June 30 – Former chief executive of the Football Association, Ian Watmore (pictured right), who controversially resigned in March, has a key new role trying to help cut Government waste, it was announced today.
He is to become the new chief operating officer at the head of the Efficiency and Reform Group, the Cabinet Office body designed to tackle waste across all Government departments, including saving money on property.
His remit will include “exploiting economies of scale”, reducing duplication, and finding efficiencies in procurement, project management and property.
Watmore first entered the civil service in 2004 as director general and Government chief information officer in the Cabinet Office.
In 2007, he became permanent secretary for the newly created Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills, where he worked with Lord Triesman, the FA chairman who appointed him as chief executive.
Watmore surprisingly resigned in March in frustration at the impotence of his role, after failing to win board support for his efforts to re-establish its place as the national regulator of the sport.
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