RICS Names 2025 President
Justin Sullivan has been named the new President of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Taking over from Tina Paillet, Justin is the Founder and CEO of...
Read Full ArticleRICS has, on the recommendation of an independent review, published a public apology to the four Non-Executive Directors who were wrongly dismissed in 2019.
The body has also apologised to former members of Governing Council who had been improperly threatened with legal proceedings.
These apologies were made privately, immediately before the publication of the independent review, and have now been made public.
"On behalf of the Governing Council and RICS, I apologise unreservedly for the way you have been treated. We thank you for your courageous persistence in the pursuit of unacceptable conduct. It is an exemplar for the behaviours we expect of officeholders of this nature."
–Nick Maclean
Acting Chair, RICS Governing Council
Nick Maclean, Acting Chair of the Governing Council, described Amarjit Atkar’s, Bruce McAra’s, Simon Hardwick’s and Steve Williams’s treatment and dismissal as “unacceptable and indefensible” and issued the following:
“On behalf of the Governing Council and RICS, I apologise unreservedly for the way you have been treated. We thank you for your courageous persistence in the pursuit of unacceptable conduct. It is an exemplar for the behaviours we expect of officeholders of this nature.
“As Ms Levitt concluded, you were right to challenge the refusal to give you full and proper information about our Treasury Management function. In finding that you were not to blame for what happened and being satisfied that you would have failed us had you not escalated the situation, Ms Levitt concludes that you are entirely exonerated.
“We accept and agree with this conclusion without reservation.”
The apology also detailed regret for any “anxiety and inconvenience you have suffered from RICS’ initial response to the media reporting”, stating that the body has initiated steps to address the systemic issues that allowed “the Institution to treat you in the way it did”
The Governing Council of RICS has also published a statement setting out the values expected of the institution in response to the independent review.
The statement describes how the organisation shall commission an independent review into governance (to commence before the end of November), introduce a new whistleblowing structure and initiate a “shake-up of executive remuneration”.
The values statement identifies six key values: integrity, transparency, inclusion, collaboration, advocacy and passion.
Nick Maclean said: "Ethical culture and behaviour are at the core of RICS’s identity and we believe our new values statement will be an important step in restoring pride in our institution. However, we are aware that we will be judged by our actions, not our words, and that is why we felt it was important to give an update on our response to Alison Levitt QC’s recommendations, with a clear timeline for each one”.
The Governing Council has also provided a timeline for its response to other recommendations from the review:
Further updates on its key recommendations will be provided at the Annual General Meeting on November 25th.
Picture: a photograph of the RICS logo on a wall
Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 30 September 2021
Justin Sullivan has been named the new President of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Taking over from Tina Paillet, Justin is the Founder and CEO of...
Read Full ArticleWith retrofit remaining a key buzzword in the built environment, the demand for good quality guidance on the matter is growing. Watch the...
Read Full ArticleThe Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has published its latest quarterly FM survey, which collects data from facilities managers, service providers and FM...
Read Full ArticleThe Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has launched its manifesto to inspire a roadmap for the built environment in the lead-up to the next UK General...
Read Full ArticleA new assessment standard from The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors is set to become the leading framework for carbon measurement in the built...
Read Full ArticleRICS has launched an eight-week-long consultation to gather opinions from industry professionals on the new RICS Residential Retrofit Standard for 2023. The data...
Read Full ArticleThe Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has announced that Justin Young will join as CEO on 5 July 2023. The membership body continues to make changes to its...
Read Full ArticleA digital tool to help facilities managers accurately price the specific maintenance requirements of any building has been launched by SFG20. The SFG20 Resource...
Read Full ArticleRICS has announced that its new Board Chair will be Martin Samworth FRICS. The establishment of this new RICS Board is one of the key recommendations from June...
Read Full ArticleAlongside other sector organisations, RICS is making plans to “drive forward the creation of a more diverse, equitable and inclusive sector”. In a...
Read Full Article