Terence Burns, Baron Burns (born 13 March 1944), sometimes known as Terry Burns, is a British economist, made a life peer in 1998 for his services as former Chief Economic Advisor and Permanent Secretary to

HM Treasury His Majesty's Treasury (HM Treasury), occasionally referred to as the Exchequer, or more informally the Treasury, is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for developing and executing the government's public finance policy and ...

. He served as Chairman of Ofcom from 2018 to 2020, and is currently a senior adviser to

Santander UK Santander UK plc (, ) is a British bank, wholly owned by the Spanish Santander Group. Santander UK plc manages its affairs autonomously, with its own local management team, responsible solely for its performance. Santander UK is one of the l ...

, non-executive Chairman of Glas Cymru, and a non-executive director of Pearson Group plc. He is also President of the

National Institute of Economic and Social Research The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), established in 1938, is Britain's oldest independent economic research institute. The institute is a London-based independent UK registered charity that carries out academic researc ...

, President of the Society of Business Economists, ex Chairman of the Governing Body of the Royal Academy of Music, and ex Chairman of the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra. On 5 November 2009 he was announced chairman Designate of

Channel Four Television Corporation Channel Four Television Corporation is a British state-owned media company headquartered in London. Its original and principal activity is the British national television network Channel 4. The company was founded in 1982 as the Channel Four T ...

, succeeding Luke Johnson, who retired on 27 January 2010 following six years in the post.

Government career

His government service began as a member of the

Academic Panel from 1976 to 1979, then Chief Economic Adviser to the Treasury and Head of the Government Economic Service from 1980 to 1991, and Permanent Secretary of HM Treasury from 1991 to 1998. Lord Burns was a member of the

Hansard Society The Hansard Society was formed in the United Kingdom in 1944 to promote parliamentary democracy. Founded and chaired by Commander Stephen King-Hall, the first subscribers were Winston Churchill and Clement Attlee. The society's co-presidents ar ...

''Commission on Parliamentary Scrutiny'' which ran from 1999 to 2001. He was a member of the ''Scottish Fee Support Review'' from 1998 to 2000, and Chairman of the ''Committee of Inquiry into Hunting with Dogs in England and Wales'' in 2000. He was Chairman of the

National Lottery Commission The National Lottery Commission was an organisation set up on 1 April 1999 under the National Lottery Act 1998 to regulate the United Kingdom's National Lottery. It replaced the Director General and the Office of the National Lottery (Oflot). On ...

between 2000 and 2001. In 2003, he was appointed Independent Adviser to the Secretary of State for the BBC Charter Review.

Business career

Lord Burns was appointed a non-executive director of Pearson plc in 1999, and Senior Independent Director in 2004. He was also a non-executive director of Legal and General Group plc between 1999 and 2001, and of The British Land Company plc between 2000 and 2005. In July 2000, he was appointed Non-Executive Chairman of Glas Cymru. He was named Chairman of

Abbey National plc An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conc ...

in February 2002, and a non-executive director of

Banco Santander Banco Santander, S.A., doing business as Santander Group (, , Spanish: ), is a Spanish multinational financial services company based in Madrid and Santander in Spain. Additionally, Santander maintains a presence in all global financial centr ...

Central Hispano S.A. in December 2004. He became Chairman of Marks and Spencer plc in 2006, after serving as Deputy chairman since 2005. Lord Burns was appointed as Chairman of Ofcom for a four-year term from 1 January 2018.

Professional

Lord Burns has been President of the Society of Business Economists since 1998, previously serving as Vice-President since 1985. He has been President of the

since 2003, previously serving as a Governor. He is also a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of the

London Business School London Business School (LBS) is a business school and a constituent college of the federal University of London. LBS was founded in 1964 and awards post-graduate degrees (Master's degrees in management and finance, MBA and PhD). Its motto is " ...

, and a Vice-President of the

Royal Economic Society The Royal Economic Society (RES) is a professional association that promotes the study of economic science in academia, government service, banking, industry, and public affairs. Originally established in 1890 as the British Economic Association, ...

Other positions held

Lord Burns and Sir John Ritblat Lord Burns chaired the Government Inquiry into Hunting with Dogs in England and Wales in 1999–2000, was named Chairman of the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra in 2001 after serving as a Trustee since 1998 and was appointed Chairman of the Governing Body of the Royal Academy of Music in 2002 after being a Governor since 1998. He was non-executive director of

Queens Park Rangers FC Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus R ...

between 1996 and 2001. In 2004, he was appointed Chairman of the FA Structural Review by

The Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world a ...

, and delivered his Final Report on 12 August 2005.

Personal life

The son of Patrick Owen Burns, a coalminer, and Doris Burns, he was born and brought up in the village of

Hetton-le-Hole Hetton-le-Hole is a town situated in the City of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. It is in the historic county of Durham. A182 runs through the town, between Houghton-le-Spring and Easington Lane (the latter borders the County Durham Distr ...

in County Durham, and educated at Houghton-le-Spring Grammar School and the

University of Manchester , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univ ...

, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics in 1965. He has been married to Anne Elizabeth Powell since 1969. They have a son and two daughters and four grandchildren.

Honours

He was knighted in the

1983 Birthday Honours Queen's Birthday Honours are announced on or around the date of the Queen's Official Birthday in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The dates vary, both from year to year and from country to country. All are published in supp ...

, and was appointed to the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

as a Knight Grand Cross (GCB) in the 1995 Birthday Honours. In the

1998 Birthday Honours Queen's Birthday Honours are announced on or around the date of the Queen's Official Birthday in the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth countries. The dates vary, both from year to year and from country to country. All are published in supplem ...

, he was raised to the peerage as Baron Burns, of Pitshanger in the

London Borough of Ealing The London Borough of Ealing () is a London borough in West London. It comprises seven major towns: Acton (W3), Ealing (W5, W13, NW10), Greenford (UB6), Hanwell (W7), Northolt (UB5), Perivale (UB6) and Southall (UB1, UB2). With a population ...

. He sits as a crossbencher. He holds honorary doctorates and professorships from five British universities.

Works

*Britton, A., Randolph Quirk, Terence Burns,

Peter Mathias Peter Mathias, (10 January 1928 – 1 March 2016) was a British economic historian and the former Chichele Professor of Economic History at the University of Oxford. His research focused on the history of industry, business, and technology, ...

, John Mason, ''The Interpretation and Use of Economic Predictions: Discussion'', Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series A, Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Volume 407, Issue 1832, (1986), 1986RSPSA.407..123B *''The UK Government's Financial Strategy'' (1988)

References

Bibliography

External links

*
Profile
at ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Burns, Terence 1944 births People from Hetton-le-Hole Academics of London Business School Alumni of the University of Manchester British economists Crossbench life peers Fellows of Nuffield College, Oxford Living people Knights Bachelor Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath People associated with the Royal Academy of Music Permanent Secretaries of HM Treasury Queens Park Rangers F.C. directors and chairmen Members of the Board of Directors of the Banco Santander Chairmen of Channel 4 Life peers created by Elizabeth II