The Lord Adonis | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2019 | |
| Chairman of the European Movement | |
| In office 7 March 2021 – 14 December 2022 | |
| President | The Lord Heseltine |
| Vice President | The Lord Clarke of Nottingham The Baroness Quin |
| Preceded by | Stephen Dorrell |
| Succeeded by | Mike Galsworthy |
| Vice Chairman of the European Movement | |
| In office 15 January 2019 – 7 March 2021 | |
| President | The Lord Heseltine |
| Vice President | The Lord Clarke of Nottingham The Baroness Quin |
| Preceded by | Richard Corbett |
| Succeeded by | Richard Wilson |
| Secretary of State for Transport | |
| In office 5 June 2009 – 11 May 2010 | |
| Prime Minister | Gordon Brown |
| Preceded by | Geoff Hoon |
| Succeeded by | Philip Hammond |
| Minister of State for Transport | |
| In office 3 October 2008 – 5 June 2009 | |
| Prime Minister | Gordon Brown |
| Preceded by | Rosie Winterton |
| Succeeded by | Sadiq Khan |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools and Learners[1] | |
| In office 10 May 2005 – 3 October 2008 | |
| Prime Minister | Tony Blair Gordon Brown |
| Preceded by | The Lord Filkin |
| Succeeded by | Sarah McCarthy-Fry |
| Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |
| Assumed office 23 May 2005 Life peerage | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Andreas Adonis 22 February 1963 Hampstead, London, England[2] |
| Political party | Labour (1995–2015, since 2017) |
| Other political affiliations | Liberal Democrats (1988–1995) SDP (1985–1988) |
| Spouse |
Kathryn Davies
(m. 1994; div. 2015) |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | Keble College, Oxford (BA) Christ Church, Oxford (DPhil) |
| Profession | Journalist |
| Website | Official website |
Andrew Adonis, Baron Adonis, PC (born Andreas Adonis; 22 February 1963)[3] is a British Labour Party politician and journalist who served in HM Government for five years in the Blair ministry and the Brown ministry.
He served as Secretary of State for Transport from 2009 to 2010, and as Chairman of the National Infrastructure Commission from 2015 to 2017. He was Chair of the European Movement, from March 2021 until December 2022[4] having previously served as Vice-Chairman from 2019 to 2021. He is currently a columnist for The New European.[5]
Adonis began his career as an academic at the University of Oxford, before becoming a journalist at the Financial Times and later The Observer.[3][6][7] Adonis was appointed by Prime Minister Tony Blair to be an advisor at the Number 10 Policy Unit, specialising in constitutional and educational policy, in 1998. He was later promoted to become the Head of the Policy Unit from 2001 until being created a life peer in 2005, when he was appointed Minister of State for Education in HM Government.[3][6] He remained in that role when Gordon Brown became Prime Minister in 2007, before becoming Minister of State for Transport in 2008. In 2009, he was promoted to the Cabinet as Transport Secretary, a position he held until 2010.[8]
Adonis has worked for a number of think tanks, is a board member of Policy Network and is the author or co-author of several books, including several studies of the British class system, the rise and fall of the Community Charge, and the Victorian House of Lords. He has also co-edited a collection of essays on Roy Jenkins. Like Jenkins, Adonis speaks with rhotacism. His latest book, Ernest Bevin: Labour's Churchill, is a biography of the Labour politician Ernest Bevin whom, alongside Tony Blair, Adonis regards as a source of inspiration for the modern Labour Party.
Adonis is a strong supporter and advocate of the European Union (EU) and a vocal opponent of Brexit. Following the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, he became a key campaigner against the result of the referendum on British departure from the EU, supporting the People's Vote.
- ^ Schools (2005–07)
- ^ "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
- ^ a b c Will Woodward (28 October 2005). "The Guardian profile: Andrew Adonis". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 30 March 2007.
- ^ "Statement on the Chair of the European Movement".
- ^ "Register of Interests for Lord Adonis – MPs and Lords – UK Parliament". members.parliament.uk. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
- ^ a b "Department for Education and Skills Ministerial Team". Department for Education and Skills. Archived from the original on 1 April 2007. Retrieved 30 March 2007.
- ^ "Adviser Adonis made a minister". BBC News. 10 May 2005. Retrieved 30 March 2007.
- ^ High Speed Rail – Command Paper. Department for Transport, 11 March 2010, ISBN 9780101782722