W2C-008 Business Telegraph-2.txt
Parker for Babcock

Harland and Wolff's outgoing chairman, John Parker, is likely to take over as chief executive of Babcock International, the UK-based engineering company headed by Lord King.

Announcing Mr Parker's resignation last week, the shipyard would only say that he was going to join an un-named "major international group".

But weekend newspaper reports, backed up by senior industry sources, suggest that the popular shipyard boss will join Babcock in October.

The Buckinghamshire-based company builds and equips power stations all over the world and, as a joint venture partner in Babcock-Thorn, manages the Rosyth Dockyard in Scotland on behalf of the Government.

It is this Rosyth connection which makes Mr Parker an ideal candidate for the top job at Babcock. His success in guiding Belfast Shipyard through privatisation and keeping it afloat during the worst recession in the ship-building trade has won him respect throughout the industry worldwide.

If his appointment at Babcock is confirmed, Mr Parker will replace Oliver Whitehead, who left the company in May.
