Yorkshire Regional Flood and Coastal Committee Chair appointed
Colin Mellors has been appointed as the Chair of the Yorkshire RFCC
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has appointed Colin Mellors as the Chair of the Yorkshire RFCC. The appointment will run from1 July 2015 until 30 June 2018.
Defra has also re-appointed Lorraine Brown as the Chair of Southern RFCC and Paul Hayden as Chair of the Anglia (Eastern) RFCC. The reappointments will also run from 1 July 2015 until 30 June 2018.
All the appointments followed procedures set out in the Office for the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA) Code of Practice.
All the Chair posts attract a remuneration currently set at £17,503 for a commitment of 5 days per month.
Regional Flood and Coastal Committees (RFCCs) help to provide governance for the Environment Agency Flood and Coastal Erosion risk management functions and cover all flood risks that are not the responsibility of the water companies. They have replaced the Regional Flood Defence Committees which previously existed. There are currently 12 Committees across England.
RFCCs have three main purposes:
- to ensure there are coherent plans for identifying, communicating and managing flood and coastal erosion risks across catchments and shorelines;
- to promote efficient, targeted and risk-based investment in flood and coastal erosion risk management that optimises value for money and benefits for local communities; and
- to provide a link between the Environment Agency, LLFAs, other risk management authorities, and other relevant bodies to develop mutual understanding of flood and coastal erosion risks in its area.
Background details on the new Yorkshire RFCC appointment as follows:
Professor Colin Mellors is Emeritus Professor at the University of York where he recently served for eight years as Pro-Vice Chancellor (2006-14). Previously, he held a similar position at the University of Bradford. He has also worked at the universities of Southampton, Sheffield and Hull. Current Non-Executive roles include being Board Member of the York, North Yorkshire & East Riding Local Enterprise Partnership (since 2011) and Deputy Chair of the Local Government Boundary Commission for England (since 2010). Previous relevant roles include being a Non-Executive Director of the Government Office for Yorkshire & Humberside.
His career has predominantly been in academia (political science) and its management at senior levels. He has devoted much of his time to roles in the public sector focusing on local government, business development and capacity building with private sector and community partners.