Chancellor appointed to Privy Council

His full title is now The Rt Hon Lord Paul of Marylebone.

Lord Paul, founder of Caparo, is the first Asian to hold the office of deputy speaker of the House of Lords and only the second Indian-born Asian to be appointed to the Privy Council.

He said he felt “honoured, privileged and grateful” for the honour.

A Privy Councillor must be a British subject and takes an oath of allegiance to the sovereign.  

The modern Privy Council consists of some 500 people who hold or have held high legal or political offices including all members of the cabinet and ministers of cabinet rank, together with the archbishops of Canterbury and York, the speaker of the House of Commons, a number of Commonwealth politicians, and British ambassadors. 

The full Privy Council now meets to sign the proclamation of a new sovereign and when a sovereign announces his or her intention to marry.There are regular monthly meetings of the Queen and a small number of relevant ministers to adopt orders in council.

Lord (Swraj) Paul, Chairman of Caparo Group, is a leading businessman and an active member of the House of Lords. Born in Jalandhar, India in 1931, he was educated at Punjab University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA.

He has been the University of Wolverhampton’s Chancellor since 1998.