Meet the Speaker of the House of Commons

Sir Lindsay Hoyle was elected as Speaker on 4th November 2019 and is the 158^th Speaker of the House of Commons.

Sir Lindsay was the youngest councillor to serve Chorley in Lancashire, in the North-West of England, when elected in 1980 at the age of 22. He became Deputy Leader of Chorley Council and then served as Mayor of Chorley from 1997 to 1998.

He was first elected as the Member of Parliament for the Labour Party for Chorley in 1997, with a majority of 9,870. On 8 June 2010, Sir Lindsay was elected Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Ways and Means, the first time this appointment was made by ballot of MPs rather than nomination by the Leader of the House. He has also served on several Committees during his time in the House of Commons including the Business and Enterprise Committee (2008-9), the Trade and Industry Committee (1998-2007) and the European Scrutiny Committee (2005-10).

During his Speakership, Sir has Lindsay presided over the proceedings of the Virtual Chamber, implemented in weeks following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and has worked to strengthen the House of Commons’ global ties – including welcoming Speaker Pelosi and other G7 Speakers to his constituency of Chorley.

Looking beyond the House of Commons, in 2020, Sir Lindsay was appointed Chancellor of the University of Gibraltar. As Honorary Colonel of 3 Medical Regiment, Sir Lindsay is a keen supporter of and advocate for the Armed Forces. Sir Lindsay is now the President of the Rugby Football League, a sport he has been a supporter of for many years.

Sir Lindsay is married to Catherine and has one daughter and two grandchildren. An animal lover, he is the owner of a menagerie of pets and a strong support of animal conservation efforts.

PAUL J. WRIGHT, ESQ. is an English Barrister and California Attorney, who is extensively consulted on legal and business matters and has been a speaker in a number of distinguished international forums. He has organized, chaired or co-chaired many prestigious events and conferences.

In 1990, he formed Paul J. Wright & Associates, a law firm based in Malibu, California, specializing in domestic and international transactional and litigation matters. He has successfully represented many companies and individuals in the US and UK in the business and entertainment communities, from the negotiation of contracts and business investments to the protection of intellectual property rights, to the successful prosecution of many complex business disputes.

In 2003, Paul founded the International Mediation and Arbitration Center (IMAC), and served as a panel member and a mediator of domestic and international legal disputes. In 2009, he founded InternationalEsq and formed an ongoing joint venture with Daily Variety to address cutting edge international legal developments. Seminars included “Celebrity Justice & Media Globalization: Why Hollywood Celebrities Flock to the UK Courts” and “The Music Industry’s Response to Piracy: Intervention or Innovation?”

In 2011, Paul was appointed to the Board of the Variety Foundation. He served as its General Counsel and co-chaired the annual Variety Venture Capital New Media Summits (2011-2012). In 2011, he co-chaired the “Variety Venture Capital and New Media Summit,” which took place in Beverly Hills and was attended by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

In addition to serving as BABCLA President (2 terms) and Chair, Paul is on the Board of Britweek and serves as its General Counsel. In 2011, he co-chaired the BritWeek Gala Dinner, honoring Timothy J. Leiweke, then President & CEO of the Anschutz Entertainment Group Worldwide, and in 2012 he co-chaired the same Dinner, honoring Piers Morgan, CNN Presenter and Host.

In 2013, Paul J. Wright, Esq. was named in the Queen’s New Year Honours List, and awarded the OBE in recognition of his services to British Business interests in the USA.