions, I welcome the opportunity to help deliver essential reforms and shape a system that drives strong outcomes for members.
“My focus will be on ensuring market participants have the highest standards of governance, employing a forward-looking and proactive supervisory model to stop harms before they arise.”
