The Director of Consumer Affairs, Mr William Fagan, is to take up a position with Princes Holdings, the company part-owned by Independent Newspapers. Mr Fagan, who has headed the consumer affairs bureau for eight years, is to become one of the company's senior executives. His role will include lobbying the Government and dealing with legal and regulatory issues.
Contacted at his home last night, Mr Fagan would not confirm that he was switching jobs.
He said his current priority was helping his daughter find student accommodation in Britain.
However, the chief operating officer of Princes Holdings, Mr Bart Bonsall, said the company was delighted Mr Fagan would be joining.
"We plan to spend £150 million building Princes Holdings into a regional telephone company. Willie will be an important part of our team as we do that," he added.
The Government must now find a replacement for Mr Fagan. The post of Director of Consumer Affairs carries a salary of around £60,000 a year.
Princes Holdings, in which Independent Newspapers has a 50 per cent stake, was at the centre of controversy earlier this year over its receipt in 1989 of MMDS television licences from the then Minister for Communications, Mr Ray Burke.
Before his current job, Mr Fagan served as Director of the Office of the Ombudsman from 1987.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/VR3765MFOBH2NMV2QNICYDF67M.png)