Association of Mortgage Intermediaries chief executive Robert Sinclair has announced he is to retire from the role after 16 years.

Speaking to Mortgage Strategy reporter Leah Milner at tonight’s Ami dinner, Sinclair said “I have been working for 46 years and will be 68 in December, and there comes a time when you have to let other people play the game.

“If I was to carry on, I’d have to commit to another two years, and I just don’t think from a personal perspective, and for Ami, that’s the right thing to do as having the energy to do all the things that has to be done gets harder and harder.

“Being that committed is a joy but you have to think of yourself sometimes.”

Sinclair has been one of the most revered individuals in the mortgage industry for decades and in his role at Ami, was at the coalface on many issues, including Consumer Duty, regulatory fees and diversity and inclusion initiatives.

“The mortgage community is a great place; when I took over the role, a culture had been created where, with lenders and brokers, it was them and us,” he told Milner on Thursday night.

“Over the last decade we’ve learned to work in partnership and that’s been the most fundamental shift. Without lenders brokers don’t’ exist and vice versa.

“We’ve also taken huge strides in recent years around D&I (diversity and inclusion) – we’re trying to make a difference to be genuinely inclusive.

“Without that we won’t represent the consumers of tomorrow.”

Sinclair adds that he’s not “running away” immediately and that a successor will be found in due course, with an “orderly handover” planned.

“I’ve got other things still going, I’m a Non-executive director of Darlington Buidling Society and I might pick up some other things around the industry if they want me to do it.”

He concludes that he would like to see a woman take up the mantle at Ami next to “show what can be done with a different voice.”