Lord Patten Named as International Advisor
2009.9.24
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The Japan Art Association is pleased to announce that Chris Patten, Lord Patten of Barnes, has taken on the role of International Advisor of Praemium Imperiale from September 2009. Lord Patten has succeeded the late Sir Edward Heath in this role and will preside over a British nomination committee, recommending candidates for the Praemium Imperiale Awards from 2010 onwards.
Lord Patten of Barnes, Christopher Francis Patten (b. 12th May 1944), became a Member of Parliament in 1979, then cabinet minister and Chairman of the Conservative Party. In 1992 he accepted the post of British Governor of Hong Kong, a post that came to an end when Britain handed Hong Kong back to China in July 1997. From 2000 to 2004 he served as one of Britain's two members of the European Commission. After leaving that post, he returned to the UK and was made a peer in 2005. He is currently the Chancellor of the University of Oxford.