Alasdair Smith DL is a former professor of

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

and

Vice-Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth n ...

at the

University of Sussex , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

and is a former Chair of the

1994 Group The 1994 Group was a coalition of smaller research-intensive universities in the United Kingdom, founded in 1994 to defend these universities' interests following the creation of the Russell Group by larger research-intensive universities earlie ...

. He is a noted international economist whose studies (often developed in concert with fellow economist

Tony Venables Anthony James Venables, CBE, (born 25 April 1953), is a British economist and the BP Professor of Economics at the Department of Economics, University of Oxford, Department of Economics, University of Oxford. Venables is known as one of the pion ...

) have been used by the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

. He became a Deputy Chair of the

Competition Commission The Competition Commission was a non-departmental public body responsible for investigating mergers, markets and other enquiries related to regulated industries under competition law in the United Kingdom. It was a competition regulator under t ...

in 2012 and was then an Inquiry Chair at the

Competition and Markets Authority The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is the competition regulator in United Kingdom. It is a non-ministerial government department in the United Kingdom, responsible for strengthening business competition and preventing and reducing anti-com ...

from 2014 to 2017. In April 2017, he became a member of the

Scottish Fiscal Commission The Scottish Fiscal Commission ( gd, Coimisean Fiosgail na h-Alba) is a non-ministerial office. It was established by the Scottish Parliament to provide independent forecasts of taxes and social security expenditure, and GDP forecasts, to help in ...

Biography

Early life

Smith was born on the

Isle of Lewis The Isle of Lewis ( gd, Eilean Leòdhais) or simply Lewis ( gd, Leòdhas, ) is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides archipelago in Scotland. The two parts are frequently referred to as ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

in 1949. He is a graduate of the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

, the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

and

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Career

He taught for 9 years at the London School of Economics before becoming a professor of economics at the University of Sussex in 1981, and becoming vice-chancellor in 1998. While vice-chancellor, he restructured the university, and helped create the

Brighton and Sussex Medical School Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS) is a medical school formed as a partnership of the University of Brighton and the University of Sussex. Like other UK medical schools it is based on the principles and standards of 'Tomorrow's Doctors', ...

. His pro-

top-up fees Tuition fees were first introduced across the entire United Kingdom in September 1998 under the Premiership of Tony Blair, Labour government of Tony Blair to fund tuition for undergraduate and postgraduate certificate students at universities; s ...

stance resulted in the student union at the University of Sussex calling for a vote of no-confidence in his leadership in a student election in February 2003. There was also controversy over his proposal in 2006 to restructure the chemistry department at Sussex. He announced in November 2006 that he was to stand down at the end of August 2007. His successor, Professor

Michael Farthing Michael J. G. Farthing (born 1948) is British emeritus professor at the University of Sussex, where he was previously its vice-chancellor (2007–2016). His early academic career was in medicine, specialising in gastroenterology. Following an ...

, took over as vice-chancellor on 1 September 2007, while Smith remained at Sussex as a research professor of economics. He was a member of the Prison Service Pay Review Body from 2001 to 2004; and of the Doctors' and Dentists' Review Body from 2007 to 2010. In March 2010, he became chair of the Armed Forces Pay Review Body and a member of the Senior Salaries Review Body. In 2013, there wa
controversy
when his appointment as chair of the Armed Forces Pay Review Body was not renewed for a second term. He has been a member of the Determinations Panel of

The Pensions Regulator The Pensions Regulator (TPR) is a non-departmental public body which regulates work-based pension schemes in the United Kingdom. Created under the Pensions Act 2004, the regulator replaced the Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority (OPRA) fro ...

since 2011. At the Competition Commission, his cases included the proposed Barr-Britvic merger, the takeover by Eurotunnel of SeaFrance ferries, and a market investigation into Private Motor Insurance. At the CMA, he chaired a market investigation into Retail Banking.

Personal life

He is married to Sherry Ferdman and has two daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Alasdair Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People from the Isle of Lewis Scottish economists Alumni of the London School of Economics Alumni of the University of Oxford Deputy Lieutenants of East Sussex