HSBC Chairman Stephen Green Confirmed As UK Trade Minister
07.09.10, 15:48 Uhr
LONDON -(Dow Jones)- The U.K. coalition government Tuesday ended its lengthy search to find a new Trade Minister with the appointment of prominent banker Stephen Green, the chairman of HSBC Holdings PLC (HBC).
Prime Minister David Cameron said Green will lead the government's efforts to establish the U.K. as the most attractive location for international business investment and to drive growth in Britain's exports.
Green will become Minister of State for Trade and Investment early next year and will take up his position in the House of Lords in due course, the Prime Minister's office said. Green won't be paid for the ministerial role.
HSBC said in a regulatory statement that Green will step down as chairman before the end of the year.
The bank's non-executive directors said they have been working on the chairman's succession for some months, including having appointed external advisers. The directors said their intention has always been to approve Green's successor before the end of the year, and that timetable remains on schedule.
The naming of Green, 61, will come as a relief to the new government, which has made export and trade promotion a major domestic policy goal due to its potential in helping revive Britain's fragile economy and in providing more balanced growth. The government's ambitious plans for trade have been hampered by its inability to find a prominent business leader to take on the role of Trade Minister.
The last person to hold the post was Mervyn Davies, who declined to continue in the role following the election, which resulted in the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties forming a coalition government.
Green will become Minister of State for Trade and Investment early next year and will take up his position in the House of Lords in due course, the Prime Minister's office said. Green won't be paid for the ministerial role.
HSBC said in a regulatory statement that Green will step down as chairman before the end of the year.
The bank's non-executive directors said they have been working on the chairman's succession for some months, including having appointed external advisers. The directors said their intention has always been to approve Green's successor before the end of the year, and that timetable remains on schedule.
The naming of Green, 61, will come as a relief to the new government, which has made export and trade promotion a major domestic policy goal due to its potential in helping revive Britain's fragile economy and in providing more balanced growth. The government's ambitious plans for trade have been hampered by its inability to find a prominent business leader to take on the role of Trade Minister.
The last person to hold the post was Mervyn Davies, who declined to continue in the role following the election, which resulted in the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties forming a coalition government.
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