Joseph Pilling

Sir Joseph Grant Pilling, KCB (born 8 July 1945)^[1] is a retired British civil servant, currently serving on the boards of the Koestler Trust and Macmillan Cancer Support.^[2]

He was educated at Rochdale Grammar School, King's College London and Harvard University.

Pilling served as the Director-General of the Prison Service from 1991 to 1993, and then Director of Resources and Services in the Department of Health, before being appointed as Permanent Secretary of the Northern Ireland Office in 1997, where he served until 2005 when he retired.^[3] But not for too long: in 2009 he accepted appointment by the Home Secretary as the UK's first and only Identity Commissioner,^[4] a role having independent oversight of the National Identity Service government database (previously known as National Identity Scheme) and its controversial mission of recording, cataloguing and processing the personal details of everyone in the UK. He took office on 1 October 2009.^[5]

In 2012 and 2013, Pilling chaired the House of Bishops of the Church of England Working Group on Human Sexuality. The group was commissioned by the House of Bishops in January 2012. It was composed of four bishops and was chaired by Pilling. In November 2013, the group submitted its report to the archbishops of Canterbury and York who published it. The archbishops recognised Pilling's comment that "disagreements have been explored in the warmth of a shared faith".^[6]

He is married to Ann, Lady Pilling, an author, and was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 2001 Birthday Honours, having previously been a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB).^[1] He is a member of the Athenaeum Club.

Offices held[]

Government offices
Preceded by Unknown	Director-General, HM Prison Service, Home Office 1991–1993	Succeeded by Unknown
Preceded by Unknown	Director of Resources and Services, Department of Health 1993–1997	Succeeded by Unknown
Preceded by Unknown	Permanent Secretary, Northern Ireland Office 1997–2005	Succeeded by Sir Jonathan Phillips
Preceded by None	Commissioner, or Identity Commissioner, National Identity Service 2009–2011	Succeeded by Nobody, the position was abolished because of popular opposition

References[]

^ ^a ^b "No. 56237". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 June 2001. p. 2.
^ Director Check. "Sir Joseph Grant Pilling". Retrieved 23 December 2011.
^ Northern Ireland Office (23 September 2005). "Autumn Performance Report 2005". Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2011.
^ Travis, Alan. The Guardian. 14 September 20098. "Commissioner appointed to oversee ID cards" https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/libertycentral/2009/sep/14/identity-cards-identity-commissioner
^ Home Office Website 14 Sep 2009 Archived 7 December 2009 at the UK Government Web Archive
^ Pilling Report Published.

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[Gazette-1] "No. 56237". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 June 2001. p. 2.

[2] Director Check. "Sir Joseph Grant Pilling". Retrieved 23 December 2011.

[3] Northern Ireland Office (23 September 2005). "Autumn Performance Report 2005". Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2011.

[4] Travis, Alan. The Guardian. 14 September 20098. "Commissioner appointed to oversee ID cards" https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/libertycentral/2009/sep/14/identity-cards-identity-commissioner

[5] Home Office Website 14 Sep 2009 Archived 7 December 2009 at the UK Government Web Archive

[6] Pilling Report Published.

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