Tory MP and former environment secretary described as 鈥榟ard to match鈥� in architectural and political experience

Former Tory environment secretary John Gummer has emerged as the frontrunner for the post of chairman of CABE.

Gummer, who is MP for Suffolk Coastal, served in the Cabinet under Margaret Thatcher and John Major.

As a former secretary of state for the environment, he meets the requirement for the CABE chairman to be a public figure familiar with the political and architectural worlds.

Gummer would not be drawn on whether he had applied for the job, but refused to rule himself out for it.

He said: 鈥淚 am a great supporter of CABE and I think it鈥檚 done an excellent job. The chairman鈥檚 position is a very interesting job.鈥�

Paul Hyett, former RIBA president, backed Gummer鈥檚 application, describing Gummer鈥檚 experience in the political and architectural spheres as 鈥渉ard to match鈥�.

Hyett said: 鈥淗e was the best minister of the environment we have had since the last war. He was a breath of fresh air, and he had the intellectual capacity for the job, as well as being deeply committed to architecture. I also found him very helpful when I was at the RIBA.鈥�

According to the job specification released by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the successful applicant needs to have sufficient standing to deal with the political world and with the spheres of design, finance, development and the local authorities.

The job specification calls for a 鈥渓eader in his or her field in the public or private sector鈥� with 鈥渟trong financial and governance awareness鈥�.

It also stipulates the need to 鈥渦nderstand the sensitivity to the interplay between CABE鈥檚 remit and wider commercial interests鈥�.

Sir Stuart Lipton, the former CABE chairman, was obliged to step down in June after concerns were raised over a perceived conflicts of interest between CABE and his development firm, Stanhope.

Other political big-hitters linked to the role include former deputy prime minister Lord Heseltine, former shadow minister for the arts Mark Fisher, and former culture secretary Chris Smith.

Names from outside the political sphere include former RIBA president Marco Goldschmied and Paul Finch, the current CABE interim chairman 鈥� although Finch has said publicly that he will not apply.