Pia Wilkes has been named as the chief executive of the Vehicle Certification Agency.
The VCA is an executive agency of the Department for Transport, responsible for making sure new vehicles are safe and environmentally compliant for use on Britain’s roads, and it played a key role in testing cars in the wake of last year’s Volkswagen emissions scandal.
Wilkes takes over as the organisation’s chief exec in November, marking a return to the civil service after almost five years at emissions testing firm Mira Ltd.
The road less travelled: DVLA's Oliver Morley and Iain Patterson on the driver agency's move to bring IT back in-house
Arrivals, moves & departures: latest appointments in the civil service, politics and public affairs – January 25
Before joining Mira Ltd, Wilkes served as deputy director for urban congestion in the Department for Transport itself, and she has previously been a member of the VCA’s board.
Announcing her appointment, DfT perm sec Philip Rutnam said Wilkes would provide “excellent leadership” for the agency and said her “industry experience, strong commercial background and engineering expertise will help drive the VCA through busy times ahead”.
Wilkes — who will take over from interim chief exec Paul Higgs — said she was “looking forward to again working with the highly skilled team of engineers at VCA”.
Following last year’s VW emissions scandal — in which it was revealed that many VW diesel cars included so-called "defeat devices” that allowed them to cheat emissions tests — MPs called on the government to ensure that the UK had a “robust regulator who can keep ahead of developments in technology”.
“That regulator does not exist today,” the Transport Committee said. “The VCA must make scrutinising manufacturers for non-compliance and questionable practices its first priority.”