CAMPAIGNER IN POLE POSITION TO LAND £141,950-A-YEAR POST AS NEXT CHAIR OF NATURAL ENGLAND

Tony Juniper - campaigner and parrot expert

WILDLIFE campaigner and author Tony Juniper (58) faces one last hurdle before he knows whether he will become next chairman of Natural England.

He is already the preferred choice of Environment Secretary Michael Gove following a review of candidates by a panel made up of Clare Moriarty Elizabeth Buchanan Dame Fiona Reynolds and Lord Bew.

However, on February 26, he will also have to satisfy a parliamentary Select Committee that he is the right person for the job.

The minister’s decision to back Mr Juniper is perhaps surprising given that he is a former Green Party parliamentary candidate (for the Cambridge constituency) and likely both to be a thorn in the side of government and outspoken in his advocacy on behalf of Nature.

In a letter to him (and other hopefuls for the £141,950-a-year job), the minister wrote: 

Dear Candidate

Thank you for your interest in becoming the new Chair of Natural England. This is a great opportunity for a high calibre leader to help shape the future of this substantial organisation at an exciting time.

The Government has set out a clear ambition, in our 25 year plan for the environment launched earlier this year, to be the first generation that leaves the environment in a better state than we found it.

Natural England has a vital role to play in helping achieve this objective through its responsibility to protect and enhance the natural environment. 

It is responsible for licensing, incentivising and advising on conservation on land and in the marine environment. 

Natural England is working with Defra and other delivery partners, on EU exit, to secure the opportunity to develop a better approach to protecting and enhancing the natural environment and our farming and fishing industries and to ensure that new policies are implemented effectively.

I am looking for an ambitious new Chair for Natural England; a strong and visible leader who is passionate about the environment, has the ability to lead a substantial operational delivery organisation effectively and efficiently with a customer focus, and can respond to new opportunities and priorities and drive change and innovation.”

If you have the skills, passion and experience to lead Natural England, whatever your background, we very much look forward to hearing from you.

An expert on parrots, the booksMr Juniper has written include book Spix's Macaw: The Race to Save the World's Rarest Bird.

A former vice-chair of Friends of the Earth International and current president of the Wildlife Trusts.

He was appointed a CBE in the 2017 Honours List for his services to conservation.

Pre-appointment hearings are held in public and allow a Select Committee to take evidence from a minister’s preferred candidate before  an appointment is made.

The Select Committee will publish a report setting out their views on the candidate’s suitability for the post.

Ministers consider the committee’s views before deciding whether to proceed with the appointment.

All appointments are made on merit, and political activity plays no part in the selection process.

However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees’ political activity (if any declared) to be made public.

Tony Juniper has not declared any significant party political activity over the past five years.