Tim Toulmin has been appointed as the new director of the Press Complaints Commission.

He succeeds Guy Black who stepped down from the post at the end of last year. Tim has been acting director since then.

His appointment follows an advertisement of the post in newspapers around the UK, and a search conducted by headhunters Spencer Stuart.

A shortlist of four people was interviewed by a panel comprising Commission chairman Sir Christopher Meyer, lay commissioners Professor Robert Pinker and Bishop John Waine, Belfast Telegraph editor Ed Curran and Robin Esser, who is chairman of the Parliamentary and Legal Committee of the Society of Editors.

The appointment was confirmed at a full meeting of the Commission yesterday.

Chairman Sir Christopher Meyer said: “I am very pleased to announce the appointment of Tim as our new director. He has long experience at the PCC, which will be of enormous help to the Commissioners and me.

“But this is no status quo appointment. Tim has clear, imaginative ideas for taking the PCC forward and improving our service to members of the public, who continue to come to us in ever-increasing numbers.”

Tim joined the PCC in 1996, and became deputy director in 2000.

He said: “It is an exciting time to be taking over the directorship of the Commission. The Commission has an excellent story to tell in terms of how it has raised standards in journalistic behaviour and newspaper reporting over the last few years.

“I am looking forward to building on that, and to continuing to work with members of the Commission and the excellent team of people on the full time staff.”

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