Cambridge Wine Merchants owner Hal Wilson has joined the board of the Wine & Spirits Trade Association.

Wilson, who founded the independent wine company in 1993, has long been a vocal critic of policies such as the duty reforms and has regularly urged more collective action to fight the trade’s corner.

Other new board members include Kim Wilson, founder and director of North South Wines, and Lee James of Rémy Cointreau.

Each will serve a three-year term.

Mark Riley, chair of the WSTA board, said the new board members bring “a fantastic blend of expertise garnered from their formidable careers in the wine and spirit sector”.

He added: “It is incredibly important to us to ensure we do our utmost to meet all members’ needs. Having a diverse range of individuals offering expertise from varying perspectives is crucial to the WSTA delivering for its membership.

“We look forward to working with Lee, Kim and Hal to navigate through what continues to be a challenging time for the UK drinks trade.”