§ Lord Sandfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
When they will make an announcement about the appointment of a new chairman for the Nature Conservancy Council.
§ Lord SkelmersdaleI am pleased to announce that my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for the Environment has today appointed Mr. William Wilkinson as Chairman of the Nature Conservancy Council. Mr. Wilkinson is 50 years old and has been a director of Kleinwort Benson Limited for the past 10 years. He has had a lifelong involvement with conservation. He has been a keen ornithologist for many years and is currently the Hon. Treasurer of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. He is a vice-chairman of the Game Conservancy and a board member of West Palearctic Birds Limited. Mr. Wilkinson's management background and his knowledge of and concern for the natural environment make him ideally suited to lead the Nature Conservancy Council.
I should like to take this opportunity of paying tribute to the retiring chairman, Sir Ralph Verney, for the dedicated way in which he has carried out his duties during a period of considerable change and great significance for nature conservation.