Following the announcement that Professor Fiona Watt FRS FMedSci has been selected as the Government's preferred candidate to be the next Executive Chair of The Medical Research Council (MRC), Professor Sir Robert Lechler PMedSci, President of the Academy of Medical Sciences, said:
“I wish to offer my warmest congratulations to our Fellow, Professor Fiona Watt, on this prominent new appointment. Fiona is an excellent choice of Executive Chair for The Medical Research Council (MRC), offering a wealth of talent and experience from the biosciences sector. I know that she will use this position to play a strong, leading role in improving and advancing biomedical and health research in the UK and beyond.”
Fiona is currently Director of the Centre for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine at King’s College London and is expected to take up the MRC Executive Chair role from April 2018.
The post of MRC Executive Chair is potentially subject to a pre-appointment hearing by the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee. The Committee will consider this in due course. If a pre-appointment hearing is requested then arrangements will be made for this in the new year.