Robert Peter Douglas-Miller, Baron Douglas-Miller, (born January 1965) is a British landowner and

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 ...

. He served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Biosecurity, Animal Health and Welfare from 2023 to 2024 in the

Sunak ministry Rishi Sunak was invited by King Charles III to replace Liz Truss as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on 25 October 2022, following Truss's resignation and the subsequent Conservative leadership election. The Sunak ministry was formed fro ...

Early life and family

Douglas-Miller was born in January 1965. His family once ran

Jenners Jenners is a former well-established department store in Edinburgh, Scotland, situated on Princes Street. It was Scotland's oldest independent department store until the retail business was acquired by House of Fraser in 2005. It closed in Dec ...

, a department store in Edinburgh.

Career

Charity

From 2015 to 2022, Douglas-Miller was the chairman of the Atlantic Salmon Trust, which had

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

as its patron and Alister Jack as a board member.

Business

Douglas-Miller is the managing director of Moorfoot Capital Management, which owns farmland in Scotland.

Political

On 1 December 2023, Douglas-Miller was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Biosecurity, Animal Health and Welfare, a junior ministerial office in the

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United K ...

, succeeding

Lord Benyon Richard Henry Ronald Benyon, Baron Benyon (born 21 October 1960) is a British politician who has served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Rural Affairs, Access to Nature and Biosecurity, Minister of State for Biosecurity, Marine an ...

in the

. He was created a

as ''Baron Douglas-Miller, of The Hopes in the County of East Lothian'', on 15 December, and was introduced to the House of Lords on 18 December. On 11 December, he announced that legislation would be introduced for the option to issue fixed penalty notices for various animal health and welfare offences, stating "I welcome penalty notices as an additional tool for our partners to use to encourage compliance with the law." On 14 December, legislation for a ban on keeping primates as pets was introduced, with Douglas-Miller saying "we have consistently led the world in raising the bar for animal welfare standards and this legislation is yet another step." Douglas-Miller made his maiden speech in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

on 18 January 2024.

Personal life

Douglas-Miller owns more than of land in Scotland. He is married with 3 children. His wife is a granddaughter of

Walter Bromley-Davenport Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Walter Henry Bromley-Davenport TD DL (15 September 1903 – 26 December 1989) was a British Conservative Party politician. Early years One of the four sons of Walter Arthur Bromley-Davenport (28 September 1863 – 5 Nove ...

Honours

Douglas-Miller was appointed

Officer 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 ...

(OBE) in the

2021 New Year Honours The 2021 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebration ...

for services to wildlife conservation in Scotland.

Notes

References

1965 births Living people 21st-century British politicians 21st-century British landowners Conservative Party (UK) life peers Government ministers of the United Kingdom Life peers created by Charles III Officers of the Order of the British Empire 21st-century Scottish landowners {{life-peer-stub