Sir Michael Lyons Appointed Chairman Of The BBC Trust

Downing Street has announced the appointment of Sir Michael Lyons as Chairman of the BBC Trust, the BBC's new governing body, with effect from 1 May 2007.
Chitra Bharucha, Vice-Chairman and Acting Chairman since November 2006, has welcomed the appointment: "On behalf of all the Trustees, I am delighted to welcome Michael Lyons to the BBC Trust and congratulate him on his appointment as Chairman. The Trust has made important decisions in our first three months and significant challenges lie ahead. All of us look forward to working with Michael as we go forward."
Commenting on his new appointment, Sir Michael Lyons said: "It is a great privilege to be appointed Chairman of the BBC Trust. As the BBC's sovereign body, our duty is to ensure the public who pay for the BBC retain overall control of their BBC. As Chairman I will never lose sight of the public's core expectations of editorial independence and quality programmes across television, radio and the internet which inform, educate and entertain. I look forward to the exciting challenges of the future and working with my colleagues on the Trust to ensure the BBC provides a quality service to justify the public's continuing support."
Sir Michael is Chairman of the English Cities Fund and is a former Deputy Chairman and Acting Chairman of the Audit Commission and was Professor of Public Policy at Birmingham University.
He is a former non-executive director of Central Television Ltd and until recently was Chairman of the Regional Advisory Council for ITV.
He received his early education at Stratford Grammar School, London, Middlesex University and at Queen Mary College University of London.
In a press statement after his appointment Sir Michael Lyons outlined his desire to serve the public: "My job as Chairman of the Trust is to ensure that we listen to the many and varied views throughout the UK and seek to ensure that they are reflected in the work and output of the BBC.
"I join a strong and talented Board which under the leadership of Chitra Bharucha has already begun to demonstrate its effectiveness. We will continue to reach our decisions collectively, acting independently of BBC management, but with a shared understanding of the important job the BBC does both home and abroad.
"The BBC is undoubtedly the UK's foremost cultural institution and the UK's best known and highest regarded international brand. It will only remain so, if it delivers on the public's expectations and justifies their continuing confidence and support."
The purpose of the BBC Trust is to work on behalf of licence fee payers, ensuring the BBC provides high quality output and good value for all UK citizens, and it protects the independence of the BBC. To achieve this, the Trustees must keep in close contact with licence fee payers, being aware of and understanding their expectations of the BBC. They do this via research, direct engagement with the public and through the work of the BBC Audience Councils.
(DS)