MR Peter Sutherland is to succeed Sir David Simon as non executive chairman of British Petroleum, following Sir David's appointment as a minister in Mr Tony Blair's government.
Mr Sutherland is being appointed on an interim basis to give the board time to select a long term successor to Sir David.
Mr Sutherland is also chairman of Goldman Sachs International, the London based subsidiary of Goldman Sachs, the US investment bank. A former EU Commissioner, he was director general of Gatt and became the first director general of its successor, the World Trade Organisation.
Sir David is leaving to become minister for trade and competitiveness in Europe with a seat in the House of Lords, where he will be the spokesman for the Treasury. Sir David is giving up all his nonexecutive directorships and his place on the Court of the Bank of England.
Mr Sutherland served on the BP board from 1989 to 1993, but then resigned all his board directorships when he was appointed as director general of GATT. He rejoined the board as deputy chairman in July 1995 when he left the World Trade Organisation, the organisation established to replace the GATT.
