Channel 4 boss eyes ITV job

CHANNEL 4's departing chairman, Vanni Treves, has emerged as a leading contender to become chairman of ITV. The post is expected to be filled in the New Year.

Treves is set to step down in six weeks, and though he is also chairman of troubled insurer Equitable Life and the London Business School, he is known to be looking for another senior role in the City.

Treves, 63, a former commercial lawyer, is thought to be close to the Labour party and to have earned its gratitude for his handling of the Equitable crisis.

Charles Allen, chairman of Granada and proposed chief executive of ITV, is also a Labour supporter. With BBC chairman Gavyn Davies and director-general Greg Dyke also Labour backers, Treves' appointment would raise the prospect of the two biggest broadcasters having Labour supporters in the top posts.

Treves was appointed chairman of Equitable in March 2001 when it was overwhelmed by financial woes. His new board is bringing a multi-million pound legal case against former directors.

He was headhunted for the Equitable job by Julia Budd of Zygos, the corporate recruitment specialist now hired to find a new ITV chairman.

The aim is to have the ITV appointment finalised by the scheduled completion of the merger in the New Year. Treves' successor at Channel 4 has yet to be decided.

ITV is enjoying success in the ratings war. Recent popular programmes have included Pop Idol, while its evergreen soap Coronation Street has attracted big audiences with its latest story lines, including the bigamy of character Peter Barlow.