New Trustee appointed to the Royal Ulster Constabulary George Cross (RUC GC) Foundation

The Department of Justice has announced the appointment of Michael Atkinson as a Trustee of the RUC GC Foundation.

The Royal Ulster Constabulary George Cross Foundation has a number of statutory functions including marking the sacrifices and honouring the achievements of the Royal Ulster Constabulary GC, supporting the professional development of serving police officers, and responsibility for the RUC GC Memorial Garden.

Mr Atkinson is appointed as the statutory nominee of the Chair of the Northern Ireland Policing Board.

Richard Pengelly CB, Permanent Secretary, Department of Justice said: “I would like to wish Mr Atkinson every success for his term of office at the Foundation.”
 

Notes to editors: 

1.  The Foundation comprises a Chair and a Board of five Trustees all of whom are appointed by the Department of Justice.  Two of the Trustees are nominated, one by the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and one by the Chair of the Northern Ireland Policing Board.

2.  The procedure for the appointment of Trustee is compliant with the Commissioner for Public Appointments Northern Ireland (CPANI) Code of Practice. The appointments are made by the Department of Justice taking account of its statutory duty under the RUC GC Regulations 2002.

3.  The tenure for the Trustee will commence on 2 October 2023 for a period of five years.

4.  The post does not attract remuneration.

5.  The appointment of Trustee is made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process.  However, the Commissioner for Public Appointments for Northern Ireland requires the political activity of appointees to be published.  Details of the declaration in relation to political activity are included below.

6.  Pen Picture

Michael Atkinson

Michael Atkinson is a Chartered Engineer with 35+ years’ experience in the Utilities Sector.  While working for Northern Ireland Electricity, Michael delivered major business performance improvement and transformation programmes, including the introduction of full retail competition in the Northern Ireland electricity market and the delivery of the Northern Ireland Government’s 2020 renewable energy targets. He currently provides a range of consultancy services within the Electrical Utility industry. After completing an engineering degree at Queen's University, he went on to study Business Finance and Leadership at the Ulster University, Napier University Scotland, and Harvard University Boston. He holds a B.Sc., an MBA and an MSc in Corporate Leadership.  In his earlier years Michael was a keen sportsman, competing at international level in both athletics and weightlifting.

Political Activity: No political activity undertaken during the past five years.

7.  All media enquiries should be directed to the Department of Justice via email 

8.  The Executive Information Service operates an out of hours service for media enquiries only between 1800hrs and 0800hrs Monday to Friday and at weekends and public holidays. The duty press officer can be contacted on 028 9037 8110.

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