Onora Sylvia O'Neill, Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve (born 23 August 1941) is a British philosopher and a

crossbench A crossbencher is a minor party or independent politician, independent member of some legislatures, such as the Parliament of Australia. In the British House of Lords the term refers to members of the parliamentary group of non-political peers. ...

member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

Early life and education

Onora Sylvia O'Neill was born on 23 August 1941 in

Aughafatten Aughafatten or Aghafatten ( ) is a small village and townland between Carnlough and Broughshane in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is in Mid and East Antrim District Council and part of the North Antrim (UK Parliament constituency), North A ...

. The daughter of Sir Con O'Neill, she was educated partly in Germany and at

St Paul's Girls' School St Paul's Girls' School is a private day school for girls, aged 11 to 18, located in Brook Green, Hammersmith, in west London, England. The school is included in The Schools Index as one of the world's 150 best private schools and among top ...

, London, before studying philosophy, psychology and physiology at

Somerville College, Oxford Somerville College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 as Somerville Hall, one of its first two women's colleges. It began admitting men in 1994. The colle ...

. She went on to complete a doctorate at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

, with

John Rawls John Bordley Rawls (; February 21, 1921 – November 24, 2002) was an American moral philosophy, moral, legal philosophy, legal and Political philosophy, political philosopher in the Modern liberalism in the United States, modern liberal tradit ...

as supervisor.

Career

During the 1970s, she taught at

Barnard College Barnard College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college affiliated with Columbia University in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a grou ...

, the women's college in

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

, New York City. In 1977, she returned to Britain and took up a post at the

University of Essex The University of Essex is a public university, public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, it is one of the original plate glass university, plate glass universities. The university comprises three camp ...

; she was Professor of Philosophy there when she became Principal of

Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

in 1992. She is an Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, a former President of the

British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...

(2005–2009) and chaired the

Nuffield Foundation The Nuffield Foundation is a charitable trust established in 1943 by William Morris, Lord Nuffield, the founder of Morris Motors Ltd. It aims to improve social well-being by funding research and innovation projects in education and social pol ...

(1998–2010). In 2001, she delivered the

Gifford Lectures The Gifford Lectures () are an annual series of lectures which were established in 1887 by the will of Adam Gifford, Lord Gifford at the four ancient universities of Scotland: St Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh. Their purpose is to "pro ...

on ''Autonomy and Trust in Bioethics'' at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, and again in 2013 with a series titled ''From Toleration to Freedom of Expression''. From 2004 to 2006, she was President of the

British Philosophical Association The British Philosophical Association (BPA) is a British organisation set up in October 2002 to promote the study of philosophy. Early history During the early 1980s the merging of educational establishments and financial cut-backs meant that so ...

. In 2013, she held the Spinoza Chair of Philosophy at the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, ) is a public university, public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Established in 1632 by municipal authorities, it is the fourth-oldest academic institution in the Netherlan ...

. Until October 2006, she was the Principal of

Newnham College, Cambridge Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...

, and she was chair of the

Equality and Human Rights Commission The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is a non-departmental public body in Great Britain, established by the Equality Act 2006 with effect from 1 October 2007. The Commission has responsibility for the promotion and enforcement of e ...

until April 2016. O'Neill's work has earned her numerous honours and awards, including the million-dollar Berggruen Prize.

Philosophy

O'Neill has written widely on political philosophy and ethics, international justice, bioethics and the philosophy of

Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (born Emanuel Kant; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German Philosophy, philosopher and one of the central Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works ...

. Across various works, O'Neill has defended and applied a constructivist interpretation of

Kantian ethics Kantian ethics refers to a Deontology, deontological ethical theory developed by German philosopher Immanuel Kant that is based on the notion that "I ought never to act except in such a way that I could also will that my maxim should become a un ...

heavily influenced by, and yet critical of, the work of

, emphasising the importance of trust, consent and respect for autonomy in a just society. She has written extensively about trust, noting "that people often choose to rely on the very people whom they claimed not to trust" and suggesting that we "need to free professionals and the public service to serve the public...to work towards more intelligent forms of accountability... ndto rethink a media culture in which spreading suspicion has become a routine activity".

Honours and distinctions

O'Neill has been President of the

Aristotelian Society The Aristotelian Society for the Systematic Study of Philosophy, more generally known as the Aristotelian Society, is a philosophical society in London. History Aristotelian Society was founded at a meeting on 19 April 1880, at 17 Bloomsbury Squar ...

(1988 to 1989), a member of the

Animal Procedures Committee The Animal Procedures Committee advised the British Home Secretary on matters related to animal testing in the UK. The function of the committee was made a statutory requirement by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (the ASPA), which man ...

(1990 to 1994), chair of

Nuffield Council on Bioethics The Nuffield Council on Bioethics is a UK-based independent charitable body, which examines and reports on bioethical issues raised by new advances in biological and medical research. Established in 1991, the Council is funded by the Nuffield F ...

(1996 to 1998), a member and then acting chair of the Human Genetics Advisory Commission (1996 to 1999) and a member of the select committee on

BBC Charter The Royal Charter for the continuance of the British Broadcasting Corporation, short: BBC Charter, is a royal charter setting out the arrangements for the governance of the British Broadcasting Corporation. It, and an accompanying agreement rec ...

Review. She is presently chair of the

(since 1997), a trustee of

Sense about Science Sense about Science is a United Kingdom charitable organization that promotes the public understanding of science. Sense about Science was founded in 2002 by Lord Taverne, Bridget Ogilvie and others to promote respect for scientific evidence an ...

(since 2002), a trustee of the

Ditchley Foundation The Ditchley Foundation is a foundation that holds conferences, with a primary focus on British-American relations. Based at Ditchley Park near Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, it was established as a privately funded charity in 1958 by philanthr ...

, and a trustee of the Gates Cambridge Trust. She also served as President of the

between 2005 and 2009. She is on the Advisory Board of Incentives for Global Health, the NGO formed to develop the

Health Impact Fund The Health Impact Fund is a proposed pay-for-performance mechanism that would provide a market-based solution to problems concerning the development and distribution of medicines globally. It would incentivize the research and development of new pha ...

proposal. In 1999, she 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. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

as Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve, of The Braid in the

County of Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, County Antrim, Antrim, ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, located within the historic Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the c ...

, and in 2007 was elected an Honorary FRS. She is also a Foreign Honorary Member of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

(1993) and the

Austrian Academy of Sciences The Austrian Academy of Sciences (; ÖAW) is a legal entity under the special protection of the Republic of Austria. According to the statutes of the Academy its mission is to promote the sciences and humanities in every respect and in every fi ...

(2002), a Foreign Member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

(2003), and Hon. Member

Royal Irish Academy The Royal Irish Academy (RIA; ), based in Dublin, is an academic body that promotes study in the natural sciences, arts, literature, and social sciences. It is Ireland's premier List of Irish learned societies, learned society and one of its le ...

(2003), a Foreign Member of the Leopoldina (2004) and the

Norwegian Academy of Sciences The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (, DNVA) is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway. Its purpose is to support the advancement of science and scholarship in Norway. History The Royal Frederick University in Christiania was establis ...

(2006) and a Fellow of the

Academy of Medical Sciences The Academy of Medical Sciences is an organisation established in the UK in 1998. It is one of the four UK National Academy, National Academies, the others being the British Academy, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal Society. Its ...

. She is an elected fellow of the

Hastings Center The Hastings Center for Bioethics is an independent, nonpartisan bioethics research institute in Garrison, New York. Its mission is to address ethical issues in health care, science, and technology. Through its projects and publications and its pu ...

, an independent bioethics research institution. In 2007, O'Neill became a Honorary Fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

. In 2004 she was awarded an Honorary Degree (Doctor of Letters) from the

University of Bath The University of Bath is a public research university in Bath, England. Bath received its royal charter in 1966 as Bath University of Technology, along with a number of other institutions following the Robbins Report. Like the University ...

. She is a Distinguished Senior Fellow of the School of Advanced Study, University of London, an honour awarded in 2009. O'Neill also received an Honorary Doctorate from

Heriot-Watt University Heriot-Watt University () is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was established in 1821 as the School of Arts of Edinburgh, the world's first mechanics' institute, and was subsequently granted university status by roya ...

in 2007, and from Harvard in 2010. In October 2012, she was nominated as the next Chair of the

, and confirmed as such in January 2013. O'Neill was appointed a

Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded on 4 June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. It was founded on the same date as the Order of the British Empire. The orde ...

(CH) in the 2014 New Year Honours for services to philosophy and public policy. In 2014, O'Neill was elected to the German order Pour le mérite für Wissenschaften und Künste. In September 2015, during the XII. quinquennial international Kant-conference in Vienna, she received the ''Kant-Preis'' of the ''Fritz Thyssen Stiftung'' for her scholarly work on the practical and political philosophy of Immanuel Kant. (se
12th International Kant Congress 2015 » Social Program
In February 2016, she was awarded the Knight Commander's Cross of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...

for her outstanding contribution to moral and ethical questions of trust, accountability in civic life, justice and virtue. Currently, she is the president of the

Society for Applied Philosophy The Society for Applied Philosophy is a philosophical organization An organization or organisation (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -iza ...

, a society founded in 1982 with the aim of promoting philosophical study and research that has a direct bearing on areas of practical concern. In 2017, she was awarded the Norwegian

Holberg Prize The Holberg Prize is an international prize awarded annually by the government of Norway to outstanding scholars for work in the arts, humanities, social sciences, law and theology, either within one of these fields or through interdisciplinary ...

for outstanding contributions to research in the arts and humanities "for her influential role in ethical and political philosophy". The same year she was awarded the Berggruen Prize. O'Neill is an Honorary Fellow of Somerville College. In 2021, O'Neill received an honorary doctorate from the

University of Antwerp The University of Antwerp () is a major Belgian university located in the city of Antwerp. The official abbreviation is ''UAntwerp''. The University of Antwerp has about 20,000 students, which makes it the third-largest university in Flanders. ...

Bibliography

Books

* * * * * * * * * (with Neil Manson) * * * *

Selected articles

* * * ::''See also'': * *

References

External links

"On the Side of the Angels"
Video of Onora O'Neill debating Ken Livingstone and Peter Lilley at HowTheLightGetsIn Festival, 2 June 2013
What Should Press Regulation Regulate?
Podcast of Baroness O'Neill speaking at a conference by the Foundation for Law, Justice & Society, Oxford, 2012
Media Freedoms and Media Standards
Centre for Ethics & Law Annual Lecture,

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

, 28 November 201
Pdf.Reith Lectures 2002 on ''A Question of Trust'' by O'Neill
House of Lords minutes of proceedings, 3 March 1999
List of O'Neill's published books and papers in academic journals
*
Curriculum Vitae

Amy Gutmann on Onora O'Neill

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

president and Berggruen Prize juror

Amy Gutmann Amy Gutmann (; born November 19, 1949) is an American academic and diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Germany from 2022 to 2024. She was previously the 8th president of the University of Pennsylvania from 2004 to 2022, th ...

on Onora O'Neill *
IV—The Most Extensive Liberty
' Onora O'Neill, ''

Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society The Aristotelian Society for the Systematic Study of Philosophy, more generally known as the Aristotelian Society, is a philosophical society in London. History Aristotelian Society was founded at a meeting on 19 April 1880, at 17 Bloomsbury Squar ...

'', Volume 80, Issue 1, 1 June 1980, Pages 45–60, https://doi.org/10.1093/aristotelian/80.1.45 pen Access {{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, Onora 1941 births Living people 20th-century British philosophers 21st-century British philosophers Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences (United Kingdom) Fellows of Newnham College, Cambridge Columbia University faculty Harvard University alumni British women philosophers Crossbench life peers People educated at St Paul's Girls' School Principals of Newnham College, Cambridge Scholars and academics from County Antrim Fellows of the Hastings Center Members of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters Alumni of Somerville College, Oxford Presidents of the British Academy British political philosophers British bioethicists Life peeresses created by Elizabeth II Life peers created by Elizabeth II Presidents of the Aristotelian Society Fellows of the British Academy Members of the American Philosophical Society Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class) Fellows of Somerville College, Oxford Honorary Fellows of the Royal Society Female fellows of the Royal Society Members of the Royal Irish Academy Holberg Prize laureates Politicians from County Antrim