Chief Executive, RNLI
Chief Executive, RNLI
Peter officially took over as Chief Executive of the RNLI on 26 June 2024. He brings with_x000d_
him significant operational and leadership experience._x000d_
Joining the Royal Navy in 1990, he served in a wide variety of appointments, both at sea on_x000d_
operational duty and ashore. Notably, he commanded the frigate HMS Cumberland on_x000d_
counter-piracy patrol off Somalia, the ice-patrol ship HMS Protector in Antarctica, and the_x000d_
46 units of the Portsmouth Flotilla. In late 2019, he served in Washington DC as the UK_x000d_
Chief of Defence Staff’s Liaison Officer to the US Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Pentagon._x000d_
Peter became the Acting Chief Executive of the UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) in July_x000d_
2020 and was subsequently appointed Chief Executive in April 2021, leaving the Royal Navy_x000d_
to take up the permanent role. He led the globally significant maritime safety organisation_x000d_
throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, initiating the UKHO’s transformational shift to becoming_x000d_
a truly digital organisation._x000d_
Peter has previous first-hand experience of the RNLI’s lifesaving work. While serving in the_x000d_
Royal Navy as Commanding Officer of HMS Cumberland, Peter provided support to Torbay_x000d_
lifeboat in 2008 during the rescue of the Ice Prince, for which RNLI Coxswain Mark Criddle_x000d_
was awarded a Silver Medal. At the time of this rescue, Peter commented that it was a great_x000d_
privilege to see the determined efforts to take the last eight people off the vessel. He noted_x000d_
how well the coxswain handled the lifeboat in extremely challenging conditions and that the_x000d_
actions shown upheld the finest traditions of the RNLI, earning deserved respect from all_x000d_
involved._x000d_
Peter’s wife, Karen, is a lecturer in science at a Further Education college; their son is a_x000d_
Royal Navy medical officer. Peter is a Royal Navy Reservist, a Younger Brother of Trinity_x000d_
House, and President of TS BLAKE, the Bridgwater Sea Cadets. He enjoys a range of_x000d_
outdoor pursuits, including cycling and walking the South West Coastal Path, cooking curry,_x000d_
and is an avid supporter of Liverpool Football Club.