Ministers are to kick off the hunt for a new chair of the communications regulator as Lord Grade of Yarmouth prepares to bow out after a single term at the helm.
Sky News has learnt that the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) – which now leads oversight of Ofcom in Whitehall – is drawing up proposals to launch a recruitment process in the coming months.
Lord Grade, the veteran broadcast executive who held senior posts at the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, has served as Ofcom chair since May 2022.
His four-year term is not due to end for another 11 months, and there was no suggestion this weekend that he would leave the role ahead of that point.
Insiders said, however, that there was little prospect of him seeking to be reappointed for a second term in the job.
The now non-affiliated peer’s appointment to the post in 2022 came after a controversial recruitment process and was signed off by Nadine Dorries, the then Tory culture secretary.
Responsibility for Ofcom board appointments has switched since then from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
Peter Kyle, the science secretary, authorised the recruitment of Tamara Ingram, an advertising industry stalwart, as Ofcom’s deputy chair, last November.
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Ofcom takes on online harms
The search for a new Ofcom chair will come after a significant extension of its remit to encompass areas such as online harms.
Both DCMS, which has responsibility for the media industry, and the Department for Business and Trade also have substantial engagement with Ofcom.
As well as a role in appointing directors to the board of state-owned Channel 4, which is hunting both a chair and chief executive, Ofcom regulates companies such as Royal Mail, as well as the BBC.
This week, the watchdog said it was pursuing action against the formerly publicly owned postal services company over its failure to hit statutory delivery targets.
Ofcom also regulates the UK telecoms industry, making it one of the largest economic regulators in Britain.
Data centres may be next
Mr Kyle said this week that Ofcom should also prepare to be given regulatory oversight of the fast-growing data centre industry.
One of the tasks of Lord Grade’s successor is likely to be long-term executive leadership succession planning.
Dame Melanie Dawes, Ofcom’s chief executive, has held the role since 2020, although there is no indication that she intends to step down in the short term.
It was unclear this weekend whether any of Ofcom’s existing board members might seek to take over from Lord Grade.
Its slate of non-executive directors includes recently appointed Lord Allan of Hallam, a former MP, and Ben Verwaayen, the former BT Group chief executive.
Mr Verwaayen is due to step down from the Ofcom board at the end of the year.
The hunt for Ofcom’s next chair will come amid a push led by Sir Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves to shake up Britain’s economic regulators as they seek ways to remove red tape from the private sector.
DSIT has been contacted for comment, while Ofcom declined to comment.
