The Times, London
CITY DIARY, Saturday, July 29, 2000

Trouble at the Lloyd’s insurance market, where poor Bob Hewes, the finance director, has had to delay his departure "to pursue other interests" because they can’t find a replacement. At least one if not two successors have been identified but have turned the job down. Hewes will have to continue to work, then, with Nick Prettejohn, the chief executive, who this week consolidated his stranglehold on the insurance market when it was announced the chairmanship would be part-time. Max Taylor, probably the only Lloyd’s chairman to have managed the psychedelic rock band, Hawkwind -- he never inhaled -- leaves in December. Prettejohn has already taken over the chair of the Lloyd’s Market Board, previously the prerogative of the chairman.

The HI always found Hewes to be more approachable than the rest of those on the 12th floor and on two occasions he actually righted wrongs. However, that apart, the financial controller, Michael Going, retired at the end of June, two successors turned down that job too, and it remains vacant.

Here is the problem of no one wanting the job of chairman. Do they all know something and are not telling!

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