Jeremy Lightfoot has been appointed Chief Executive of the Department of Corrections, for three years from 24 February 2020.
He is is currently the Acting Chief Executive of Corrections, a role he has held since 21 December 2019. He was also Acting Chief Executive for a period in 2018.
The department says Mr Lightfoot is experienced in leading change and has led a number of initiatives and projects with Māori.
"He played a critical leadership role in the development and implementation of Hōkai Rangi, the new strategy for Ara Poutama Aotearoa, the Department of Corrections. The strategy reflects a five-year change programme, Hōkai Nuku, to deliver major improvement to the Corrections system.
"Hōkai Rangi was developed directly with Māori and focuses on changes in the way Corrections’ will develop prison services and its workforce and, work with iwi and community partners. These changes are intended to help meet the government’s priorities to reduce overrepresentation of Māori in prison, improve public safety and reduce re-offending rates overall."