Formerly Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills and President of the Board of Trade in the Coalition government (2010-15). Leader of the Liberal Democrat Party (2017-19) and MP for Twickenham (elected 1997; retired 2019). Before joining the Lib Dems in 1981 was a Glasgow (Labour) City Councillor and Special Adviser to Rt Hon John Smith.
Currently Visiting Professor in Practice at the LSE and Visiting Professor at Nottingham and Shenzhen universities. Also, Distinguished Fellow at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI Global). Honorary Fellow Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.
Chair of Element 2, the Hydrogen infrastructure company and of the eFreight 2030 consortium.
Before becoming MP was Chief Economist at Shell; Head of International Economics, Chatham House; Special Adviser to the Commonwealth Secretary General; seconded to the Diplomatic Service working on Latin America; Head of Research at ODI; Finance Officer; Kenya Treasury.
He is a graduate of Cambridge University (where he was also President of the Union) and Glasgow University (PhD). And has an honorary doctorate at Kingston University
He has several books including Eclipsing the West: China, India and forging the new international order (2025); The Chinese Conundrum (2022); How to be a Politician (2022); Partnership and Politics in a Divided Decade (2021); Money and Power (2021); Open Arms (2017); After the Storm (2015); The Storm (2009); Free Radical (2009); Globalisation and Global Governance (1999); Commerce of Culture (1985); Protectionism and In