Luff has been appointed chairman of the Pub Governing Board (PGB), which oversees the Pub Independent Rent Review Scheme and the Pub Independent Conciliation & Arbitration Service.
He succeeds Bernard Brindley, who died in April.
Fresh perspective
BII chief executive Tim Hulme, speaking on behalf of the PGB, said: “We are delighted to welcome such a well-respected, authoritative and impartial figure as Sir Peter to the chairmanship of the PGB.
“Having chaired the initial Business & Enterprise Select Committee inquiries in the last Parliament, Sir Peter is well versed in the ins and outs of this debate yet still brings a fresh perspective to our work. He has the necessary political experience not only to plough an objective furrow but also to bring the two sides closer together to help resolve outstanding problems.
“Bernard Brindley devoted the last years of his working life to trying to bring about an effective solution in this area and I know that I and the other board members will work with our new chairman to drive that forward."
Independent
Luff said: “I am pleased to be taking up chairmanship of the PGB at this point in time. Following the recent Government announcement, it is vital that we continue to have the strongest possible self-regulatory regime in place and that tenants continue to have access to an effective, fair and low cost method of independent redress when things go wrong.”
Luff was appointed chairman of the Business, Innovation & Skills Committee and its predecessors (the Trade & Industry Select& Committee and the Business & Enterprise Committee) after the 2005 election and retained the post until after the General Election in 2010.
Under his chairmanship, in May 2009 BISC released a report accusing major pubcos of “downright bullying” of their tenants and said the beer tie should be “severely restricted” by the Government.
BISC later chose not to refer the pubco model to the Competition Commission and gave the industry until June 2011 to prove that they can reform.
Luff, who was knighted in the 2014 New Year Honours list, also served as a minister at the Ministry of Defence from May 2010 until September 2012.
Brigid Simmonds, chief executive of the British, Beer & Pub Association, also welcomed the appointment.
She said: “Sir Peter Luff has very considerable experience of these issues; I gave evidence twice before him when he chaired the DBIS Committee, and he was always tough but fair. I welcome his appointment and look forward to working with him."