This is the text of an announcement from the Department for Cuilture,Media and Sport (DCMS):
 
12 April 2006

Tessa Jowell Announces Three BBC Trust Members

The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Tessa Jowell, announced today plans to ensure the new BBC Trust has the right balance of change and continuity by appointing three BBC governors to the new body.

In line with commitments in the BBC white paper, published last month, to provide the continuity necessary for the Trust to operate effectively from the start, Dermot Gleeson, Richard Tait and Jeremy Peat will join the chair, Michael Grade, on the Trust.

The Trust will have 12 members in total, including its chair and a new vice-chair.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport will advertise shortly for eight new trustees, including the vice-chair.

Ms Jowell said:

"The new BBC Trust will put the people who pay for the BBC at the heart of decisions on how the licence fee is spent. There will be, for the first time, a clear separation between those who run the BBC and those who ensure it is run in the public interest.

"We now need to achieve the right balance of change and continuity. This can be achieved by appointing a small number of BBC governors to the Trust, plus the appointment of eight new trust members to reflect the fact that the Trust is a new structure with new functions, designed to deliver a step change in accountability to the licence fee payer.

"Dermot Gleeson, Richard Tait and Jeremy Peat will help the transition from Governors to Trust, by bringing their valuable skills and expertise to current key areas of BBC business including property, broadcasting and finance.

"The current Board of Governors has worked hard to ensure, on behalf of licence fee payers, that the BBC delivers high quality services, in line with its current Charter remit.  I know that the governors are committed to a smooth transition to the new governance system and will continue to work with the chair to this end until the new Trust is in place later this year.   I am very grateful to them all for their contribution to this process."

Notes:

1. To ensure transparency, DCMS carries out all public appointments in accordance with Nolan principles and taking account of the guidance of the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

2. As stated in the BBC white paper, the Trust will include people with expertise in areas such as broadcasting and media industries (including new media); competition; the financial, legal, corporate or regulatory aspects of running large organisations; managing a large property portfolio; expertise in the areas covered by the BBC's public purposes, including international affairs; and in delivering the accountability of such organisations to their stakeholders.

3. Individual Trust members will not have specific representative functions, except in relation to the four constituent countries of the United Kingdom. Jeremy Peat will be the Trust member for Scotland.

4. The BBC white paper and other charter review publications can be found by clicking here