Government appoints head of £1bn property portfolio

Thursday 10 September 2020

The Government has finally appointed a permanent head of its £1bn property portfolio, two years after the previous incumbent resigned.

Tim Daniels will now be taking on the Director of Property post on a permanent basis after 18 months as the interim head.

He’ll be responsible for ensuring public facilities are up to scratch, and developing a plan to sell off premises that are no longer needed as the Government works towards a target of creating a new HQ. 

Prior to joining Government, Mr Daniels spent more than a decade working as a Client Director of Real Estate after a 23-year career in the Royal Marines, where he went on to become Chief Plans for the Multinational Security Transition Command in Iraq. He is also Chair of the Royal British Legion. 

Pictured: Mr Daniels will help with the Government's ambition of creating a new headquarters.

Earlier this year, senior Government officials admitted during a Scrutiny hearing that they were “struggling” to persuade anyone to apply to step into the leading role after the departure of Ray Foster, despite having enlisted a “specialist agency”. 

While Mr Daniels was described as having performed the role “very ably” at the time, Government appointment rules dictate that there must be an open recruitment process.

The former Director General of Growth, Housing and Environment, to whom the Director of Property is accountable, said at the time that he believed candidates may prefer working at that level in the private sector.  

Amid these challenges, Mr Daniels’ contract was extended for six months earlier this year. 

With the recruitment process, which was overseen by the Jersey Appointments Commission, now finally having completed, Mr Daniels will be officially stepping into the role on Monday 14 September. 

Welcoming the appointment, Acting Director General of GHE Andy Scate commented: “I am delighted that Tim has joined the GHE team on a permanent basis. 

“He complements the management team with his leadership skills and his local sector-specific knowledge. He will be instrumental in developing Government’s property function into the future as we enter a challenging and exciting period.”