John Barber

From 1995 until he retired at the end of April 2003 John Barber was the Director of Technology Economics, Statistics and Evaluation (TESE) in the Innovation Group at the UK Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).  He supervised an interdisciplinary team containing economists, statisticians and staff with a scientific or technological background with responsibility for Economic and Statistical advice on Science, Technology and Innovation policies and ex ante appraisal and ex post evaluation of innovation and business best practice support schemes. From 1998 to 2003 John was also Chairman of the OECD Committee on Scientific and Technological Policy. Prior to 1995 he work in a variety of economists posts in the DTI, UK Treasury, Department of Energy and Ministry of Defence.

John is now working part time in DTI assisting with the formulation of UK innovation policy and has been acting as a consultant to the Directorate of Science, Technology and Industry of the OECD. He is a visiting fellow at the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU) at Sussex University.

John was born in 1943. He has degrees in economics from the University of Cambridge and the London School of Economics and has a diploma from the Henley Business School. John is married with two sons and lives in South West London.