Graham Grose has been elected chairman of the National Executive of the British Hospitality Association (BHA).

Mr Grose, managing director of the Thurlestone Hotel, Devon, and a long-standing member of the BHA, succeeds David Williams, managing director, Ambassador Hotel, Llandudno.

As the previous vice chairman, he is succeeded by Dudley Osborn, proprietor, Weston Manor Hotel, Oxford.

Mr Grose, who has been a member of the National Executive for five years, and was previously chairman of the association’s South Western Regional Committee, took over the Thurlestone Hotel in 1980, with his brother David, when his father died.

The hotel was opened in 1896 by his great grandfather and has been in the family ever since.

Mr Grose said: “The hospitality industry faces challenges which the BHA must continue to address, among them rising energy costs, the rising tide of regulations, and the possible introduction of a bed tax.

“We need to continue to argue the industry’s case forcefully on behalf of both major groups and independent proprietors in Whitehall and elsewhere, in order to ensure ongoing investment, which is critical to the industry’s future success.”