Statement by Shaun Woodward announcing the re-appointment of five trustees to the RUC George Cross Foundation, (25 July 2007)

Statement by Shaun Woodward, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, announcing the re-appointment of five trustees to the RUC George Cross Foundation, (25 July 2007)

Trustees re-appointed to RUC George Cross Foundation

The Secretary of State, Shaun Woodward MP has today announced the re-appointment of five trustees to the RUC George Cross Foundation.

He said: "The RUC George Cross Foundation has an important part to play in supporting serving police officers and their families as well as other groups within the policing family. The trustees of the Foundation make this service possible and I am delighted that they have agreed to serve for a further five years.

The trustees that I have re-appointed, including the Chairman Jim McDonald, have, through their work over the past five years, shown their commitment to the Foundation. I know that they will continue to serve the Foundation and the wider policing family with distinction over the coming years".

The re-appointed trustees are Jim McDonald (Chairman), Freddie Hall, Bertha McDougal, Dame Geraldine Keegan and Kate Carlisle. Their appointments were made in accordance with the Office for the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA) Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments.

Note to Editors

All appointments are made on merit and in accordance with the Office for the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA) Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments.

None of the re-appointed trustees have declared any political activity in the past five years.

The RUC George Cross Foundation was created by virtue of Section 70 of the Police (NI) Act 2000 for the purpose of "marking the sacrifices and honouring the achievements of the Royal Ulster Constabulary". It commenced work in December 2001.

The functions of the Foundation allow it to recognise a long, proud history of policing in NI and to look forward by supporting current serving officers. In particular, it will remember sacrifice and service and preserve the name of the RUC GC in the policing world.

The Foundation has a number of statutory functions including the following:

• the disbursement of funds and funding of projects commensurate with the aim of marking the sacrifices and honouring the achievements of the RUC;
• supporting the professional development of police officers and innovations in policing by means of bursaries and scholarships.

The Foundation also undertakes joint initiatives with the Widows’ Association and other groups within the police family. They also have responsibility for the Memorial Garden and the development of a new policing museum.

Jim McDonald

Jim McDonald is a former Chief Officer of the Labour Relations Agency. He is the Independent Assessor of the Military Complaints Procedures in Northern Ireland. He has a background in working with young people having worked with The Prince's Trust for some 25 years. He has experience of consumer affairs and as a qualified Accountant. He was awarded an MSc in Social Policy from the University of Ulster.

Kate Carlisle

Kate Carlisle served in the Royal Ulster Constabulary for 32 years retiring as a Superintendent, in the role of Sub Divisional Commander in June 1995. She held many posts within the RUC and for several years had responsibility for Management Training of Sergeants, Inspectors and Chief Inspectors. She attended courses at Police Colleges in England, including CID and Command Courses. She is on the Board of Directors of the Police Fund of Northern Ireland, and was for many years the chairman of the RUC Ladies Choir.

Freddie Hall

Freddie Hall served in the Royal Ulster Constabulary for 32 years retiring as an Assistant Chief Constable in March 2001. He held various command posts across Northern Ireland as well as Personnel Training and Detective appointments at Headquarters. He holds a BA degree in Public Administration and a MA degree in Legal Studies. Mr Hall was awarded the Queen's Gallantry Medal in 1977 and the OBE in 1997.

During his service Mr Hall attended Staff College courses in the UK and USA. He also spent an attachment to US Police Departments. He now works as a Training Consultant. Freddie was also recently appointed as Deputy Lieutenant of County Antrim.

Professor Dame Geraldine Keegan

Dame Geraldine recently retired as Head of St Mary's College, Londonderry. During her career, she has worked as a senior lecturer in Teacher Training and as Deputy Director of the Northern Ireland Centre for Education Management.

As well as working in the field of education, she holds membership of a number of public and professional bodies, including Northern Ireland representative on the UK Board of Investors in People. She has recently completed a four-year term as Pro-chancellor of the University of Ulster and was appointed a Visiting Professor in Education at the University of Ulster in June 2001.

Because of the success of the school, she is a frequent speaker at conferences worldwide. In 1995, she was awarded an OBE for "services to education" and was made a Dame in 2000.

Bertha McDougall

Bertha McDougall was educated at Methodist College Belfast and returned to higher education after taking a break to bring up her three sons. She is the widow of part-time RUC Reservist Lindsay McDougall.

Bertha was a primary school teacher for 15 years before being seconded to The Northern Ireland Council for Educational Development where she was a coordinator for EMU (Education for Mutual Understanding) in cross-community projects. Her last position was as Principal Officer with the Council for Curriculum Examinations and Assessment (CCEA). In October 2005 Bertha was appointed as the Interim Commissioner for Victims and Survivors for a period of one year. Her interests are church, singing and travelling.

Terms of Appointment

The appointments have been made for five years in line with the RUC George Cross Foundation Regulations 2002, and the post is unpaid.

Other Ministerial Public Appointments

The following reappointed trustees currently hold other ministerial public appointments:

Jim McDonald - Independent Assessor for Military Complaints Procedures (£13,465 per annum)

Kate Carlisle - Director of the Northern Ireland Police Fund (No remunerations)

Dame Geraldine Keegan - Member of Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (No remunerations), Non-executive Director of National Museum of Galleries of Northern Ireland(No remunerations), Member of North West Regional College (No remunerations)

Freddie Hall - Member of Criminal Injuries Compensation Appeals Panel for Northern Ireland (£249 per day)

Statutory Requirements

The original appointments were made by the Secretary of State in accordance with the RUC George Cross Foundation Regulations 2002.