Roger Jowell

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Professor Roger Jowell is a British social statistician and academic. He was born in South Africa, and was active there in left-wing politics.

"As soon as I graduated from the University of Cape Town in 1964, I came to Britain - initially just to gain a broader perspective on my life. It wasn't that I had to leave, although as President of the Students’ Union I’d been heavily involved in student politics and anti-apartheid activities. At that time students were more or less immune from prosecution. But then things changed, and a few months after I arrived in Britain I got word that many of my close friends had been arrested. I realised then that I couldn’t go back - it wouldn’t have been safe. Once I got my British passport, I was able to go back fairly regularly." [1]

In 1969, Jowell and Gerald Hoinville founded Social & Community Planning Research (SCPR), which is now the London-based National Centre for Social Research, well-known for its British Social Attitudes Surveys.

Jowell is now a professor at City University, London. Previously married to social worker and fellow Camden councillor, Tessa Jowell, who went on to become a minister in Tony Blair's cabinet, he was divorced from her in the 1970's. He has lectured and published widely.