John David Pole (15 March 1926 – 25 May 2021), commonly known as David Pole, was an English

health economist Health economics is a branch of economics concerned with issues related to efficiency, effectiveness, value and behavior in the production and consumption of health and healthcare. Health economics is important in determining how to improv ...

and civil servant. He was the Chief Economic Adviser to the Department of Health and Social Security in the early 1980s. Born on 15 March 1926, Pole's father John was a schoolteacher and his mother Gertrude (''née'' Bloor) was an accounts clerk. He attended Wyggeston Grammar School for Boys in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

. He served in the Intelligence Corps during and after the Second World War. He then enrolled at

Queens' College, Cambridge Queens' College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Queens' is one of the oldest colleges of the university, founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou. The college spans the River Cam, colloquially referred to as the "light s ...

, to study economics, graduating in 1951.David Collard
"David Pole obituary"
'' The Guardian'', 12 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021. Pole was appointed to a

lectureship Lecturer is an academic rank Academic rank (also scientific rank) is the rank of a scientist or teacher in a college, high school, university or research establishment. The academic ranks indicate relative importance and power of individuals ...

at University College, Cardiff, in 1951; there, he increasingly specialised in health economics. He was promoted to a senior lectureship in 1969, but left the next year on appointment as the senior economic adviser at the Department of Health and Social Security, a post he held until 1976.Eleanor MacKillop, Sally Sheard and Michael Lambert (eds),
The Development of Health Economics and the Role of the University of York
' (Liverpool: Department of Public Health and Policy, University of Liverpool, 2018), p. 10. During that time, he was instrumental in setting up the Resource Allocation Working Party, which advocated for a fairer regional distribution of health care resources; Pole was also closely involved in the statistical analysis which formed a large part of this work. From 1977 to 1980, he was head of the public services division at HM Treasury, before being appointed Chief Economist to the DHSS. After retiring from the civil service at the end of 1983,Laura Woodruff
"John David Pole"
''

''. Retrieved 13 July 2021. he became a

pub landlord A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, land, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant (also a ''lessee'' or ''renter''). When a juristic person is in this position, th ...

in south Wales. He died on 25 May 2021; his wife Violet (''née'' Woodruff, a youth employment and social worker) survived him as did their four daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pole, David 1926 births 2021 deaths English economists English civil servants Alumni of Queens' College, Cambridge Academics of Cardiff University People educated at Wyggeston Grammar School for Boys