Press release: Deputy Pubs Code Adjudicator appointed

The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Greg Clark, has today (24 October 2017) appointed Fiona Dickie as Deputy Pubs Code Adjudicator (DPCA) who will support the Pubs Code Adjudicator, Paul Newby, in enforcing the Pubs Code.

Pubs Code Adjudicator Paul Newby said:

I am delighted to welcome Fiona Dickie to the team. Fiona’s 12 years’ judicial experience, including in complex and high-value cases, will be the perfect foundation to her role as Deputy Pubs Code Adjudicator. I look forward to working with her to improve conditions for tied tenants up and down the country.

Deputy Pubs Code Adjudicator Fiona Dickie said:

I am very proud to be appointed as Deputy Pubs Code Adjudicator. I look forward to using my legal background to offer a just and proportionate resolution to disputes, and to ensuring compliance with the Code to support a fair, thriving pubs industry and the local communities they serve. I encourage all interested parties to work with the Pubs Code Adjudicator.

Margot James, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Small Business, Consumers and Corporate Responsibility, said:

The Pubs Code helps thousands of tied tenants across the country to secure a better deal and Fiona’s role will further strengthen this vital work.

Her extensive legal knowledge, dispute resolution skills and experience of complex cases will be invaluable assets in her new role.

Fiona Dickie will take up her role on 1 November 2017, working 4 days per week. She will be based in Birmingham.

Notes to editors

1. Fiona Dickie was called to the Bar in 1993. She has been a Vice President of the Valuation Tribunal for England since July 2009, and was appointed Judge of First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) in 2013 (after serving as a Lawyer Chairman of its predecessor tribunal from 2006). She was accredited as a Civil Mediator by the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Group in 2005. She was also appointed as a Road User Charging Adjudicator (RUCA) in 2004, and appointed as an Examiner of the Court in 2004.
2. This appointment is made in accordance with the code of practice for the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA). The appointment is made for an initial term of 2 years.
3. The Pubs Code regulates the relationship between all businesses owning 500 or more tied pubs in England and Wales and their tied tenants. The Deputy Pubs Code Adjudicator will support the Pubs Code Adjudicator and will have the same powers as the Adjudicator to arbitrate individual disputes about breaches of the Pubs Code (including disputes on rent and market rent only options), investigate suspected systemic breaches of the Code more widely across the sector, provide advice and guidance about the Code and report on unfair business practices.
4. The Statutory Pubs Code was introduced in May 2016. In the first year the Pubs Code Adjudicator has accepted 156 cases for arbitration and made 48 arbitration awards. Anyone with a stake in the pub business is encouraged to work with the Pubs Code Adjudicator and Deputy Pubs Code Adjudicator to raise the profile of the Code and improve relationships across the industry.