Members

The Council has a Chairman, Deputy Chair and thirteen members appointed following ministerial approval.

Steve was appointed Chairman of the Consumer Council in January 2003. He is Chairman of the Republic of Ireland Government's National Consumer Agency and a Board member of Business in the Community Ireland. He is also Chair of the Board of Stranmillis University College. Steve chaired the Education Minister's Advisory Group on the post primary review. He was a former Chair of the Northern Ireland Business Education Partnership and the Northern Ireland Blood Transfusion Service. He was also an Executive and Council member of Dublin Chamber of Commerce.

Steve's career began in 1972 with Marks & Spencer where he held a number of assistant management appointments throughout England. He progressed through the company to become Chief Executive for Ireland and he retired in 2001.

Steve received an MBE in 1997 for services to education and training in Northern Ireland. He received the Paul Harris Rotary Worldwide Fellowship Medal in the same year. Steve is married with two grown up children.

Siubhan lives in Hollywood and is a qualified barrister. She has been a member of the Law Reform Advisory Committee for Northern Ireland, a Director of Translink and Chair of the Ulster Community and Hospitals Trust.  Siubhan is Convenor of the Council's Transport Group and Deputy Chair since January 2007.

Mr Bradley is Director of Community Technical Aid (CTA). He served on the Local Government Taskforce Community Planning Working Group and DRD's External Stakeholder Group on the Assessment of Regional Development Strategy. He is a former Chairperson of the North Belfast Partnership Board and member of the Board of the Laganside Corporation.

John is a chartered accountant and was in practice for many years. He is a member of the Charities Advisory Committee and follows a number of business interests.  John is Chair of the Consumer Council's Audit Committee.

Michael is a partner in consultancy firm, Second Nature. His main interests  lie in sustainable development and he has been working towards this for the past nine years. Until July 2005, he was Director at Sustainable Northern Ireland, a not-for-profit organisation supporting this work. He is currently

developing new projects on sustainable development themes and runs a farmers market in his home town of Castlewellan.

He has a degree in European Business and a Masters in Environment and Development. His early experience was as a marketing specialist in the Technology Sector.  Michael is the Convenor of the Consumer Council's Food and Consumer Affairs Group.

John retired in December 2004 as Managing Director of Farrans (Construction) Limited following a long career in a range of senior management posts with the company and its subsidiaries.

He is past Chair of Q.U.B.'s Civil Engineering Advisory Committee, past President of the NI Construction Employers Federation and was an independent Council Member and Business Committee Member of the Advisory Council for Infrastructure Investment.

He is a Board Member of the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI), Chair of Buildsafe-NI, Co-Chair of the Joint HSENI-HSA Construction Safety Working Group. He is Chair of the Board of Governors, Bangor Grammar School and President-Elect of North Down Rotary Club. John is Convenor of the Consumer Council's Energy Group.

Celia lives in Lisburn and retired as Head of the Industrial Development Board's Export Service, after a career with the Civil Service.  She was a Board member of the Northern Ireland Memorial Fund, where she served on the Publicity and the Pain Relief and Respite Care Sub-Committees.  She is a founder member of the Prosthetics User Forum, Northern Ireland and a member of the Regional Prosthetics Forum.  Celia is a Governor of Wallace High School and a Board member of ADAPT (NI), an arts accessibility charity. Celia is Convenor of the Consumer Council’s Consumer Education Group. 

Mrs Havlin is a Solicitor by profession. She is the SEELB representative on Board of Governors for Glenlola Collegiate School, Bangor and St Columbanus College Bangor. She has served as a Senior officer and Treasurer of The Belfast Solicitors’ Association and is currently a member of the Board of North Down and Ards Womens Aid NI.

Mr Hill currently serves as Acting-Chair of Northern Ireland Screen Commission,Chair of Consumer Focus Post, Northern Ireland and an ex-officio member of the Consumer Focus Board, Non-Executive Director of Society for the Orphans and Children of Ministers and Missionaries of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland Ltd and is Vice-Chair of the Board of Governors of Knocknagoney Primary School. Mr Hill is a former Minister of Garnerville Presbyterian Church, Belfast. He is a former member of the BBC Audience Council for Northern Ireland and BBC Broadcasting Council for Northern Ireland.

David is Team Leader, Campaigns, for the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB).  He has previously worked for RNIB  as a Campaigns Officer and in capacities. He also has experience of translation work and of teaching English as a foreign language.  Voluntary sector experience includes work with the Citizens@ Advice Bureau and on UK-wide and Northern Ireland-based groups dealing with energy, telecommunications and the rights and needs of disabled people.

Bob is a Chartered Certified Accountant who has held a number of senior management posts in both the private and public sectors.  He has worked for several companies within Viridian Group PLC, including a time as General Manager (Finance) in NIE. Subsequently he established the information technology company Sx3 and was appointed as a Director. He is also a Non Executive Director in United Northern HSC Trust and Chair of the Audit Committee.  In addition he is a Director of Victim Support Northern Ireland and Chair of the Audit Committee of Northern Ireland Commission for Children and Young People. 

Hilary is a Chartered Accountant by profession and lives in Belfast. She was formerly Finance Director of Progressive Building Society.  Hilary was appointed to the Board of the Central Services Agency in July 2004 and is currently Chair of the Audit Committee.

Mrs McCartan has served as a voluntary Board Member of Oaklee Housing Association since February 2001 and is currently Chair of the Audit Committee.  In January 2006 Hilary was appointed a member of the Audit and Risk Committee of the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People (NICCY).  Mrs McCartan was appointed by the Minister on 1 September 2006 to the  Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission.  Hilary was also appointed to the Probation Board on 1 September 2006 by the Secretary of State.

Majella is Director of CO3 - Chief Officers Third Sector which represents leaders in the voluntary and community sector.   She is responsible for providing strategic and operational leadership to the organisation and campaigns on issues of common concern to it's members. Formerly the Director of NEA Northern Ireland, a fuel poverty charity, she has a track record of campaigning on behalf of low-income households.

Majella's background is in the voluntary and community sector, having previously worked for the World Health Organisation Healthy City Project and Gingerbread.  She is a former Chair of the Northern Ireland Anti Poverty Network.  She is also a Board member of Careers 'N' Kids Daycare Centre.

Maria is a member of the Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland and Ireland. She owns and manages a Pharmacy in Belleek, County Fermanagh and is a Governor of Mount Lourdes Grammar School in Enniskillen. Maria is a former member of the Food Standards Agency Northern Ireland Advisory Committee and of the Northern Ireland Committee for Electricity. Maria is the Deputy Convenor of the Consumer Council's Food and Consumer Affairs Group.

William is Managing partner of WJ Taylor and Partners, Glastry Farms.  He has held senior positions in numerous agri-businesses and other representative organisations in NI, GB and Europe, including Chair of the EU Advisory Committee on Livestock Products (2000-04).  He is a Director of United Dairy Farmers/Dale Farm, a member of the International Image Group to advise the NI Food Strategy Group and has just completed a second term as a member of the Food Standards Agency NI and the NI Economic Development Forum.  A Nuffield Scholar (2004-05) and a former President of the Ulster Farmers Union.