Sir Merrick Richard Cockell (born 16 June 1957) is a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

politician in the United Kingdom, former Leader of the

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (often known by its initialism as RBKC) is an Inner London, Inner London borough with Royal borough, royal status. It is the List of English districts by area, smallest borough in London and the secon ...

and former chairman of the

Local Government Association The Local Government Association (LGA) is the national membership body for local government in England, local authorities in England and Wales. Its core membership is made up of 317 English councils and the 22 Welsh councils through the ...

. He was made a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

in 2010.

Early life

Cockell was born on 16 June 1957 to Peter Colvile Cockell and Hildegard Christina Cockell (née Kern). He was educated at Pierrepont School, Frensham.

Career

Cockell became a trader with F. M. Barshall Ltd. From 1977 to 1982, he served the company overseas in

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

, and China. In 1982 he founded and became a director of Abingdon Cockell Ltd, an import-export company, remaining with it until 2006. He has served as a director of Localis, a local government think-tank, since 2008 and as its chairman since 2009.'COCKELL, Sir Merrick (Richard)’, in ''Who's Who 2011'' (London: A. & C. Black, 2011) From 1999 he was also a director of Peter Barshall Ltd. In 1990, as a director of the importers Barber Cockell, he was quoted in ''China Trade Report'' as saying "Everyone was shocked by events in June last year, but in reality what occurred in

Tiananmen Square Tiananmen Square or Tian'anmen Square () is a city square in the city center of Beijing, China, named after the Tiananmen ("''Gate of Heavenly Peace''") located to its north, which separates it from the Forbidden City. The square contains th ...

had little effect on our business even during the troubles." More recently Sir Merrick joined

PA Consulting Group PA Consulting Group (formerly Personnel Administration) is a professional services firm that works with public, private and third-sector organisations. It was founded in 1943 by Ernest E. Butten, Tom H. Kirkham and Dr David Seymour, who used a ...

as a senior advisor. The Local Government Chronicle reported on this move in 2014 with Sir Merrick quoting: "PA Consulting Group is at the forefront of breaking down barriers between the public and private sectors and encouraging new approaches to co-operation. Having been part of the ongoing transformation of local public services, I am looking forward to working with such an innovative organisation." Sir Merrick was appointed deputy chairman of London Pensions Fund Authority in 2013 and made chairman in 2015. He was appointed executive chairman of Cratus Communications in 2014.

Politics

In 1986, Cockell was elected as a

councillor A councillor, alternatively councilman, councilwoman, councilperson, or council member, is someone who sits on, votes in, or is a member of, a council. This is typically an elected representative of an electoral district in a municipal or re ...

of the Kensington and Chelsea London Borough Council, representing the Stanley ward, in which he was Chairman of Education 1992–1995, Conservative Chief Whip 1995–2000, and Leader of the Council 2000–2013. He was deputy chairman of the Conservative Councillors' Association from 2005 to 2008 and its chairman from 2008, when he also was given a seat on the Conservative Party Board. and served as a member of the Audit Commission from 2009. He was a member of the London Governance Commission from 2004 to 2006 and was Chairman of

London Councils London Councils is the collective of local government in Greater London, England. It is a cross-party organisation that represents London's 32 borough councils and the City of London. It was formed in 1995 as a merger of the London Boroughs A ...

from 2006 to 2010. In 2011 he became chairman of the

, succeeding Baroness Eaton. He stood down on 8 July 2014. In 2015 he became the first chairman of the UK Municipal Bonds Agency plc, a local government owned body that will issue bonds and other financial instruments to allow local authorities to borrow more competitively. In August 2015, The mayor of London appointed Sir Merrick to be the chairman of the Crossrail 2 Growth Commission, which reported on the economic viability of the proposed rail route linking North East and South West suburbs under central London.

Honours

Cockell 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 Queen's Birthday Honours List, 2010, "for services to local government".

References

External links

Merrick Cockell profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cockell, Merrick Richard 1957 births Living people Conservative Party (UK) councillors Councillors in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Knights Bachelor People educated at Pierrepont School, Frensham British businesspeople Leaders of local authorities of England Chairs of the Local Government Association