Last week Land Registry announced the appointment of its first Chair in its 149-year history. Mark Boyle has been appointed as the new non-executive Chair of Land Registry.
The introduction of a Chair position, separate from the role of Chief Executive, was one recommendation of a recent Governance Review undertaken by Land Registry. The move will bring Land Registry into line with best practice for corporate governance.
As stakeholders in Land Registry costs and procedures conveyancers will want to encourage the new Chair to ensure that efficiency savings are continued to avoid any need to increase home moving costs and to maintain the independence of the register.
In the same week it was revealed that staff numbers dropped from 4863 full time equivalent staff at the end of March 2011 to 4472 at the end of September. This represented a reduction of about 8% and a saving of about £900K in salaries per month. This saving will hopefully reduce any pressure for increases in Land Registry fees at a time when home movers have enough disincentives to move already.
For conveyancers any reduction in costs or efficiency gains are welcomed to ensure that registration costs not increased.
Malcolm Dawson, Chief Land Registrar and Chief Executive welcoming the appointment, said:
"I am delighted that Mark will be joining us. He brings a broad experience from both the public and private sectors which will be invaluable in helping us to contribute to the development of thinking on a Public Data Corporation and how we might best support the Government’s public data and economic growth objectives."
Mark Boyle added:
"This is an exciting time to be joining Land Registry. The Government’s objectives around growth and data transparency provide the impetus for Land Registry to explore new ways to make the most of its market position and the skill base of its employees.
"I look forward to working closely with Malcolm and his team to pursue these opportunities, which will be for the benefit of customers, employees and all stakeholders."
Mark Boyle currently works for the Shareholder Executive, part of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, as Chief Operating Officer. Before joining the Shareholder Executive in 2008 he spent 12 years in senior commercial and corporate development roles with Compass Group and with Rentokil Initial, prior to which he spent 15 years in banking with Lloyds and Kleinwort Benson.
We congratulate Mr Boyle on his appointment and encourage him to engage with conveyancers broadly.
