Our leadership

Appointed October 2026, Simon is a seasoned international director with many years’ experience as an executive or non-executive director of public and private companies under UK, European, US and other governance regimes in both developed and emerging markets.

Simon currently serves as non-executive Chairman of Modern Times Group AB, Viaplay Group AB and LW Theatres Limited.  He is also a non-executive director of LW Entertainment Limited.

Previous non-executive directorships include, among others, Millicom International Cellular SA, Oger Telecom Limited, GWR Group plc, Cell C Pty Ltd, mBlox Inc, Thames Television plc, HMV Media Group plc, Tiscali S.p.A., Gartmore plc and the Intellectual Property Institute.

Prior to pursuing a portfolio career, Simon held a number of executive positions in a range of business sectors and companies. From 2007 until 2008 he was Executive Chairman of QXL ricardo plc, the leading online retailer in Central and Eastern Europe.

Before QXL ricardo, Simon was Executive Vice Chairman of Virgin Media Group, having previously been President and Chief Executive Officer of NASDAQ-listed ntl Inc.  Under his leadership ntl acquired Telewest and Virgin Mobile to create Virgin Media Group.

Prior to ntl, Simon was Chief Financial Officer of Orange SA and before that Chief Executive Officer of Denmark-based wireless data company End2End AS. He joined End2End from Netherlands-based internet service provider WorldOnline International BV, where he was Chief Executive Officer and Deputy Chairman. Previously he had spent eight years at FTSE 100 Thorn EMI Group plc, where he was Group Finance Director and Deputy Chairman, and six years at Guinness plc, including three as Operations Director of United Distillers.

He is a former Chair of the Hurlingham Club and of the Board of Governors of Manchester Metropolitan University.  He has also served as a trustee of Women’s Aid, a charity that combats domestic abuse, and as an adviser to both the NSPCC and Music of Black Origin, the organiser of the MOBO Awards.

He holds an MA from Oxford University and an MBA from Harvard Business School, where he was a Harkness Fellow.

Shuja was appointed as Arqiva’s Chief Executive Officer in June 2022.

Prior to this, as Arqiva’s Chief Commercial Officer from January 2020, he was responsible for all our revenue generating activities. His remit also included strategy, product development, regulatory affairs and customer experience. He was at the heart of the creation of Vision 2031 – Arqiva’s vision and 10-year strategic plan – as well as the development of Arqiva’s purpose.  

He draws on more than 20 years of leadership experience in the technology, media and communications sector, including the Chief Commercial Office across 24 territories at Cable & Wireless and various leadership roles at both Virgin Media and Liberty Global Europe focusing on driving growth.  

Shuja initially qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Deloitte before moving into management consultancy advising a cross section of media and telecoms clients including the BBC on strategy and operational transformation.

Responsible for achieving our strategic and financial goals, Shuja is passionate about ensuring Arqiva focuses on long-term sustainability. With a strong and inclusive leadership style, Shuja is spearheading our cultural transformation to ensure that we are best possible partners to our customers; simplifying our business; and making Arqiva an inclusive and great place to be for our people.

Shuja is married with two children. He grew up in Saudi Arabia before moving to the UK where he currently lives in London. He is of Pakistani background and is fluent in Urdu. He is an advisor and investor in early-stage businesses as well as social ventures and is a supporter of his local community.

Alastair was appointed as Arqiva’s Chief Financial Officer in September 2025 and has over 30 years’ experience in finance.

Alastair (better known as Al) was previously Chief Financial Officer and Interim Co-CEO at Thames Water and Chief Financial Officer at Petrofac where he led the finance, commercial and digital functions. Prior to this, Al was at BG Group where he was responsible for M&A, treasury, corporate finance, global strategy, and business development. In all these roles, Al has been accountable for defining and delivering transformation strategies, financing growth, sustainability and unlocking value for all stakeholders.

A fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, he started his career with KPMG before enjoying a successful career in investment banking with Barclays de Zoete Wedd, Credit Suisse First Boston and Morgan Stanley. He believes passionately in driving performance and creating value through purpose, partnership, and innovation.

A Yorkshireman by birth, Al grew up in Saudi Arabia and Derbyshire, and has travelled the world extensively for both work and pleasure. Al is married with four children, and spends his downtime with family, on a snowboard or in the water.

Appointed to the board in February 2023, Scott has over 25 years of experience in Infrastructure and Utility businesses. He was formerly Group Finance Director of Anglian Water Group (AWG) and Managing Director of its non-regulated business until 2019.

Prior to AWG, he was Chief Accounting Officer of TXU Corporation and CFO of its regulated electric and gas businesses. Scott also held a number of financial and commercial roles with Shell encompassing corporate, operating company and joint venture activities across Europe, the Far East and Middle East.

He is currently also on the boards of FCC Aqualia S.A., EVOS BV (Audit Chair), Infinis Energy Management Limited (Audit Chair), and a Senior Adviser to Igneo Infrastructure Partners.

Scott is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and a founding member of the Accounting for Sustainability CFO Leadership Network.

Matthew is Digital and Technology orientated leader with extensive experience in new digital businesses and with the digital transformation of existing organisations. He is a Non-Executive director of UK Strategic Command within the Ministry of Defence and with a media technology Scale-Up. He also provides selective advisory services supporting technology enabled businesses and digital transformation.

He has over 20 years of experience managing the impact of digital technology along with general management expertise developed within large scale, complex organisations. His deep technical expertise provides a foundation for a rich understanding of the broader issues organisations need to tackle in order to unlock value from digital technologies.

Previously Matthew was the BBC’s Chief Technology and Product Officer, leading the BBC’s Design & Engineering division. The division had a global remit, developing the BBC’s digital strategy and wider transformation while maintaining the technology operations that keep the BBC on-air, online and reaching 500m people a month.

Prior to this role Matthew held various roles at the BBC including CTO and leading the Internet Operations function, Business Development Group and its Research & Development department. He started his career at the BBC in product management roles and was part of the leadership team that launched BBC iPlayer and was responsible for building the corporation’s world leading mobile services.  Before joining the BBC, Matthew worked as a consultant and start-up co-founder.

Matthew holds a BSc from Bristol University, is a graduate of the Stanford GSB Stanford Executive Programme, is a fellow of the IET and a member of the Raspberry Pi foundation. Matthew is married, has two children and lives in London.

Appointed to the Board in May 2026, Sarah’s career has spanned senior roles in both the private and public sectors. Most recently, she was the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), where she oversaw the UK’s approach to technological, scientific and digital change, including the national approach to AI. Before this she was Permanent Secretary of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), leading much of government’s support to business during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the UK’s response to climate change and the energy crisis.

Before joining the civil service, Sarah was a Partner at McKinsey, where she led the firm’s Strategy and Corporate Finance practice in the UK and Ireland, working on issues of strategic change and transformation with some of the UK’s most significant businesses.

Alongside her role at Arqiva, Sarah sits on the Board of the University of Manchester and is the Independent Reviewer of decisions of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) Council.

Mike is a Managing Director at InfraRed Capital Partners and joined the Arqiva board in late 2024. Mike also serves as a board member of several other InfraRed portfolio companies, including High Speed One and Affinity Water.

Mike began his career with Ernst & Young and then moved to Citi, where he advised on project financing, mergers and acquisitions and capital raising within the infrastructure sector, before going into equity investment with Citi Infrastructure Investors and subsequently Corsair Capital. Mike was previously a board member of Kelda Holding and its regulated subsidiary, Yorkshire Water Services, and Itínere Infraestructuras, a toll road platform in Spain.

Mike holds a Masters degree in Chemistry from the University of Oxford.

James is a Partner at Infrared Capital Partners, the investment manager of Digital 9 Infrastructure PLC (“D9”). He joined the Arqiva Board in late 2024 and is the Fund Manager for the D9 vehicle invested in Arqiva. James has previously served on the board of various portfolio companies, including High Speed 1.

James has more than 25 years of infrastructure experience, covering investment M&A, investment trusts, asset management and portfolio management. He has a wealth of experience across a range of investment strategies and sectors including digital, utilities, energy transition and transportation.

Appointed to the Board in March 2026, Paul has significant board experience from companies including Nordic Aviation Capital, McLaren, The Very Group and Wood. He has more than 25 years of corporate finance experience advising public and private companies as well as financial investors, and was previously a Managing Director at Blackstone Advisory Partners.

A Fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland, Paul holds a Bachelor of Commerce from University of Galway and a Master of Accounting from University College Dublin.