Alexander Charles Carlile, Baron Carlile of Berriew, (born 12 February 1948) is a British

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

and

crossbench A crossbencher is an independent or minor party member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and oppositi ...

member of the House of Lords This is a list of members of the House of Lords, the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Current sitting members Lords Spiritual 26 bishops of the Church of England sit in the House of Lords: the Archbishops of Canterbury and ...

. He was the

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) for

Montgomeryshire Montgomeryshire, also known as ''Maldwyn'' ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn meaning "the Shire of Baldwin's town"), is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It is named after its county tow ...

from 1983 to 1997.

Early life and career

Alex Carlile, the son of

Polish Jew The history of the Jews in Poland dates back at least 1,000 years. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Ashkenazi Jewish community in the world. Poland was a principal center of Jewish culture, because of the lon ...

ish immigrants, was born in Ruabon,

North Wales , area_land_km2 = 6,172 , postal_code_type = Postcode , postal_code = LL, CH, SY , image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg , map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...

and brought up in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

. He was educated at

Epsom College Epsom College is a co-educational independent school on Epsom Downs, Surrey, England, for pupils aged 11 to 18. It was founded in 1853 as a boys' school to provide support for poor members of the medical profession such as pensioners and orph ...

and at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

where he graduated in law in 1969. He was called to the Bar by

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

in 1970 and became a

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

(QC) at the early age of 36. Lord Carlile of Berriew is a company director and

, and former head of chambers of Foundry Chambers, London, a set of barristers' chambers. He defended

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...

's butler,

Paul Burrell Paul Burrell (born 6 June 1958) is a former servant of the British Royal Household and latterly butler to Princess Diana. Background and Royal Household career Burrell was born and raised in Grassmoor, Derbyshire, a coal-mining village. His ...

, against charges that Burrell had stolen some of her estate's belongings. In 2001 he was appointed the independent reviewer of

terrorism legislation Anti-terrorism legislation are laws with the purpose of fighting terrorism. They usually, if not always, follow specific bombings or assassinations. Anti-terrorism legislation usually includes specific amendments allowing the state to bypass it ...

. Carlile stood down as head of chambers at 9–12 Bell Yard in March 2008. Carlile was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(CBE) in the 2012 New Year Honours for services to national security law.

Political career

Carlile was created a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

on 27 July 1999, as Baron Carlile of Berriew, ''of

Berriew Berriew ( cy, Aberriw) is a village and community in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales. It is on the Montgomeryshire Canal and the Afon Rhiw, near the confluence (Welsh: ''aber'') with the River Severn (Welsh: Afon Hafren) at , 79 miles (128 k ...

in the County of Powys'', having previously been a Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for

from 1983 to

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

; he had stood unsuccessfully as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

for East Flintshire in

February February is the second month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. The month has 28 days in common years or 29 in leap years, with the 29th day being called the ''leap day''. It is the first of five months not to have 31 days (th ...

and October 1974. Lord Carlile sat as a

Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democratic ideology. Active parties Former parties See also *Liberal democracy *Lib ...

peer until 2016 when he left the party stating that he found himself "at odds" with the party's policies on many matters including national security issues. It was reported that

civil liberties Civil liberties are guarantees and freedoms that governments commit not to abridge, either by constitution, legislation, or judicial interpretation, without due process. Though the scope of the term differs between countries, civil liberties may ...

, especially the so-called Snooper's Charters, were at the core of the disagreement. According to the Register of Lords' Interests, Lord Carlile of Berriew was at various times a director of 5 Bell Yard Ltd and the

Wynnstay Wynnstay is a country house within an important landscaped park 1.3 km (0.75 miles) south-east of Ruabon, near Wrexham, Wales. Wynnstay, previously Watstay, is a famous estate and the family seat of the Wynns. The house was sold in 1948 and i ...

Group of agricultural feed manufacturers, agricultural goods merchants and fuel oil distributors; a deputy High Court judge; and a chairman of the Competition Appeals Tribunal. He was president of the

Howard League for Penal Reform The Howard League for Penal Reform is a registered charity in the United Kingdom. It is the oldest penal reform organisation in the world, named after John Howard. It was founded as the Howard Association in 1866 and changed its name in 1921, ...

in 2006–9. He is an Honorary Professor in the Universities of St Andrews and Swansea, and a Fellow of King's College London. He is a Honorary Doctor of Laws in the Universities of Swansea, South Wales, Chester, Manchester Metropolitan, and the Hungarian Institute of Criminology. Carlile is a co-director and co-owner of a strategy and political risks consultancy, SC Strategy Limited with Sir John Scarlett, the former chief of MI6. In 2014 Carlile mounted a legal challenge to the UK travel ban on

Maryam Rajavi Maryam Rajavi ( fa, مریم رجوی, , fa, مریم قجر عضدانلو) is a leader of the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK), an organization advocating for the overthrow of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iranian governmen ...

, leader of the

People's Mujahedin of Iran The People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), also known as Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK) or Mojahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO) ( fa, سازمان مجاهدين خلق ايران, sâzmân-e mojâhedīn-e khalq-e īrân), is an Iranian pol ...

(MeK) and president-elect of the

National Council of Resistance of Iran The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI; fa, شورای ملی مقاومت ایران, Šurā-ye melli-e moqāvemat-e Īrān) is an Iranian political organization based in France and Albania. The organization is a political coalition ...

. The

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

decided in favour of the UK government. In 2016 Carlile sat on the founding committee of National Opposition to Windfarms, and sponsored the launch event at the Houses of Parliament.

Penal reform

From 2006 to 2013, Carlile was President of the

. In 2006 he was chairman of the Carlile Inquiry into the use of force on children in custody. In 2011, Lord Carlile held a follow-up hearing in the House of Lords. He put together an expert panel who gave both written and oral evidence.

Legislation

Carlile was the first Member of Parliament to campaign for the rights of

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...

people. Lord Carlile acted from 2001 to 2011 as the UK's

Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation The Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation is an independent person, appointed by the Home Secretary and by the Treasury for a renewable three-year term and tasked with reporting to the Home Secretary and to Parliament on the operation of cou ...

. He was succeeded by David Anderson QC. The Director of

Liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...

Shami Chakrabarti Sharmishta "Shami" Chakrabarti, Baroness Chakrabarti, (born 16 June 1969) is a British politician, barrister, and human rights activist. A member of the Labour Party, she served as the director of Liberty, a major advocacy group which promotes ...

, called Carlile's support for

control order A control order is an order made by the Home Secretary of the United Kingdom to restrict an individual's liberty for the purpose of "protecting members of the public from a risk of terrorism". Its definition and power were provided by Parliament in ...

s "disappointing" in a February 2006 press release condemning the introduction of control orders by the

Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 The Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 (c 2) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, intended to deal with the Law Lords' ruling of 16 December 2004 that the detention without trial of eight foreigners (known as the 'Belmarsh 8') at H ...

. In 2015, he joined with a cross-party group of peers to reintroduce the Draft Communications Data Bill, known by its opponents as the "Snoopers' Charter". He was an independent reviewer on the 2015

Assessment on Paramilitary Groups in Northern Ireland The independent Assessment on Paramilitary Organisations in Northern Ireland was announced by the United Kingdom government in September 2015 in response to the political crisis in Northern Ireland. The assessment sought to establish "the structure ...

. He was vocal in his opposition to the UK coalition government's Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill, proposing many amendments. He was one of five Lords who vehemently opposed the introduction of means testing for police advice (to cover the cost of lawyers consulting suspects in police stations). "A single moment of reflection leaves one open-mouthed at the absurdity of this proposal," he said. He was initially appointed to lead the independent review of the UK government's

Prevent Prevention may refer to: Health and medicine * Preventive healthcare, measures to prevent diseases or injuries rather than curing them or treating their symptoms General safety * Crime prevention, the attempt to reduce deter crime and crimin ...

programme but resigned after a legal challenge was mounted against his appointment.

Personal life

He lists his recreations as politics, theatre, food and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, and is a member of the Athenaeum Club. He is a lifelong supporter of English football club

Burnley FC Burnley Football Club () is an English association football club based in Burnley, Lancashire, that competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football, following relegation from the 2021–22 Premier League. Founded on 18 ...

. He is a

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

, Patron of

The Security Institute The Security Institute is a United Kingdom based professional body for security professionals. Membership of the Institute is open to security professionals, with other individuals with an interest in security being able to become affiliated. Ba ...

, and Patron (previously Chairman) of the

Chartered Security Professionals Registration Authority Chartered Security Professional (CSyP) is a professional certification in security offered by the Worshipful Company of Security Professionals, a livery company in the City of London. The certification has been established to show the attainment ...

. He has three children by his first wife Frances and nine grandchildren. He married his second wife, Alison Levitt QC, in December 2007. She is a member of the London barristers' chambers, 2 Hare Court. Carlile is a

Bencher A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can ...

. On 11 July 2018, Carlile (after being granted a visa) was refused entry to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Indira Gandhi International Airport Indira Gandhi International Airport is the primary international airport serving Delhi, the capital of India, and the National Capital Region (NCR). The airport, spread over an area of , is situated in Palam, Delhi, southwest of the New De ...

where he was due to address a press conference in defence of jailed Bangladeshi politician

Khaleda Zia Khaleda Zia (; born Khaleda Khanam Putul in 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from March 1991 to March 1996, and again from June 2001 to October 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Ba ...

and meet a human rights body. India's foreign ministry said his "intended activity in India was incompatible with the purpose of his visit as mentioned in his visa application", though media reported the decision to refuse him entry was a political one to protect India-Bangladesh relations.

References

External links

*
Howard League for Penal Reform
*Lord Carlil
speaking
about the effectiveness of the House of Commons and about the Rule of Law at a seminar organised by The Constitution Society
Lord Carlile of Berriew QC
profile at the site of Liberal Democrats
Biography at the House of Lords
Biography at the House of Lords]
Announcement of his introduction at the House of Lords
House of Lords minutes of proceedings, 12 October 1999 {{DEFAULTSORT:Carlile, Alex 1948 births Living people People from Ruabon People educated at Epsom College Alumni of King's College London Associates of King's College Fellows of King's College London English Jews English people of Polish-Jewish descent English barristers English King's Counsel Jewish British politicians Liberal Party (UK) MPs for Welsh constituencies Liberal Democrats (UK) MPs for Welsh constituencies Liberal Democrats (UK) life peers Members of Gray's Inn UK MPs 1983–1987 UK MPs 1987–1992 UK MPs 1992–1997 Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Life peers created by Elizabeth II