Steve McGrath has been appointed chief executive of the Meat Hygiene Service.

McGrath will take up his new role on 22 January next year, but will join the service on 1 November to familiarise himself with its roles and responsibilities. He replaces Chris Lawson, who is retiring from public service.

McGrath joins the Meat Hygiene Service from HM Revenue & Customs, where he was director, responsible for 70 million National Insurance accounts and managing shared services for 16,000 staff in HMRC and the Department for Work and Pensions. He has also held senior roles with British Gas, including director of gas supply and operations director.