The Lord Liddle | |
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| Born | Roger John Liddle (1947-06-14)14 June 1947 (age 78) Carlisle,Cumberland, England |
| Education | Carlisle Grammar School |
| Alma mater | The Queen's College, Oxford |
| Political party | Labour Party |
| Spouse | |
| Member of the House of Lords | |
| Life peerage 19 June 2010 | |
Roger John Liddle, Baron Liddle (born 14 June 1947) is a British political adviser and consultant who is principally known for being Special Adviser on European matters to the formerPrime MinisterTony Blair, and President of the European Commission,José Manuel Barroso. He also worked together withPeter Mandelson on books outlining the political philosophy of theLabour Party under Blair's leadership. He is the chair ofProgressive Britain, the successor organisation to the international think tankPolicy Network and Progress, and was Pro-Chancellor ofLancaster University until 2020.[1]
In December 2021, Liddle was awarded an Honorary Doctorate byLancaster University.[2]
Liddle was the son of John Thwaites Liddle and Elizabethnée Temple. Born on 14 June 1947 inCarlisle, he attendedCarlisle Grammar School.[3] and gained the Wyndham Scholarship atThe Queen's College, Oxford, where he gained degrees in Modern History and Management Studies. In 1983 he married the Hon.Caroline Thomson – daughter ofLord Thomson of Monifieth, former Labour Member of Parliament forDundee East, Cabinet minister and European Commissioner. She was chief operating officer of theBBC, until she was made redundant in 2011 amidst controversy over the selection of a new BBCDirector General.
After completing his degrees Liddle worked in research for the Oxford School of Social and Administrative Studies and as an industrial relations Officer for The Electricity Council. In 1976 he moved into politics by becoming Special Adviser toWilliam Rodgers,Secretary of State for Transport,[3] during the government ofJames Callaghan.
From there he became Director of the Public Policy Centre,[3] undertaking pioneering work on the regulation of privatised industries, exchange rate policy, regional policy, science and industrial policy, employee participation and wage determination, and choice in public services.
Liddle then moved into the private sector for 10 years, taking the position of managing director of Prima Europe Ltd, a strategy consultancy company which advised on the impact of political and regulatory developments at European and national levels.[3]In 1994 he was elected as a Liberal Democrat Councillor in Lambeth.
In 1997 he moved back into politics to become Special Adviser on European matters to Prime MinisterTony Blair.[3] During a seven-year spell in this role he developed a new UK policy of positive engagement in theEuropean Union, focusing on economic reform, innovation and enterprise promotion; modernisation of Welfare States and labour market reform; as well as institutional issues, the Constitutional Treaty, and European Defence. He was also responsible for liaison with business and trade unions on European issues.
Advancing fromNumber 10, he became a Member of the Cabinet of the European UnionTrade Commissioner, where he advised on EU policy and their impact on the UK. In 2006 he moved on to become Principal Adviser to thePresident of the European Commission, leading a team of economists and experts in the Bureau of European Policy Advisers advising on the economic and social challenges facing Europe.
Liddle is currently chairman ofPolicy Network – an international think tank bringing together academics, policymakers and politicians across the progressive centre left; responsible for major projects on the future of the European Social Model, public service reform, immigration and integration, flexicurity, and globalisation and social justice.[4] He is a visiting fellow of the European Institute at theLondon School of Economics.[5]
He is also former chair of the UK government's New Industry, New Jobs, Universities and Skills advisory panel, which reported directly toPeter Mandelson, who was thenSecretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
It was announced that Liddle would be awarded a peerage in the2010 Dissolution Honours List. He was created alife peer on 19 June 2010 asBaron Liddle, ofCarlisle in the County of Cumbria,[6] and wasintroduced in the House of Lords on 21 June 2010, supported byPeter Mandelson andLord Rodgers of Quarry Bank.[7]
Liddle has also played a direct role in elected politics, as a councillor onOxford City Council[3] andLambeth London Borough Council. In 2013 he was elected toCumbria County Council for the Wigton Division. He was a founding member of theSocial Democratic Party in 1981 and a member of the party's national committee until 1986, during which time he contested a number of parliamentary seats, including the1986 Fulham byelection.[8]
Liddle has written four books, all focusing firmly on European issues. Most recentlyGlobal Europe, Social Europe withAnthony Giddens andPatrick Diamond. Together with Peter Mandelson he wroteThe Blair Revolution: Can New Labour Deliver? in 1996.[8] His thoughts on the future of Europe, made during his time in the Commission, were published in aFabian Ideas pamphlet in 2005.
He became a member of the Labour Party associatedProgress strategy board in 2017.[9]
Media related toRoger Liddle at Wikimedia Commons| Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom | ||
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| Preceded by | Gentlemen Baron Liddle | Followed by |
