John Taylor, Baron Taylor of Warwick

The Right Honourable The Lord Taylor of Warwick
Member of the House of Lords
Incumbent
Assumed office 2 October 1996
Personal details
Born	John David Beckett Taylor 21 September 1952 Birmingham, England
Nationality	British
Political party	Non-affiliated
Spouse(s)	Laura Colleen Taylor
Website	http://www.lordtaylor.org/

John David Beckett Taylor, Baron Taylor of Warwick^[1] (born 21 September 1952) is a member of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom who strives to promote world peacemaking alongside advocating racial diversity in the higher ranks of business, media, politics, and sports.^[2] In 1996, at the age of 43, he became one of the youngest people in the upper house and, at the time of his appointment, the only black peer.^[3] He is the third person of Afro-Caribbean origin to enter the House of Lords: the first, Learie Constantine, entered in 1969, and the second, David Pitt, in 1975. Taylor initially practised as a barrister, and has also served as a judge, University Chancellor, company director and television and radio presenter.^[4][5] He is a committed Christian,^[6] who devotes much of his time and resources to numerous charities, namely Kidscape, Parents for Children, SCAR (SIckle Cell Anemia Relief), Variety Club Children's Charity of Great Britain, Warwick Leadership Foundation, and WISCA (West Indian Senior Citizen's Association).^{[7][8][9][10]}

Early life

Born in 1952, Taylor was the son of Jamaican immigrants in Birmingham.^[5] His father, Derief Taylor, was a professional cricketer and coach for Warwickshire, and his mother, Enid, was a nurse.^[5] Taylor attended Moseley Grammar School in Birmingham where he was head boy, and later attended Keele University where he studied English Literature and Law, followed by the Inns of Court School of Law in London.^[5]

Career

Legal

Taylor was called to the bar in 1978, by Gray's Inn, where he was also awarded the Gray's Inn Advocacy Award, and Norman Tapp Memorial Prize for excellence in mooting.^[11] Taylor undertook his pupillage at 1 Dr Johnson's Buildings,^[4] and then joined the same chambers as the then Justice Secretary, Ken Clarke.^[5] Taylor practised from there on the Midland & Oxford Circuit, and was appointed to the Director of Public Prosecutions' list of specialist prosecutors, and also served as Counsel for the Bank of England.^[4] In 1997, Taylor was appointed as a part-time deputy district judge (Magistrates' Court).^[6]

Political

In the 1980s, Taylor turned his hand to local politics and became active in his local council. He contested Birmingham Perry Barr for the Conservative Party at the 1987 general election, but lost by 6,933 votes. He went on to beat 300 other candidates to become the Conservative candidate for Cheltenham at the 1992 general election.^[6] The campaign was seen by outsiders as having been heavily influenced by the issue of race,^[6][12] with Taylor's West Indian background causing concern to some members of the local Conservative party.^[3] In the end, Taylor lost by 1,668 votes, to the Liberal Democrats, despite the fact that at the time, Cheltenham was regarded as a safe Tory seat.^[3] However, his highly publicised campaign brought him to the attention of senior figures in the Conservative party and gave him a certain public standing.^[3]

Taylor was made a life peer as Baron Taylor of Warwick, of Warwick in the County of Warwickshire on 2 October 1996,^[13] on the recommendation of the then prime minister, John Major.^[3] At the age of 43, he became one of the youngest life peers ever to sit in the House of Lords.

Achievements and Contributions to Society

In between his legal and political career, Taylor has also worked as a television and radio presenter,^[5] and was the host of "The John Taylor Programme" on BBC Radio 2,^[11] the most popular radio station in the United Kingdom.^[14]

In 2016, he appeared on the Fox News Channel to discuss the potential impact of Britain leaving the European Union (Brexit).^[15]

Other positions he has held include:^[11]

• Television Presenter, Crime Stalker (Carlton Television); Talk About (BBC One); Powerhouse (Channel 4)
• Non-executive Director, Currencies Direct LTD (resigned July 2010); Mottram Holdings PLC
• Consultant, Kleinwort Benson Bank
• Chancellor, Bournemouth University, 2001-2006.^[16]
• Vice President, National Small Business Bureau; British Board of Film Classification, 1998-2008.^[17]
• Member of the International Trade Council.^[18][19]
• Special Adviser to the Home Secretary and Home Office Ministers, 1990-1991.^[8][9][10]
• Founder of the Warwick Leadership Academy (1997 to present) which provides inspirational leadership to young people around the world especially in disadvantaged communities. The organization has a strong history of raising up young and influential leaders, and helping them to maximize their potential. It caters to both young adults as well as established business people and is well equipped to provide unique learning experiences for both groups.^{[7][8][9][20]}

Controversy

Prior to becoming a peer, Taylor had built up a successful legal career, giving him an income of over £100,000 per year. However, after forgoing this career to sit up to five days a week in the House of Lords, Taylor claimed that he had asked other peers for advice on expenses and allowances and that he was told that the overnight subsistence allowance, the office allowance, and the travel expenses were provided in lieu of a salary, as well as the daily attendance allowance. However, this view had proved to be incorrect.^[6]

In early 2009, a major political scandal was triggered by the leaking and subsequent publication of expense claims made by members of the United Kingdom Parliament.^[21] On 16 July 2010, Taylor resigned the Tory Whip after being charged with six offences of false accounting, connected with claims totalling approximately £11,000. Although several hundred Parliamentarians were involved in the expenses scandal^[22] (some involving claims totaling over £100,000),^[23] only six members of the House of Commons and two, including Taylor, of the Lords, were charged and convicted.^[24]

Taylor appeared before the City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court in August 2010.^[25] On 25 January 2011, at Southwark Crown Court before Mr Justice Saunders, Taylor was found guilty by the jury on six counts of false accounting, relating to a total of £11,277.80 in false parliamentary expenses claims; Taylor had listed his main residence as an address in Oxford, which was owned by his nephew, while occupying a flat in London.^[26] Taylor had claimed payment of travel costs between the premises, and also overnight subsistence expenses for staying in London. In his defence, Taylor stated that it was common practice among peers to claim for such journeys and expenses, and that it was his belief that it was acceptable to do this provided there was a "family connection" with the property.^[26] In his summation, Mr Justice Saunders added that Taylor was a man of good character who had devoted a lot of time to helping others.^[26]

On 31 May 2011, Taylor was sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment.^[27] He was released in September 2011 after serving three months of this sentence, under the home detention curfew scheme, a program for "low-risk" persons.^[28]

As a result of his convictions, Taylor was disbarred in May 2012.^[29] Additionally, following a report from the Privileges Committee, Taylor was suspended from the House of Lords for 12 months from 31 May 2011 to 30 May 2012.^[30] The report from the Privileges Committee, and the suspension, followed investigations and recommendations set out in two reports by the independent Lords Commissioner for Standards and the Sub-Committee on Lords’ Conduct.^[31]

Personal life and relationships

Taylor married in 1981: he and his wife have three children together and lived in Ealing. They divorced in 2005. The Daily Telegraph reported that Taylor is an evangelical Christian, and in 2009 he married an evangelical Christian from Florida. That marriage lasted 24 days and was annulled in 2010.^[6][32] In 2015, Taylor married Laura Colleen Taylor, thus creating 'a truly strong British and American relationship.'^[33] They have four daughters and one son.^[8]

Styles of address

• 1952-1996: Mr John D. B. Taylor
• 1996-: The Right Honourable The Lord Taylor of Warwick

References

External links

• BBC News profile
• TheyWorkForYou Profile
• Guardian Trial Coverage