Lord Clement-Jones Peer

Address:
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW

BIOGRAPHY

I was born in Wales in 1949 and was educated at Haileybury and then Trinity College Cambridge, where I read economics and law. After my degree I did my articles at Coward Chance (now Clifford Chance).

After working as a volunteer at the North Kensington Law Centre I joined the Streatham Liberal Association (1973) and then went on to be their ward organiser. In 1976 I became the Secretary to the Association of Liberal Lawyers, campaigning for civil liberties and legal aid. I was also interested in policing issues. I was Chairman of the Liberal Party 1986-1988 and played a significant part in the merger negotiations with the SDP to form the Liberal Democrats. I also ran Paddy Ashdown's campaign to become leader of the Party in 1988.

In 1994 I was Director of the Liberal Democrats campaign for the European Elections and then vice chair of the Party's 1997 General Election Campaign team and Chair of the 2000 and 2004 London Mayoral and Assembly campaigns.

In 1998 I became a Peer and was the Party's health spokesman in the Lords until 2004. I am now Lib Dem spokesperson in the Lords for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.  In 2002 I succeeded in piloting the Tobacco Advertising and Sponsorship Bill through the House of Lords as a private members bill which came into effect in 2004.

I am Vice Chairman of the All Party Autism Group and the All Party China China Group.

I am now the Federal Treasurer of the Liberal Democrats.
On the career front, after being Legal Director of Grand Metropolitan Retailing and then the Head of Legal Services at London Weekend Television, from 1986 to 1995 I was Legal Adviser and Group Company Secretary of Kingfisher plc. Then I moved to be a director of Political Context-the public affairs consultancy and a founding partner of ICM, the legal management consultancy. I am now the Co-Chairman of Global Government Relations, the government and media relation's practice of DLA Piper the major law firm.
 
I am also a Director of British American Business the London/New York Chamber of Commerce and Non Executive Chairman of the Context Group an environmental and social responsibility consultancy.

I have also been Chairman of Crime Concern and a Council Member of the London Lighthouse and am a Trustee of Cancerbackup, the cancer information charity founded by my late wife Dr Vicky Clement-Jones and Chairman of Treehouse the autism education charity and Lambeth Crime Prevention Trust.

I married Jean in 1994 and we have a son Harry, born on March 1st 1998. My outside interests include cinema, travel, running and modern art.