Interim Chair Appointed to the Gambling Commission

The Secretary of State has appointed Charles Counsell OBE as Interim Chair of the Gambling Commission.

Charles Counsell OBE

Appointed as Interim Chair for a nine month term which will commence on 1 February 2025. 

Charles Counsell has been the Senior Independent Director at the Gambling Commission since April 2024.

Charles was Chief Executive Officer of The Pensions Regulator from April 2019 to March 2023. Prior to this he was CEO of the Money Advice Service, and Executive Director of Automatic Enrolment at The Pensions Regulator. 

As CEO of The Pensions Regulator, Charles developed the new corporate strategy to put the pension saver at the heart of the Regulator. He delivered their first Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy and Climate Change strategies – both focused on driving change in the regulator and across the Pensions Sector. 

Throughout his career, his roles have focused on setting up and delivering large change programmes requiring significant stakeholder relationship engagement: initially in the private sector and latterly in senior public sector appointments.

Remuneration and Governance Code

The Chair of the Gambling Commission is remunerated at £55,000 per annum.  These appointments have been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office's Governance Code on Public Appointments.

The appointments process is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. Under the Code, any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years must be declared. This is defined as including holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation, or candidature for election. Charles Counsell has not declared any significant political activity.