Chief Executive, Cefas (on secondment)

Chief Executive (on secondment) Neil Hornby

Biography

Neil was appointed RPA’s Interim Chief Executive Officer on 9th June 2025.

Before joining RPA, Neil served as Chief Executive of the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) from February 2021. Prior to this, he held a number of senior positions within central government, most recently as Director of Marine and Fisheries at the Defra. His earlier roles included leading areas such as flood policy and nuclear energy.

Chief Executive, Cefas (on secondment)

Cefas’ CEO is appointed by Defra and is the agency’s accounting officer. He is responsible for the overall leadership of Cefas.

Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science

Previous roles in government

  • Interim Chief Executive, RPA