Cornerstone Global

on 12 August 2010

Former British Government Minister Gillian Merron has joined Cornerstone Global Associates as Senior Consultant and Senior Advisor.
Ms Merron was a highly effective Minister in five government departments, most recently Minister of State for Public Health. She previously was a Minister at the Foreign Office, Cabinet Office, Department for International Development and Department for Transport. She has an outstanding track record in international and national crisis management, including the Swine Flu pandemic, flooding and Foot and Mouth and was a lead member of the cross-government emergency committee Cobra.

Whilst at DfID, Ms Merron was the lead Minister for Africa and health, tackling child and maternal mortality, HIV/Aids, malaria and TB. She was instrumental in the delivery of UK policy change to improve human rights and justice, particularly in South America. At the Department of Transport, Gillian was lead Minister for aviation, bus services, regional and local transport plans and funding.

After 13 years as a Member of Parliament, Cornerstone Global Associates are particularly privileged to have her as part of our international team. Ghanem Nuseibeh, Founder, partner and director at Cornerstone commented: “Gillian Merron has a deep understanding of policy and the need for effective engagement at all levels. Gillian is a natural ambassador and action-oriented persuader. Her impressive track record in being able to take on complex briefs, quickly winning the confidence of new teams and achieving results is highly commendable. We look forward to working with Gillian in delivering further high-end consultancy to our clients. Gillian will be available to provide input on projects across our sectors of operations”.

Mark Townsend, Cornerstone’s Senior Gulf Advisor, co-anchor of Dubai’s Business Breakfast radio programme and former Business Editor of the UAE daily Khaleej Times commented: "Governments in the Gulf are engaged on a irrevocable path to higher standards of transparency and accountability. Gillian Merron's track-record and high-level skills will be invaluable to policy makers in the public and private sector throughout the region as they confront complex issues. Cornerstone's team in the region is significantly strengthened by Gillian's appointment particularly in the UAE where her expertise in institution building will be highly relevant."

For further information, please contact Ghanem Nuseibeh at gn@cstoneglobal.com