Sir Peter John Robert Riddell (born 14 October 1948) is a British journalist and author. He worked for the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

'' from 1970 to 1991. From April 2016 to September 2021 he served as the British government's Commissioner for Public Appointments, and is the former director of the

Institute for Government The Institute for Government (IfG) is a British independent think tank which aims to improve government effectiveness through research and analysis. Based at 2 Carlton Gardens in central London and founded as a charity in 2008, it was initiall ...

Early and personal life

Riddell was born in

Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignt ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

on 14 October 1948. His father, a solicitor, served in the RAF during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Riddell lived in

Streatham Streatham ( ) is a district in south London, England. Centred south of Charing Cross, it lies mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, with some parts extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. Streatham was in Surrey ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

during his early life. He attended

Dulwich College Dulwich College is a 2-18 private, day and boarding school for boys in Dulwich, London, England. As a public school, it began as the College of God's Gift, founded in 1619 by Elizabethan actor Edward Alleyn, with the original purpose of ...

and graduated from

Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge Sidney Sussex College (historically known as "Sussex College" and today referred to informally as "Sidney") is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The College was founded in 1 ...

with a BA in history and economics and an MA. Riddell married Avril in 1994. They have one daughter, born in 1996.

Journalism career

Riddell joined the ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') in 1970. He was property correspondent in the early 1970s and economics correspondent in the late 1970s, covering events such as the 1976 IMF crisis. He became the ''FT''s political editor in 1981, at the age of 33. He was US editor and Washington bureau chief at the ''FT'' between 1989 and 1991, when he left the newspaper.Hansard Society - Advisory Council - Peter Riddell
. From 1991 to 2010, he was a political commentator for ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'', of which he was also an assistant editor.

Civil society work

He has been 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 a ...

council since 1996 and was its chair from 2007 until 2012. He was a senior fellow at the

from 2008 until 2011, and beginning in January 2012 he was its director. On 6 July 2010, the Prime Minister,

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

, announced that Riddell would be one of three members of an inquiry to determine whether British intelligence officers were complicit in the torture of detainees, including those from the

Guantanamo Bay detention camp The Guantanamo Bay detention camp, also known as GTMO ( ), GITMO ( ), or simply Guantanamo Bay, is a United States military prison within Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB), on the coast of Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. It was established in 2002 by p ...

or subject to rendition flights. On 20 April 2016, the

Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for supporting the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister and Cabinet ...

announced that Riddell would replace Sir David Normington as the new Commissioner for Public Appointments. His term, which was initially due to expire at the end of April 2021, was extended until the end of September 2021.

Honours

As part of his work on the torture enquiry, in 2010 Riddell was appointed to the Privy Council to permit easier access to secret information, entitling him to the style "

The Right Honourable ''The Right Honourable'' (abbreviation: The Rt Hon. or variations) is an honorific Style (form of address), style traditionally applied to certain persons and collective bodies in the United Kingdom, the former British Empire, and the Commonwealt ...

". On 25 November 2010, Riddell was awarded the President's Medal by 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 ...

"for an outstanding record as the producer of an informed picture of the inner workings of Whitehall, high politics and the party battle". Riddell was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) in the 2012 Birthday Honours for services to journalism and for public service. He was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

in the

2022 New Year Honours The 2022 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 15 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 celebratio ...

for public service.

Publications

* ''The Thatcher Government'' (1983), * ''The Thatcher Decade'' (1989), * ''The Thatcher Era and Its Legacy'' (1991), * ''Honest Opportunism: The Rise of the Career Politician'' (1993), * ''Parliament Under Pressure'' (1997), * ''Parliament Under Blair'' (2000), * ''Blair Government'' (2002), * ''Hug Them Close: Blair, Clinton, Bush and the 'Special Relationship (2004), * ''The Unfulfilled Prime Minister: Tony Blair's Quest for a Legacy ''(2006), * ''In Defence of Politicians (in Spite of Themselves)'' (2011), * ''The Power of Judges'' (2018), * ''15 Minutes of Power: The Uncertain Life of British Ministers'' (2019),

References

External links

Institute for Government blog - Peter Riddell's posts

Hansard Society
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Riddell, Peter 1948 births Living people People educated at Dulwich College Alumni of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Commissioners for Public Appointments Recipients of the President's Medal (British Academy) Financial Times people The Times people British male journalists 20th-century British journalists 21st-century British journalists British newspaper journalists British political journalists Writers from the London Borough of Lambeth People from Streatham Knights Bachelor Writers from Torquay