John B Richardson

John joined Fipra as a Special Adviser in 2008. From 1978 to 1996 he occupied various posts  at the European Commission, including EU negotiator for trade in services during the Uruguay Round, and Unit Head, first for relations with the US, then for relations with Japan. In October 1996 he became deputy head of the Commission’s Delegation to the United States in Washington DC and in May 2001 Ambassador and Head of Delegation to the UN in New York. On returning to Brussels, for three years from May 2005 John headed the Task Force, which developed the Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU, which the European Council adopted in December 2007. John is a Senior Adviser with the German Marshall Fund of the United States, a Member of the Board of Trustees of Sail Training International, the Chairman of the Award Committee of the European Sea Ports Organization, and a Member of the Board of the Salzburg Global Seminar. John has masters degrees in Chemistry from the University of Cambridge and Economics from University College London. John spent 4 years as an economist with Unilever, before joining the European Commission to work on environmental policy in 1973. John Richardson is married to the German broadcaster, Irmtraud Richardson, and has three grown daughters. John is fluent in German, English and French.