ITV has appointed Sir James Crosby, the former chief executive of the bank HBOS, as its senior independent director.

Crosby, 50, is already involved with ITV as a non-executive director, after joining the board of Granada in 2002, and the ITV board in 2003. He also sits on the board of the Financial Services Authority, is the chair of the Public Private Forum on Identity Management and a fellow of the Faculty of Actuaries.

He will take up the role of chairman of the ITV's nomination committee, the panel of directors responsible for executive hirings, and serve as an independent representative for shareholders, replacing Sir George Russell, the former chairman of ITN and defunct watchdog the ITC.

Though he remains on the board, Russell has stepped down from the position and will now take the role of the committee’s deputy chairman.

Russell said: “I am very pleased that James has accepted the appointment as our senior independent director and I look forward to working with him on the nomination committee.”