Appointment of new Chief Executive for ORR

21 June 2005
ORR/28/05

The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) has appointed Bill Emery as its new Chief Executive.  He will take up his appointment on 19 September 2005.  The Secretary of State for Transport has also appointed him to the ORR Board with immediate effect.

Dr Emery, 53, is currently Director of Costs and Performance and Chief Engineer at Ofwat where he is responsible for promoting robust asset management planning, improving efficiency, incentives, and overseeing the capital investment programmes of the sector.  He is also a member of the Ofwat Board. 

He joined Ofwat in 1990 as Head of Engineering Intelligence. Before then he worked for Yorkshire Water where he advised on business planning and regulation and was involved in the privatisation of the Yorkshire Water Authority.  He is a chartered engineer, has a doctorate in public health engineering and an MBA.  Married with two children, he chairs a local conservation area community group in Sheffield where he is currently a magistrate of long standing.

Announcing the appointment, ORR Chairman Chris Bolt said:

“I am very pleased to make this announcement.  Bill Emery’s extensive experience in the economic regulation of monopoly utilities will provide invaluable experience for the ORR, as we face the challenge of bringing all aspects of the railway together under a single public regulator.”

The present Chief Executive of ORR, Keith Webb, retires at the end of July.

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