News

Ross Parker has been appointed as the Employee Nominated Trustee on the Imperial Tobacco Pension Trustee Board, replacing Sam Miller who left the Company in 2022.

Ross leads the Group Corporate Affairs team for Imperial Brands, which is responsible for engaging with governments, regulators, and politicians across the globe.

Prior to this he was Director of Corporate and Legal Affairs at Fontem Ventures (the Imperial company behind the blue brand of vapour products) for two years, after holding a variety of other positions of increasing responsibility since joining Imperial in 2012.

Involved in regulatory issues

"I have always been involved in regulatory issues: in Europe, the US, and in the developing world," said Ross. "In previous roles I was one of the Secretariat to the Independent Commission on Banking, which advised the British government on how to avoid another banking crisis and advisor to the governments of Nigeria, South Africa, and the Dominican Republic on the privatisation of utilities; and one of the team who set up the first competition authority in Tanzania."

Ross built a strong working knowledge of finance during his time as an advisor to the Independent Commission on Banking between 2010-2011, and an understanding of stewardship working on a review of equity markets with leading economist Sir John Kay from 2011-2012.

While working at Imperial he has also had the opportunity to develop his skillset as a non-executive director through his Trusteeship of the Circadian Trust, an £11 million turnover charity that operates a network of leisure centres and sporting facilities in South Gloucestershire; as Vice-Chair of the International Chamber of Commerce's UK Tax Committee and serving as a school governor and parish councillor.

"Becoming a Trustee is a perfect opportunity to use my skills in a field that is new, but not dissimilar, to areas that I have enjoyed in the past," he said. "It is also an opportunity to ensure that the retirements of my colleagues, those who came before us, and those who come after us, are secure and well-manages. I am delighted to have this opportunity."