Kenneth Donald John Macdonald, Baron Macdonald of River Glaven, was born on 4 January 1953 and is a British lawyer and politician who served as Director of Public Prosecutions of England and Wales from 2003 to 2008.
17 Facts About Ken Macdonald
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Ken Macdonald was previously a recorder and defence barrister.
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Ken Macdonald is a life peer in the House of Lords, where he sits as a crossbencher and was previously a Liberal Democrat.
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Ken Macdonald was Warden of Wadham College, Oxford until 2021.
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Kenneth Donald John Macdonald was born on 4 January 1953 in Windsor.
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Ken Macdonald was educated at Bishop Wordsworth's School in Salisbury, Wiltshire before studying Philosophy, Politics and Economics at St Edmund Hall, Oxford from 1971 to 1974.
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Ken Macdonald was on the defence team for the Matrix Churchill trial.
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Ken Macdonald's predecessor dismissed the relevance of the drugs offence and a report in The Independent found support for his appointment from within the legal system.
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Ken Macdonald was prominent in criticising government attempts to extend pre-charge detention to 42 days, arguing that due process protections should not be undermined and that the reform was unnecessary.
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Ken Macdonald was awarded a knighthood in the 2007 New Year Honours.
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Ken Macdonald retired as DPP on 31 October 2008, returning to private practice at Matrix Chambers and becoming a regular contributor to The Times, where he writes on law, security and politics.
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Ken Macdonald was succeeded in the office by future Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
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On 14 December 2009, Ken Macdonald wrote an article in The Times about the Chilcot Inquiry into the 2003 Iraq War.
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On 28 May 2010, Downing Street announced that Ken Macdonald would be made a Liberal Democrat life peer in the 2010 Dissolution Honours List, which was gazetted on 15 June.
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On 13 July 2010, Theresa May, the Home Secretary, announced to Parliament that she had invited Ken Macdonald to oversee a government review of counter terrorism and security powers, to ensure that legislative measures in place were proportionate and consistent with the rule of law.
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In January 2011, it was announced that Ken Macdonald was to succeed the late Lord Bingham of Cornhill as the chair of Reprieve, the leading international anti-death penalty and prisoners' rights organisation.
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Ken Macdonald publicly criticised the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015 in February 2016, saying it was a threat to freedom of academic expression and research.