Minister Counsellor: Delegation of the European Union to Australia and New Zealand

RESUME : John RICHARDS

Born 8 March 1952 in Lanark Scotland

Married to Ann - two children: David, 26 and Judith, 23

Schools in India, Scotland and England

Liverpool University (1970/73) with a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) Class 2 (1)

'Bar Finals' at the Council of Legal Education, London

Called to the Bar of England and Wales on 18 July 1974

Member of Gray's Inn, London

Currently, and since August 2006: Head of the Economic, Political and Press Section at the European Union Delegation to Australia and New Zealand in Canberra covering the EC-Australia relationship in trade, economic and political affairs.

From 1974 to 1981 practised as a barrister in civil practice (mainly land law) in chambers at 24 The Ropewalk, Nottingham.

From 1981 to 1983 an official in the European Parliament covering the Legal Affairs Committee.

In 1983 joined the European Commission, first working in the field of company law before moving to work on sectoral trade policy on steel and aluminium and then as Deputy Head of the Textiles Unit in DG Trade. Work involved negotiating and drafting bilateral agreements e.g. on steel trade with Russia and Ukraine, and then on policy on trade in textiles and as negotiator on bilateral textiles agreements, e.g. between the EU and China. EU appointee to the Textiles Monitoring Body in the WTO from 1997 to 2002

From January 2002 to August 2006 Head of the Economic and Trade Section in the European Commission Delegation to Russia in Moscow. Work covered the bilateral EU-Russia trade and economic agenda.