Leonard Warren Cook

Leonard Warren Cook
National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales

Position:        National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales
Age:             55 years (born in Dunedin, New Zealand)
Qualifications:      BA (Hons) Mathematics/Statistics, University of Otago


Employment history:

Len Cook became National Statistician from 25 May 2000, including Registrar-General of England and Wales.  He was New Zealand Government Statistician from 1992 to 2000.    After joining the New Zealand Department of Statistics in 1971, he was appointed variously as Assistant Government Statistician in 1982, and Deputy Government Statistician in 1986.  Len Cook was a member of the Royal Commission on Social Policy in New Zealand in 1987/88, and a member of the secretariat of the Prime Minister's Task Force on Tax Reform in 1981/82.

Len Cook has a particular interest in social policy, demography, statistical methodology, and the application of information technology in statistical systems.  He is interested in the promotion of research methodology in public policy analysis and decision-making, with past interests particularly in retirement provision and taxation policies. 


Professional and other involvement

He is a member of the Royal Statistical Society, the International Association of Survey Statisticians (IASS), the International Association of Official Statisticians (IAOS) and the International Statistics Institute.   He is a long-standing member of the New Zealand Statistical Association, the New Zealand Association of Economists, and the New Zealand Population Association.   He has been a regular contributor of invited papers of these bodies.

Past activity when in New Zealand, included being chair of the Chief Executives'  information technology steering committee, chair of the board of NZ Government Online, and a member of the Equal Employment Opportunities Trust Board.

Is a Visiting Fellow at Nuffield College,  Oxford, and Visiting Professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. 


Recreational interests:
Recreational interests include fly-fishing, hiking, travel.