PODCAST SERIES

In conversation with Chris Holmes MBE

Lord Holmes of Richmond is one of the few contemporary politicians who knows their technology. Join us in conversation with this UK member of the House of Lords.

20 December 2023 . 00:30:51


Show Notes for Series 03 Episode 52
Chris Holmes (Lord Holmes of Richmond) is Britain’s most successful paralympic swimmer, winning a total of nine golds, five silvers and one bronze. He was also Director of Paralympic Integration, responsible for the organization of the 2012 Paralympic Games in London.

Chris is a passionate advocate for the potential of technology and the benefits of diversity and inclusion. He campaigns for more accessible environments for disabled people and has conducted an independent review for the UK Government that made recommendations on opening up public appointments to disabled people.

In 2017 Chris’s report on ‘Distributed Ledger Technology For Public Good’ (DLT) urged the government to consider blockchain for public use cases. The Electronic Trade Documents Act, which Chris steered into law in 2023, is a fine example of that work coming to fruition. It represents the potential to kickstart mainstream adoption of blockchain systems for the wider digitalisation of trade documents.

In this episode of the Tech Means Business podcast, we talk about Chris’s interests in distributed ledger technology, future legislation that’s due to pass through Parliament in the current sitting, and how the UK can lead the world in data policy, privacy and soverignty.

You can read more about Chris here:
https://chrisholmes.co.uk/

And on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lord-chris-holmes/

About the Electronic Trade Documents Act:
https://chrisholmes.co.uk/news/electronic-trade-documents-act/

Chris’ 2017 Report on DLT for public good:
https://chrisholmes.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Distributed-Ledger-Technologies-for-Public-Good_leadership-collaboration-and-innovation.pdf [pdf] 

Joe Green’s LinkedIn page:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephedwardgreen/