The Equity Release Council has confirmed David Burrowes as its chair and made another board appointment to the industry body, which represents lenders, qualified financial advisers, solicitors, and intermediaries.
Burrowes is reappointed as the council’s chair for a third and final term — while Michelle Highman will join the board as an independent non-executive director, in addition to her role as chair of the body’s standards committee.
Burrowes has chaired the council’s board since 2017, and as a former MP sat on the influential Home Affairs and Public Accounts Select Committees and served across numerous government departments including the Cabinet Office and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. He is also a practising solicitor.
Highman is the chief executive of financial capability group Money Charity and is a former member of the Financial Inclusion Commission’s advisory panel.
She spent 13 years with the then-Financial Services Authority, where she played a role in implementing its national financial capability strategy and setting up the Money Advice Service (the predecessor to the now Money and Pensions Service), as well as various regulatory roles including financial promotion and pension mis-selling reviews.
The body said the later life market returned to growth for the first time in 12 months in its third-quarter data, released in October.
It said total lending hit £716m over the period, up 8% on the previous three months. This was loaned to 7,379 new customers, up 10%, and 8,466 returning drawdown customers.
The Equity Release Council represents over 750 firms and 1,800 individuals.
Burrowes says: “2024 promises to be a landmark year where the economic and social policy response to an older population will be put under the microscope of a general election, and the regulator will consider the role of later life lending in supporting people’s retirement income.”
Highman adds: “There is important work to be done to reinforce advice standards and I am looking forward to building on the progress we have made this year to support members in critical areas such as fee transparency and post-completion communications.”
