Senior leadership appointments at the ABI

11 November 2021 | David Young

Three senior leadership appointments have been confirmed at the Association of British Insurers (ABI)

Senior leadership appointments at the ABI

Baroness Nicky Morgan appointed as first Independent Chair

Baroness Nicky Morgan is to become the first Independent Chair in a newly defined role. She takes over from Jon Dye who is stepping down having served as ABI Chair since July 2019.

Hannah Gurga will become the new Director General, taking up the post in early 2022. Hannah joins from UK Finance where she is Managing Director, Digital, Technology & Cyber and Chief of Staff, and has previously worked for the London Stock Exchange Group, ICAP and HM Treasury alongside other Government roles. She replaces Huw Evans who announced earlier this year that he is stepping down from the role in December to join KPMG as a partner in the new year.

Baroness Dianne Hayter will join as an independent Non-Executive Director (iNED) and become the Senior Independent Director (SID) on the ABI Board.

The two new Board roles have been introduced as part of reforms announced earlier this year to bring fresh external perspectives, enrich diversity of experience and reinforce strong governance.

The Independent Chair will chair the ABI Board and the new Reputation and Customers Committee. The role of the iNED includes being a member of the Audit Committee, the Reputation and Customers Committee and the Appointments and Remuneration Committee, as well as attending other key Board sub-groups as appropriate and acting as the SID of the Board.

Both of the Board appointments have commenced this month for a period of three years. The roles are focused solely on internal activity and governance.

As previously announced, Barry O'Dwyer, Group CEO, Royal London has taken on the role of ABI President and Cristina Nestares, UK CEO, Admiral Group Plc, is the ABI's Deputy President to provide public-facing leadership.