The new Dean of Exeter has been announced as Very Rev Jonathan Greener.
Greener, currently Dean of Wakefield, will take up his post at the end of November, Downing Street said on Tuesday. His predecessor Jonathan Draper left at the end of August amid reports of a row with his bishop.
The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter, Exeter, is in 'acute' financial difficulties after embarking on a series of expensive projects including a failed £8.7 million plan to restore the Roman baths on the site. Earlier this year it emerged three cathedral staff were at risk of redundancy in the face of a £175,000 shortfall.
Jonathan Greener brings substantial financial and managerial experience, having overseen a complete makeover of Wakefield Cathedral, raising £7.5 million and completely transforming the interior, which had been untouched since the 1870s.
The Diocese of Exeter will hope the new Dean will also bring restored relationships in the city after the previous incumbent Jonathan Draper was labelled 'remote and disinterested' in an extraordinary row with the bishop.
An independent report last September found Draper 'appears not to listen to advice, even from senior colleagues'.
It continues: 'The dean appears to have little interest in the more mundane running of the cathedral.
'He does little to encourage staff and seems to have little contact with many regular members of the congregation who claim to find him remote and disinterested.'
At the time the Bishop of Exeter Robert Atwell said: 'Although an excellent preacher, the visitors were repeatedly informed that the lack of spiritual leadership and pastoral care emanates from the dean himself.'
But the new Dean is also unafraid of controversy after his wife Pamela posted a string of political ditties on YouTube, covering topics including her sympathy for Brexit and opposition to George Osborne's end to VAT relief on repairs to historic buildings.
Her song criticising the then-Chancellor has several thousands views and a subsequent outcry forced the government into a U-turn.
Bishop Robert said he was 'delighted with the appointment' and praised Greener's 'strong track record of running a Cathedral, of fundraising and of re-ordering its interior imaginatively'.
He said: 'His experience in Wakefield makes him ideally placed to take our Cathedral into its next chapter, serving the people of Devon.'
Greener said: 'I am delighted and humbled to be invited to serve as the next Dean of Exeter Cathedral. This is a fantastic Cathedral which speaks of the glory of God and the job of those leading the Cathedral is to look after it on behalf of the people of Devon, and of the generations who come after us. There has been a Christian presence on this site for 1,600 years and I feel privileged to be part of the next stage of its journey.
'I am looking forward to working closely with the Bishop and the Cathedral staff and the wonderful volunteers, who give so much of their time to keep the Cathedral open and serving visitors, worshippers and those who need a quiet and sacred space in their lives.'
