Robbie Douglas-Miller, Baron Douglas-Miller

Robert Peter Douglas-Miller, Baron Douglas-Miller, OBE (born January 1965) is a British landowner and life peer. He served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Biosecurity, Animal Health and Welfare from 2023 to 2024 in the Sunak ministry.

Early life and family

Douglas-Miller was born in January 1965. His family once ran Jenners, a department store in Edinburgh.

Career

Charity

From 2015 to 2022, Douglas-Miller was the chairman of the Atlantic Salmon Trust, which had Prince Charles as its patron and Alister Jack as a board member.

Business

Douglas-Miller is the managing director of Moorfoot Capital Management, which owns farmland in Scotland.

Political

On 1 December 2023, Douglas-Miller was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Biosecurity, Animal Health and Welfare, a junior ministerial office in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, succeeding Lord Benyon in the Sunak ministry. He was created a life peer as Baron Douglas-Miller, of The Hopes in the County of East Lothian, on 15 December, and was introduced to the House of Lords on 18 December.

On 11 December, he announced that legislation would be introduced for the option to issue fixed penalty notices for various animal health and welfare offences, stating "I welcome penalty notices as an additional tool for our partners to use to encourage compliance with the law." On 14 December, legislation for a ban on keeping primates as pets was introduced, with Douglas-Miller saying "we have consistently led the world in raising the bar for animal welfare standards and this legislation is yet another step."

Douglas-Miller made his maiden speech in the House of Lords on 18 January 2024.

Personal life

Douglas-Miller owns more than 4,000 acres (1,600 ha) of land in Scotland. He is married with 3 children. His wife is a granddaughter of Walter Bromley-Davenport.

Honours

Douglas-Miller was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to wildlife conservation in Scotland.

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