David Omand
Sir David Bruce Omand GCB (born 15 April 1947[1]) is a former senior British civil servant who served as the Director of the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) from 1996 to 1997. He serves as a Commissioner for the Global Commission on Internet Governance.[2]
Background
He was born on 15 April 1947. His father, Bruce, was a Justice of the Peace.[3] Omand was educated at Glasgow Academy and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge,[1] receiving an economics degree.
Career
He began his career with the Government Communications Headquarters, more commonly known as GCHQ.[4] After working for the Ministry of Defence for a number of years, Oman was appointed Director of GCHQ from 1996 to 1997. His next post was Permanent Secretary at the Home Office.
In the 2000 New Year Honours, Omand was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB).[5] In 2002 he became the first Permanent Secretary and Security and Intelligence Co-ordinator in the Cabinet Office. Omand was among those who decided that David Kelly should be pursued for talking to the media about the Government's dossier on Iraq's alleged WMD.[6] Omand and Sir Kevin Tebbit, then permanent secretary at the Ministry of Defence, recommended to Jack Straw and Tony Blair that John Scarlett head MI6.[6]
In the 2004 Queen's Birthday Honours, Omand was promoted to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB).[7] He retired from the Cabinet Office in April 2005.
In 2007, he obtained Maths and Physics degrees from Open University.[3]
On 20 January 2010, Omand gave evidence to the Iraq Inquiry.[8]
In 2009 he was asked by the Home Secretary, Alan Johnson, to carry out a review into the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs to "satisfy ministers" that the council is "discharging the functions" that it is supposed to.[9]
In 2013 he defended the closeness of Britain's intelligence relationship with the US, telling BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We have the brains. They have the money. It's a collaboration that's worked very well."[10]
Links with academia
Omand is currently a visiting professor at King's College London and is a vice-president of the Royal United Services Institute.[11]
Personal life
Omand was married in 1971, and has two children. He is a member of the Reform Club. He served a four-year term on the board of the Natural History Museum, London, starting in 2006. He remains a trustee.[3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "OMAND, Sir David Bruce (15 April 1947 - )", in Debrett's People of Today, 2004
- ↑ https://www.ourinternet.org/#commission
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Aldrich, David, GCHQ, Harper Press, 2010, ISBN 978-0-00-727847-3, p.495
- ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 55710. p. 3. 31 December 1999. Retrieved 2008-02-26.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 57315. p. 2. 12 June 2004. Retrieved 2008-02-26.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Alan Johnson orders swift review of drugs advice body
- ↑ UK intelligence work defends freedom, say spy chiefs, BBC News 7 November 2013 Last updated at 17:13
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
| Government offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Director of GCHQ July 1996 – December 1997 |
Succeeded by Sir Kevin Tebbit |
| Preceded by | Permanent Secretary of the Home Office 1997–2002 |
Succeeded by Sir John Gieve |
- Pages with broken file links
- Use dmy dates from April 2012
- Use British English from April 2012
- Living people
- 1947 births
- Academics of King's College London
- Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
- Civil servants in the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
- Directors of the Government Communications Headquarters
- Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
- Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
- People educated at Glasgow Academy
- Permanent Secretaries of the Cabinet Office
- Permanent Under-Secretaries of State for the Home Department
