Former Bank of Ireland governor appointed new BAT chairman

19th Aug 2009 07:05

Former Bank of Ireland governor Richard Burrows is to be the new chairman of British American Tobacco when Jan du Plessis steps down from the position on 1 November.Burrows, who stood down as governor of Bank of Ireland last month following a turbulent period which saw the bank relying on state funding to weather the credit crunch , will join BAT as a non-executive director on 1 September ahead of his elevation to the top job. Du Plessis is stepping down from BAT, which makes Lucky Strike cigarettes, to concentrate on his role as chairman of the mining giant Rio Tinto, which he took up on 20 April.Commenting on the appointment of Burrows, who is also a former chief executive of Irish Distillers and co-chief executive of Pernod Ricard and current non-executive director of Carlsberg BAT senior independent director Sir Nick Scheele said: ''Richard's executive career in the worldwide FMCG sector makes him an excellent choice, as does his proven ability to work with a team from various cultures and countries.'