Management of conflict of interest
Sir John Savill took up position of chief executive of the Medical Research Council (MRC) on 1 October 2010. He also continues his role, on a part time basis, as head of the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh and honorary consultant physician at NHS Lothian, for which he is paid directly by the University.
Sir John’s appointment was made using a process which takes into account the Code of Practice of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. Sir John was considered to be the best person for the role, with excellent qualifications and experience. It was Sir John’s request that he continue part-time at the University of Edinburgh and that the appointment should be for three years in the first instance. As he was by a significant margin the preferred candidate, the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills appointed him on this basis.
Sir John Savill and the MRC are committed to managing all real, potential or apparent conflicts of interest with integrity, impartiality, honesty and openness.
While Sir John’s dual roles at the University of Edinburgh and the MRC are in many ways an asset, robust policies and procedures are in place to manage potential conflicts.
Measures in place include:
- The CEO will absent himself from all MRC and Research Councils UK (RCUK) discussions and meetings that relate to funding or funding proposals involving the University of Edinburgh or NHS Lothian.
- The CEO will not be able to have access to papers and minutes relevant to these items.
- All prospective decisions specifically concerning the University of Edinburgh or NHS Lothian which would normally involve the CEO will be referred directly to the Deputy CEO at the earliest opportunity.
- An oversight group has been established to resolve issues of potential conflict (where the remediation is not obvious in advance, such as an investment in the University of Edinburgh); this consists of the Council Chairman, the Deputy CEO and the Director of Corporate Affairs.
- The CEO will not be an applicant or co-applicant on any funding proposal submitted to the MRC.
- Where discussions/decisions concern the university sector broadly, the MRC Chair and Deputy CEO will discuss with the CEO the extent to which the conflict is material and how closely Sir John should be involved, on a case-by-case basis.
- Minutes of meetings will clearly record where Sir John had a potential conflict and the action taken.
Between October 2010 and December 2011, there were 23 occasions when a conflict of interest was identified. These predominantly related to the transfer of the MRC's Human Genetics Unit to the University of Edinburgh as part of the University Unit programme, discussed at meetings of the MRC's Council, Strategy Board and Management Board. To manage this conflict, meeting papers relating to this matter (and any other issues involving the University of Edinburgh) were not shown to Sir John, and he left the room during all discussions related to this matter. Details of discussions of any items where any conflict had been identified were also redacted from versions of the minutes given to Sir John. |
Updated 14 February 2012