The NEDs will join the MCA Board to provide challenge and support to the agency, overseeing strategy and operational performance
Posted on: 5 January 2026
The Secretary of State for Transport, the Rt Hon Heidi Alexander MP, has appointed three new Non-Executive Directors to join the Board of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), effective 1 January 2026. They are:
- Vice Admiral Sir Martin Connell, the outgoing Second Sea Lord in the Royal Navy.
- Britt Pickering from the Shipowners Protection and Indemnity Club and the International Group.
- Kevin Daffey from Rolls Royce, and chairman of the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology.
MCA Chairman Lord Simon Stevens said: “Our new directors bring deep expertise and extensive leadership experience covering many of the MCA’s wide-ranging responsibilities, both in the UK and internationally.
“I am delighted we’ve been able to make these high-calibre appointments to the MCA Board at a time when the agency is both modernising its operational delivery and increasingly supporting innovation across the wider maritime sector.”
The new non-executives join a further recently appointed MCA NED and chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee, Andre Katz. He took up post in September 2025 and is a Chartered Accountant and Certified Member of the Institute of Risk Management, with over 25 years’ experience as a leader in risk management, assurance and audit.
These roles were all publicly advertised, and appointed following open competition.
The MCA Board and its non-executive directors provide challenge and support to the agency, overseeing strategy and operational performance across the MCA’s wide-ranging maritime roles including running HM Coastguard, regulating shipping, seafarer training, and maritime environmental protection.
More information on the MCA’s 2025/26 priorities can be found in the 2025-26 Business Plan.
