Walker follows his former boss – regional managing director Steve Waite – out of the door in the wake of Balfour’s £50m profit warning last month.

The profit warning was prompted after Balfour found financial problems on 100 regional projects.

A Balfour spokeswoman told the Enquirer: “Rob has made the decision to pursue opportunities outside of the Balfour Beatty Group

“Dave Donaldson replaces Rob as the Executive Director of the Regional business and will continue his position as Executive Director of the Engineering Services business.”