The Lord Parker of Minsmere | |
---|---|
Lord Chamberlain of the Household | |
In office 1 April 2021 –4 November 2024 | |
Monarchs | Elizabeth II Charles III |
Preceded by | The Earl Peel |
Succeeded by | The Lord Benyon |
Director General of MI5 | |
In office April 2013 –January 2020 | |
Home Secretary | Theresa May Amber Rudd Sajid Javid Priti Patel |
Preceded by | Sir Jonathan Evans |
Succeeded by | Ken McCallum |
Member of the House of Lords | |
Lord Temporal | |
Assumed office 9 February 2021 Life peerage | |
Personal details | |
Born | Andrew David Parker 8 May 1962 |
Nationality | British |
Political party | None (crossbench) |
Children | 2 |
Alma mater | Churchill College,Cambridge |
Andrew David Parker,Baron Parker of Minsmere, GCVO , KCB , PC (born 8 May 1962 [1] ),is a British life peer and former intelligence officer who served as Director General of MI5 from 2013 to 2020. He served as Lord Chamberlain of the Household from 2021 to 2024,and is a crossbench member of the House of Lords.
Parker was educated at a comprehensive school in Newcastle upon Tyne [2] and then at Churchill College,Cambridge,where he studied the natural sciences. [3]
Parker joined the Security Service in 1983. [4] He was seconded to HM Customs and Excise as Director Intelligence in 1999 before becoming Director,International Terrorism at the Security Service in February 2005. [5] After leading the Security Service's response to the 7 July 2005 London bombings and the 2006 transatlantic aircraft plot,he became Deputy Director General in 2007. [4]
Parker went on to become Director General of the Service in April 2013. As of 2015,Parker was paid a salary of between £165,000 and £169,999 by the department,making him one of the 328 most highly paid people in the British public sector at that time. [6]
In May 2018,Parker said that Russia is seeking to undermine European democracies with "malign activities". Speaking in Berlin,Parker also condemned Russia for the "reckless" poisoning of the Skripals in Salisbury. The Kremlin was taking part in "deliberate,targeted,malign activity intended to undermine our free,open,and democratic societies". Parker also warned that Islamic State aspires to commit "devastating" and "more complex" attacks in Europe. [7]
In 2019,Parker,writing with Cressida Dick,the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police,suggested that far-right and far-left terrorism have been identified as key threats to the safety and prosperity of the nation. They warned that while Islamist terrorism remains the largest by scale,they are also “concerned about the growing threat from other forms of violent extremism…covering a spectrum of hate-driven ideologies,including the extreme right and left.” [8]
In December 2020,it was announced that Parker would be created a crossbench life peer in the 2020 Special Honours. [9] He was created Baron Parker of Minsmere,of Minsmere in the County of Suffolk,on 29 January 2021. The territorial designation reflects his interest in bird watching. [10] He made his maiden speech on 4 March 2021,during a debate on the space industry. [11]
Parker retired from MI5 in April 2020. [12] [13] On 5 February 2021,Buckingham Palace announced that Lord Parker would succeed Earl Peel as Lord Chamberlain on 1 April 2021. [14]
The ceremonial breaking of the Lord Chamberlain's "wand of office" during the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on 19 September 2022 symbolized the formal end of Parker's service as Lord Chamberlain to the monarch before the late Queen was lowered into the Royal Vault for private interment that evening to join her sister,parents (George VI and Elizabeth),and husband. [15] [16] Parker continued to serve as Lord Chamberlain under Charles III. [17] In this role,he took part in the 2023 coronation. [18]
In January 2024,Parker announced his intention to step down as Lord Chamberlain by the end of the year. [19]
On 4 November 2024,Parker returned his Wand and Insignia of Office as Lord Chamberlain and the Badge of Chancellor of the Royal Victorian Order on leaving office. [20]
Parker was early to appreciate the potential impacts of AI [2] and COVID-19. [21]
Parker is married and has two children. He is an ornithologist and an avid wildlife photographer. [22]
Parker was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 2019 Birthday Honours. [23] He was appointed as a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order upon appointment as Lord Chamberlain, [24] [25] and was made a member of the Privy Council a few days later. [26]
MI5,officially the Security Service,is the United Kingdom's domestic counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6),Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ),and Defence Intelligence (DI). MI5 is directed by the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC),and the service is bound by the Security Service Act 1989. The service is directed to protect British parliamentary democracy and economic interests and to counter terrorism and espionage within the United Kingdom (UK). Within the civil service community,the service is colloquially known as Box,or Box 500,after its official wartime address of PO Box 500;its current address is PO Box 3255,London SW1P 1AE.
A staff of office is a staff,the carrying of which often denotes an official's position,a social rank or a degree of social prestige.
The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Household of the United Kingdom,supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Sovereign of the United Kingdom while also acting as the main channel of communication between the Sovereign and the House of Lords. The office organises all ceremonial activity such as garden parties,state visits,royal weddings,and the State Opening of Parliament. They also oversee the Royal Mews and Royal Travel,as well as the ceremony around the awarding of honours.
Elizabeth Lydia Manningham-Buller,Baroness Manningham-Buller,is a retired British intelligence officer. She worked as a teacher for three years before joining MI5,the British internal Security Service. She led the newly created Irish counter-terrorism section from 1992 and then became director in charge of surveillance and technical operations. She became Director General of MI5 in October 2002 and,in that capacity,led the Security Service's response to the 7 July 2005 London bombings. Following her retirement in April 2007,she became a crossbench life peer in 2008.
An equerry is an officer of honour. Historically,it was a senior attendant with responsibilities for the horses of a person of rank. In contemporary use,it is a personal attendant,usually upon a sovereign,a member of a royal family,or a national representative. The role is equivalent to an aide-de-camp,but the term is now prevalent only among some members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
Brigadier Andrew Henry Parker Bowles is a retired British Army officer. He is the former husband of Queen Camilla,who is now the wife of King Charles III.
Richard Napier Luce,Baron Luce,is a British politician. He is a former Lord Chamberlain to the Queen,serving from 2000 to 2006,and has been Governor of Gibraltar,a Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) from 1971 to 1992,and government minister,and a crossbench member of the House of Lords.
Sir Arthur Antony Duff was a senior British diplomat and Director General of MI5.
William James Robert Peel,3rd Earl Peel,,styled Viscount Clanfield until 1969,is a British hereditary peer who was a Conservative peer from 15 May 1973 until October 2006 when,on his appointment as Lord Chamberlain of the Royal Household,he became a crossbench (non-partisan) member of the House of Lords.
Jonathan Douglas Evans,Baron Evans of Weardale,is a British life peer who formerly served as the Director General of the British Security Service,the United Kingdom's domestic security and counter-intelligence service. He took over the role on the retirement of his predecessor Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller on 21 April 2007. Evans was succeeded by Andrew Parker on 22 April 2013.
The Royal Households of the United Kingdom are the collective departments that support members of the British royal family. Many members of the royal family who undertake public duties have separate households. They vary considerably in size,from the large household that supports the sovereign to the household of the Prince and Princess of Wales,with fewer members.
Mark Philip Sedwill,Baron Sedwill,is a British diplomat and senior civil servant who served as Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Home Civil Service to Prime Ministers Theresa May and Boris Johnson from 2018 to 2020. He also served as the United Kingdom National Security Adviser from 2017 to 2020. He was previously the United Kingdom's Ambassador to Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010 and the NATO Senior Civilian Representative in Afghanistan in 2010. He was the Permanent Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office from February 2013 to April 2017.
Lord Parker may refer to:
Admiral Sir Antony David Radakin,is a senior Royal Navy officer. He was appointed Chief of the Defence Staff,the professional head of the British Armed Forces,in November 2021. Radakin was previously the First Sea Lord,the professional head of the Naval Service from June 2019 to November 2021. He was Chief of Staff,Joint Forces Command,from 2016 to 2018,and the Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff from 2018 to 2019. He was appointed Lord High Constable of England in 2023,and in that role took part in the Coronation of Charles III and Camilla.
Admiral Sir Benjamin John Key,is a senior Royal Navy officer. He has served as First Sea Lord since November 2021. He has commanded HM Ships Sandown,Iron Duke and Lancaster,and deployed on operations to Kosovo and Iraq. He was appointed Fleet Commander in 2016,and the Chief of Joint Operations in 2019.
As part of the British honours system,Special Honours are issued at the Monarch's pleasure at any given time. The Special Honours refer to the awards made within royal prerogative,operational honours,political honours and other honours awarded outside the New Years Honours and Birthday Honours.
Kenneth Douglas McCallum is a British intelligence officer who has been serving as the Director General of MI5 since 2020.
As part of the British honours system,Special Honours are issued at the Monarch's pleasure at any given time. The Special Honours refer to the awards made within royal prerogative,operational honours,political honours and other honours awarded outside the New Years Honours and Birthday Honours.
As part of the British honours system,Special Honours are issued at the Monarch's pleasure at any given time. The Special Honours refer to the awards made within royal prerogative,operational honours,political honours and other honours awarded outside the New Years Honours and Birthday Honours.
As part of the British honours system,Special Honours are issued at the Monarch's pleasure at any given time. The Special Honours refer to the awards made within royal prerogative,operational honours,political honours and other honours awarded outside the New Years Honours and Birthday Honours.