Lord Carlile, the Government’s Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation and the President of the Howard League for Penal Reform, will join the panel in our Open Forum at this year’s Conference.

A former Head of Chambers at 9-12 Bell Yard, Lord Carlile is a practising barrister who was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1984, a Recorder of the Crown Court in 1986, and a Deputy High Court Judge and Honorary Recorder of the City of Hereford in 1996.

Lord Carlile’s recent high-profile cases have included acting as defence counsel to Paul Burrell (Diana, Princess of Wales’ butler) and in the Morecambe Bay Cocklers case.

Formerly a Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire from 1983-1997, he was created a life peer in 1999 as Baron Carlile of Berriew in the County of Powys and is a Liberal Democrat member of the House of Lords. Lord Carlile was the first Member of Parliament to campaign for the rights of transsexuals. His posts in the House of Lords include Liberal Democrat spokesman for Mental Health and Disability, the Vice-Chairmanship of the all-party War Crimes Group and the Vice-Chairmanship of the all-party British Victims of Terror Group.

In 2001 he was appointed the Government’s Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation and in 2006 he became the President of the Howard League for Penal Reform, the same year in which he chaired an Inquiry into the treatment of children in prisons, secure training centres and secure children’s homes.

Lord Carlile is also a Fellow of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies and a Council member of JUSTICE.