Secretariat

Justin McCracken

Health Protection Agency
Chief Executive

Justin McCracken, is chief executive of the UK Health Protection Agency (HPA).  The Health Protection Agency's role is to provide an integrated approach to protecting UK public health against infectious diseases and other dangers to health through the provision of support and advice to the National Health Service (NHS), local authorities, emergency services, other government agencies, the Department of Health and the devolved administrations of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The agency is responsible for providing information and services to support a coordinated and consistent UK public health response to national level emergencies.

Before joining HPA, McCracken was deputy chief executive of the Health & Safety Executive (HSE), where he was responsible for all of HSE’s operational work. He led and managed large, geographically dispersed teams of experts promoting improvements in health and safety, and led the HSE's response to major health and safety incidents across Great Britain. A physicist by training, he had worked as a research scientist in ICI. His subsequent posts in ICI took him into marketing and business management in the UK and overseas, culminating in worldwide responsibility for ICI’s catalyst and technology licensing business. In 1998, he joined the Environment Agency as north west regional director.  He was responsible for all the activities of the agency in North West England, and promoting enhanced partnership working across many local organisations.