The National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse (NTA) is a special health authority within the NHS, established by Government in 2001 to improve the availability, capacity and effectiveness of treatment for drug misuse in England.

It has already been announced that the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse (NTA) will cease to exist as a separate organisation and that its key functions will be transferred to Public Health England. In the interim, the NTA will continue its work supporting the development of a recovery-based treatment system and will begin to build a role in helping to improve the provision of services for alcohol dependence.

The NTA is therefore pleased to announce the following reappointments of members of its Board, during this period of transition:

• Baroness Doreen Massey to serve as Chair of the Board for the period 1 May 2011 until 30 April 2012.  Baroness Massey has been Chair of the NTA since 2002, and will receive remuneration for the post of £24,744 per annum, plus travel and subsistence expenses. Baroness Massey has a strong interest in public health, health education and children and young people.  She chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group for Children.  She is President of Brook Advisory Centre a charity specialising in young people's sexual health, a Trustee of UNICEF UK, the Teachers Advisory Council for Alcohol and Drug Education (TACADE), and of the Trust for the Study of Adolescence.  She also serves on the House of Lords Information Committee and the Works of Art Committee.
  
  Baroness Massey is a health education specialist on a range of issues including drug and alcohol misuse, HIV/AIDS and sexual health in national and international contexts.  She is the former Director of the UK Family Planning Association, has published a range of books and training resources on health and sex education, is a qualified teacher and member of the All Party Parliamentary Groups on alcohol and drugs, AIDS, population and development.  She is also a Lady Taverner, a cricket charity which raises money for disabled children to take part in sport.  She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.  Baroness Massey has been a Labour peer since 1999 but has no paid Government responsibilities
  
  
• Alison Comley to serve as a Non Executive Director on the NTA Board for a further four years, from the period of August 2010 to 31 July 2014.  Alison has served in this role since August 2006, and will receive remuneration for the post of £7,882 per annum, plus travel and subsistence expenses.  Alison is currently the Acting Strategic Director (Neighbourhoods) for Bristol City Council.  She has worked within a local authority setting for over 20 years, as a social worker, planner and senior manager with all client groups and has developed a focus on the drugs field in the last 15 years.  Alison was awarded an MBE in this year's honours list for services to Local Government
  
  
• Peter McDermott to serve as a Non Executive Director on the NTA Board from the period of 1 January 2011 to 31 March 2012.  Peter has served in this role since January 2004, and will receive remuneration for the post of £7,882 per annum, plus travel and subsistence expenses. Peter is a Policy Lead, for a charity called The Alliance (a patient advocacy service that works with people with drug dependency issues).   Currently, he is seconded to the Sefton Drug Action Team
  
  
• Dr Gabriel Scally to service as a Non Executive Director on the NTA Board from the period of 1 January 2011 to 31 March 2012.  Gabriel has served in this role since January 2006, and his organisation will receive remuneration for the post of £7,882 per annum, plus travel and subsistence expenses.  Gabriel is the Regional Director of Public Health for the South West region of England. Gabriel leads the Regional Public Health Group which has responsibilities across the broad field of public health including intelligence, health protection and health improvement programmes, and is a Director of the South West Strategic Health Authority.  He holds a visiting Chair at the University of the West of England.

All the above appointments have been made in accordance with the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA) Code of Practice.

All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process.  However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations there is a requirement for appointees; political (if any declared) to be made public.  There are none.