Working Group membership
Jonathan Marks QC (Chair)
Jonathan is a barrister and QC, specializing in civil litigation. Member of Federal Policy Committee since 2004. Previously member of a number of working groups, including Children and Families, Royal Mail and Better Governance. Former Parliamentary and Euro-parliamentary Candidate, Chair of Liberal Democrat Lawyers Association from 2001 to 2007. Particular interest in the role of the citizen in society and wishes to develop policy on consumers so as to empower the citizen in the marketplace.
John Thurso MP
Spokesperson in the commons on BERR
Lord Razzall
Spokesperson in the Lords
Diana Wallis MEP
MEP spokesperson
David Boyle
David is a fellow of the new economics foundation, working in related areas including those which affect the future of high streets and monopoly regulation. Writes broadly about related issues, and has worked with the National Consumer Council on others. Co-wrote the Clone Town Britain reports which launched some of the concern about how this relates to retailing. Member of FPC.
Rupert Butler
Rupert is a barrister practising from chambers in London, with 20 years’ experience specialising in Sports and Media law, Insolvency and Commercial litigation, as well as Product Liability. He was a founder member of the Liberal Democrats and lives in Kent with his wife and two daughters.
Cllr Helen Dyke
Helen is a District Councillor and the Business Crime Reduction Coordinator in Kidderminster’s town centre. Extremely knowledgeable about consumer affairs and the issues faced by retailers.
Cllr Bernadette Laventure
Bernadette is a Councillor for Watford Borough Council; and sits on the Hertfordshire Health Scrutiny committee the Licensing committee; and is a member of the Watford Community Housing Trust Board. She was previously a Director in large commercial organisations, customer facing with business to business consumers. She also has various small business experience including licensed trade, providing additional experience with public consumers, Trading Standards and suppliers.
Dr Tim Leunig
Tim Leunig is an academic economist working at the London School of Economics. He has served on around 10 LibDem policy working groups, and is a member of the advisory boards and has written papers for Centre Forum and Policy Exchange. At various times he has served as chair and treasurer of his local party, and has stood for the council. He is currently a member of Kingston local party.
James Sandbach
James is a policy officer for the Citizens Advice Bureau.
Dr Geoffrey Seeff
Geoffrey is a chartered accountant and management consultant, specialising in urban regeneration. His doctoral research (1974) was in Corporate Social Responsibility and he has lectured and written on the subject. Vice Chairman and PPC for Chingford and Woodford Green. Sat on Regeneration working party (1997) and the Arts Advisory Group (2004/6)
Elizabeth Stanton Jones
Elizabeth spent a number of years working with, first, the Oxford Consumer Group and then the National Federation of Consumer Groups as secretary of the legislation committee. She spent nine years as a member of the National Consumer Council and has held various appointments to consumer committees including regional electricity and rail and national post office. She was a member of the General Optical Council for ten years, after that Director of the Retail Credit Group and also spent time at the British Retail Consortium. Now ‘retired’, Elizabeth is Chair Camden Borough Liberal Democrats.
Neil Stockley
Neil is a public affairs consultant with experience in the energy, water and telecoms sectors. He is a former Liberal Democrat policy director and member of Federal Policy Committee 2003-8. He has served on numerous policy working groups and chaired the working group that produced Zero Carbon Britain in 2007. Neil has also worked as executive assistant to former New Zealand Prime Minister David Lange.
