Jan du Plessis has been named as the government’s preferred candidate to be the next chair of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC).
Du Plessis is chair of BT Group, and is a former chair of Rio Tinto and SABMiller.
The House of Commons Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee will now hold a pre-appointment scrutiny hearing to assess his suitability for the post, in line with the government’s push to strengthen the role of Parliament in scrutinising major public appointments.
If the appointment is approved, he will be charged with driving the ongoing transformation of the FRC into the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (Arga), which aims to restore public trust in audit following the collapse of Carillion in 2018.
The FRC’s interim chair, Keith Skeoch, stepped down in October last year.
FRC chief executive Sir Jon Thompson said: “I am very pleased that the Business Secretary has announced Jan du Plessis as the preferred candidate to be the chair of the FRC subject to all parliamentary approvals being completed. I am looking forward to working closely with Jan as the FRC transitions to becoming Arga and continues with its important reform agenda.”