Announced earlier this week, McDonald has been appointed to the role starting in January 2014 having been head of planning for SEAT UK since 2009.

McDonald has held a number of roles within the Volkswagen Group, having previously been vehicle supply manager at Volkswagen UK and group vehicle supply strategy manager at Volkswagen Group UK. In 2007 he took on the role of head of sales planning & steering at Shanghai Volkswagen before joining SEAT UK in the role of planning and supply in August 2009.

‘The SEAT Planning team that I'm leaving is an exceptional one, and I'll certainly miss working in the department that I established four years ago, but this fleet role is a hugely exciting challenge for me,’ said McDonald.

‘It's a great time to be at SEAT. We have a fantastic range of products, spearheaded by new Leon, which gives us a great opportunity to expand significantly in the fleet market over the next few years.’

SEAT UK director Neil Williamson added: ‘We're delighted to have appointed Peter to the Head of Fleet role at this pivotal time for SEAT UK. This year we've seen 37% growth in our true fleet volume compared to 2012, and with the introduction of the Leon ST next year – a fantastic fleet prospect – we're looking for even more success in 2014.

‘With his wealth of experience both with SEAT and across other Volkswagen Group brands, there's no doubt that Peter is the right man to bring that success. I wish him the same sort of luck that his cricket team is enjoying at the moment.’