Ewen Alexander Nicholas Fergusson
Ewen Fergusson | |
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| Born | Ewen Alexander Nicholas Fergusson 30 November 1965[1] |
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Ewen Alexander Nicholas Fergusson (born 30 November 1965) is a British former lawyer who was appointed to serve on the Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL) from August 2021,[2] an appointment which has led to accusations of cronyism by the opposition British Labour Party.[2]
Life
[edit]Fergusson is the son of diplomat Sir Ewen Fergusson and Sara Carolyn Montgomery Cuninghame (née Gordon Lennox).[3] Fergusson followed his father's educational path via Rugby School and Oriel College, Oxford,[4] where he read history.[5]
At Oriel, Fergusson joined the Bullingdon Club, an exclusive dining society with an apparent objective to cause mayhem and damage while under the influence of alcohol.[4] Fergusson's group of 1987 included two members who were to become British prime ministers, David Cameron and Boris Johnson.[4] The group were noted for throwing a plant pot through a restaurant window with six of the group of ten being apprehended by police.[4] There have been allegations, that Fergusson, noted as being the "quiet one" of the group was the one who threw the plant pot, though there is uncertainty.[4][a]
Fergusson qualified as a lawyer,[2] and joined the international law firm Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) in 2000 and served as a partner in the finance division.[6] In 2020 he was to lose in an election contest with fellow partner Malcolm Hitching for the position of HSF's global banking practice.[7] He left HSF in 2018 to become a self-employed business advisor.[2] As of July 2021[update] Fergusson was noted as a non-magistrate member of the Lord Chancellor’s advisory committee for South East England, as well as having roles as co-producer in a number of film projects.[8]
It was announced in July 2021 Fergusson was to have a five-year appointment to the CSPL starting in August.[2] Due to Fergusson's previous associations with prime minister Boris Johnson, the British Labour Party opposition accused the incumbent Conservative Party of cronyism, a claim rejected by the British government who stated the appointment was the result of "fair and open competition."[2] On 23 July 2021 CSPL chairperson Johnathan Evans took the unusual step of writing to Michael Gove about concerns "Members of the Committee have, however, expressed concerns about our lack of visible diversity now as a group." with Fergusson and Gillian Peele replacing earlier incumbents, the letter not being made public until later in August.[9][10][b] As an introduction to his first CSPL committee meeting on 16 September 2021 Fergusson acknowledged there had been some publicity about his appointment and that he "wished to correct some of the (published) facts: he had not been asked by anyone to apply for the role; and had last seen the Prime Minister at an external event in 2008."[12]
References
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ Adams for The Independent is careful to point out there are discrepancies in people's recollection of the "plant pot" incident,[4] and the truth may be different
- ^ The Evans letter on lack of diversity was written on 23 July 2021 after the CSPL meeting of 15 July 2021.[11]
Footnotes
[edit]- ^ "Births". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 1 December 1965. p. 1.
- ^ a b c d e f BBC 2021.
- ^ Scotsman Newsroom 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f Adams 2007.
- ^ McMahon 2021.
- ^ Syal 2021.
- ^ Taylor 2010.
- ^ Gov.UK 2021.
- ^ Culbertson 2021.
- ^ Evans 2021.
- ^ CSPL Secretariat 2021, 4. Minutes and Matters Arising.
- ^ CSPL Secretariat 2021, 2. Introductions.
Sources
[edit]- Adams, Guy (13 February 2007). "Cameron's cronies: The Bullingdon Club's class of '87". The Independent. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
- BBC (16 July 2021). "Boris Johnson's university friend gets ethics watchdog role". BBC/news. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
- CSPL Secretariat (September 2021). CSPL (21) 66 - Committee on Standards in Public Life 291st Meeting held at 10.00 on Thursday 16 September 2021 in Church House conference Centre, London - Minutes (Report).
- Culbertson, Alix (23 August 2021). "Sleaze watchdog chair raises concerns after member of PM's old university club appointed". Sky News. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
- Evans, Jonathan (23 July 2021). "on the importance of the diversity of the Committee's membership". Letter to Michael Gove, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office – via ProQuest and Asia News Monitor.
Members of the Committee have, however, expressed concerns about our lack of visible diversity now as a group
- Gov.UK (2021). "Ewen Fergusson". gov.uk. Biography. Archived from the original on 17 July 2021. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
- McMahon, Liz (16 July 2021). "Ewen Fergusson: Who is the lawyer appointed by Boris Johnson to Whitehall ethics committee? What's his connection to the Bullingdon Club?". The Scotsman. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
- Scotsman Newsroom (9 May 2017). "Obituary: Sir Ewen Fergusson, rugby international and diplomat". www.scotsman.com. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
{{cite web}}:|author=has generic name (help) - Syal, Rajeev (15 July 2021). "Ex-Bullingdon Club member appointed to Whitehall's sleaze watchdog". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
- Taylor, Margret (5 February 2010). "Hitching takes over Herbies' finance practice after contested election". The Lawyer. London: Centaur Media.