Toby Harris, Baron Harris of Haringey
Jonathan Toby Harris, Baron Harris of Haringey ( born October 11, 1953) is a British politician and life peer in the House of Lords for the Labour Party.
Life and work
He went to Haberdashers ' Aske 's Boys ' School and Trinity College, Cambridge, and was President of the Cambridge Union Society. At Cambridge he was a member of the Cambridge University Liberal Club.
He was a town councilor and head of Haringey Borough Council and Chairman of the Association of London Government. It was founded in 1988 as Baron Harris of Haringey, of Hornsey in the London Borough of Haringey a Life Peer. He spent 24 years in Haringey council and finished this work in 2002, two years after he was elected to the London Assembly for Brent and Harrow 2000.
As head of Haringey Council, he had the task to deal with an increase in cost of several million pounds, which had occurred under the direction of Bernie Grant in the restoration of the Alexandra Palace, whose Trust the Council acts on behalf of the people of London. He has 1991, the Attorney - General decision does not accept that the politically embarrassing overspending were illegal and therefore not of the Foundation may be billed. But he was of the opinion that the foundation of the Council, including compound interest owed 30 million pounds, and tried the whole palace for sale, an approach being pursued by his successors as before, although the High Court under the 2007 tape.
One of the criticisms during his tenure were the high expenses that he approved his counterparts. Over one years Cllr Harris was more than £ 24,000, including more than 15,000 pounds for taxi journeys from. The auditor admitted that it was not incorrect, but criticized that due to the existing system, the guide members never received bills for minor expenses and so never checked what was provided to the Council in the bill.
He was the leader of the Labour Group in the London Assembly, until he lost his seat in the election of 2004. He was from 2000 to 2004 the first chairman of the Metropolitan Police Authority at a time when Police Community Support Officers and neighborhood were introduced. He now represents the Home Secretary in the Metropolitan Police Authority and checks their work regarding terrorism and security.
He advises KPMG, and Transport for London and other public and private organizations. He is Chairman of Freedom a British charity organization that educates about forced marriages and violence due to misunderstood concepts of honor. He was from 1987 to 1998 director of the Association of Community Health Councils for England and Wales. He is Chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Policing and Treasurer of the Parliamentary Information Technology Committee. He is a member of the House of Lords Select Committee, which deals with personal Internet security. In the House of Lords, he specializes in police matters, local governments as well as technology and health issues.