Richard Allan
Encyclopedia
Richard Beecroft Allan, Baron Allan of Hallam (born 11 February 1966 in Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...

) was the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 for Sheffield Hallam from the general election of Thursday 2 May 1997 until the dissolution of Parliament on 11 April 2005. He was made a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...

 as Baron Allan of Hallam, of Ecclesall in the County of South Yorkshire, in the 2010 Dissolution Honours
2010 Dissolution Honours
The 2010 Dissolution Honours List was issued on 28 May 2010 at the advice of outgoing Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The list was gazetted on 15 June.-Life Peerages:Conservative* Timothy Boswell* Angela Browning* John Gummer* Michael Howard...

.

Early life

He went to the independent Oundle School
Oundle School
Oundle School is a co-educational British public school located in the ancient market town of Oundle in Northamptonshire. The school has been maintained by the Worshipful Company of Grocers of the City of London since its foundation in 1556. Oundle has eight boys' houses, five girls' houses, a day...

 in north-east Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...

. He studied at Pembroke College, Cambridge
Pembroke College, Cambridge
Pembroke College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The college has over seven hundred students and fellows, and is the third oldest college of the university. Physically, it is one of the university's larger colleges, with buildings from almost every century since its...

, and gained a BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 in Archaeology and Anthropology in 1988. From Bristol Polytechnic
University of the West of England
The University of the West of England is a university based in the English city of Bristol. Its main campus is at Frenchay, about five miles north of the city centre...

, he gained an MSc
Master of Science
A Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...

 in Information Technology in 1990. He was a field archaeologist in Britain, France and the Netherlands from 1984-5, and in Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...

 from 1988-9. He was a computer manager at Avon FHSA from 1991-7.

Parliamentary career

In 1997, he unseated Irvine Patnick
Irvine Patnick
Sir Cyril Irvine Patnick, known as Irvine Patnick OBE is a British businessman and former Conservative Party politician....

 of the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...

 achieving a majority of 8,221 with a swing of 15.3%. In 2001, he was re-elected with an increased majority of 9,347. During his tenure, Allan held various committee seats, including the Chair of the House of Commons Information Select Committee and a seat on the House of Commons Liaison Select Committee. Richard Allan was the founding chairman of the Parthenon 2004 campaign for the return of the Parthenon Marbles.

Allan did not seek reelection at the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....

. He was succeeded by fellow Liberal Democrat Nick Clegg, for whom he acted as campaign manager.

On 22 July 2010, he was created a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...

 as Baron Allan of Hallam, of Ecclesall in the County of South Yorkshire, and was introduced
Introduction (House of Lords)
Introduction is a ceremony in the House of Lords whereby new members are "introduced" to the existing membership. Introductions in the Lords are more elaborate than those in the House of Commons.-Origins:...

 in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....

 on 26 July 2010, where he sits as a Liberal Democrat peer.

Post political career

He is now lobbying for Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...

 as Director of Policy in Europe; previously he was Head of Government Affairs for Cisco Systems UK
Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Jose, California, United States, that designs and sells consumer electronics, networking, voice, and communications technology and services. Cisco has more than 70,000 employees and annual revenue of US$...

.

He is also a visiting fellow of the Oxford Internet Institute
Oxford Internet Institute
The Oxford Internet Institute is a multi-disciplinary institute based at the University of Oxford, England, and housed in buildings owned by Balliol College, Oxford. It is devoted to the study of the societal implications of the Internet, with the aim of shaping research, policy and practice in...

 and deputy chairman of the British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles
British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles
The British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles is a group of British people who support the return of the Parthenon marbles to Athens, Greece....

.

Personal life

He married Louise Netley on 25 May 1991 in Bath. They have since separated and Allan has twin daughters with his current partner.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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