Ofgem appoints Mary Starks as executive director of the Consumers and Markets directorate
Press release
Publication date
Industry sector
- Supply and Retail Market
- Generation and Wholesale Market
Ofgem has appointed Mary Starks as executive director of the Consumers and Markets directorate.
Mary will oversee Ofgem's work to protect consumers' interests in the retail and wholesale energy markets, including putting in place a price cap for all those on poor value defaults deals.
Mary is currently the director of competition and chief economist at the Financial Conduct Authority where in a joint role she has led the organisation in meeting its new statutory objective to promote competition in the interests of consumers.
She has over two decades' experience working for a variety of organisations across the regulatory and public policy environment.
Before joining the FCA, she was senior director at the Office of Fair Trading where she oversaw the watchdog’s portfolio of markets and enforcement casework across financial services, legal and professional services, health, education and infrastructure.
Mary has also worked on energy regulation at NERA, the economic consultancy, and at the New Zealand Commerce Commission. She began her career at the Bank of England as an analyst.
She is a trustee of Working Families, a leading UK charity helping parents, carers and employers find a better balance between the responsibilities of home and work.
Rob Salter-Church has been interim executive director of Consumers and Markets since Rachel Fletcher left Ofgem to become chief executive of Ofwat, the water regulator, in January. He will continue in this role until Mary joins in September when he will take up his permanent role as director for retail systems transformation.
Dermot Nolan, chief executive, said: "I am pleased to announce Mary's appointment. She has a wealth of experience in regulation and public policy and an impressive track record of protecting consumers. I would also like to thank Rob Salter-Church for his excellent leadership of the Consumers and Markets directorate in the interim."
Mary Starks said: "I am excited to be joining Ofgem at a time of significant change in the energy sector and am looking forward to making a positive difference for all energy consumers, from households to heavy industry."
Further information
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