The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has confirmed the reappointment of Sarah Mukherjee MBE and Mark Suthern to the Environment Agency Board. Both second terms are for twelve months, beginning on 10 January 2026, and were made under the Ministerial Governance Code on Public Appointments.
The Environment Agency Board provides strategic and corporate leadership to the non‑departmental public body established by the Environment Act 1995. The Agency’s responsibilities include flood and coastal risk management, water resources and quality, climate change, land quality, chemicals, pollution prevention and control, waste, conservation and biodiversity, fisheries conservation, air quality and navigation.
Mukherjee continues on the People and Pay Committee and the Environment and Business Committee, and remains geographically aligned with the South East and East Area Hub. Her portfolio spans workforce matters and the interface between environmental regulation and business operations.
She is Chief Executive of ISEP (Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Professionals) and previously served as the BBC’s Environment Correspondent. Since leaving broadcasting, she has held leadership roles in the utilities and agriculture sectors, contributed to the National Parks Review and the National Food Strategy Advisory Panel, and previously sat as a non‑executive at the Woodland Trust, Harper Adams University and the Oxford Farming Conference. She was awarded an MBE in the 2021 Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to agriculture and farmer well‑being.
Suthern remains Chair of the Flood and Coastal Risk Management Committee and sits on the Audit and Risk Assurance Committee and the Environment and Business Committee. He is aligned to the Midlands Area Hub.
His executive background includes serving as Managing Director and National Head of Agriculture and Landed Estates at Barclays UK, with a focus on farming, agri‑tech, sustainability, energy and environmental issues. He chairs the Arthur Rank Centre, leads the FixOurFood Advisory Board at the University of York, is a member of the Ceres Agri‑Tech Investment Committee, and is a trustee of the Society of Agriculture. He also serves as a Lay‑Canon and Senior Non‑Executive member of the Chapter at Lincoln Cathedral.
According to the government announcement, the appointments were made on merit and political activity played no part. The Ministerial Governance Code sets expectations for fairness, openness and accountability in public appointments, with reappointments used to provide continuity where appropriate.
The Board currently comprises a Chair and eight members. With Mukherjee and Suthern continuing in post, the Agency retains continuity across people, audit, business engagement and flood and coastal risk management functions during 2026.