A former boss of the DIY retailer Kingfisher and one of Britain’s top branding experts are among the contenders to become the next chair of Channel 4 amid the state-owned broadcaster’s battle to avoid privatisation.
Sky News has learnt that Sir Ian Cheshire and Rita Clifton were among a handful of people interviewed for the post earlier this month by the media regulator, Ofcom.
Sir Ian, who has also held an influential role in Whitehall and chaired Barclays UK and Debenhams, and Ms Clifton, who ran Interbrand and now sits on the boards of the John Lewis Partnership and Nationwide, would both be credible appointees, industry insiders said on Tuesday.
Among their rivals for the post is Dame Carolyn Fairbairn, the former CBI director-general and erstwhile BBC and ITV executive, who Sky News revealed last month had been shortlisted for the job.
The high calibre of the shortlist will encourage ministers that candidates have not been deterred from applying for the Channel 4 job despite the controversy surrounding a potential government sale of the company.
Ofcom and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) are not expected to reach a decision on a preferred candidate for several more weeks, according to those close to the process.
While Ofcom is responsible for conducting the search for board members of Channel 4 under the 1990 Broadcasting Act, an appointment will need to be approved by Nadine Dorries, the culture secretary.
Ms Dorries said recently that a decision on privatisation would be reached “very shortly”, with Whitehall officials sifting through tens of thousands of submissions to a consultation on the broadcaster’s future.
At the weekend, The Observer reported that a group of senior Conservative MPs had written to Boris Johnson to oppose a sell-off, arguing that it would undermine the prime minister’s…
Source : skynews
