The Right Honourable The Lord Sainsbury of Turville FRS |
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David Sainsbury in 2013
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Chancellor of the University of Cambridge | |
Assumed office 16 October 2011 |
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Preceded by | The Duke of Edinburgh |
Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Science & Innovation | |
In office 27 July 1998 – 10 November 2007 |
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Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
Preceded by | John Battle |
Succeeded by | Malcolm Wicks |
Member of the House of Lords | |
Assumed office 3 October 1997 currently on Leave of Absence (since 2013) |
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Nominated by | Tony Blair |
Appointed by | Elizabeth II |
Personal details | |
Born |
David John Sainsbury 24 October 1940 |
Political party | Labour |
Relations | Alan Sainsbury (uncle) |
Parents |
Robert Sainsbury (father) Lisa van den Bergh (mother) |
Alma mater |
King's College, Cambridge Columbia Business School |
Known for | businessperson, politician, philanthropist and peer |
Religion | Anglican |
David John Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Turville, FRS, HonFREng (born 24 October 1940) is a British businessman and politician. From 1992 to 1997, he served as the Chair of Sainsbury's, the supermarket chain established by his great-grandfather John James Sainsbury in 1869.
He was made a life peer in 1997 as a member of the Labour Party, and is on a leave of absence from the House of Lords since 15 July 2013. He served in the government as the Minister for Science and Innovation from 1998 and 2006.
He is a major donor to the University of Cambridge and in 2011 was elected Chancellor of the University of Cambridge.
He is the son of Sir Robert Sainsbury and Lisa van den Bergh. His elder sister was Elizabeth (married name Clark, 19 July 1938 – 14 August 1977) and his younger sisters are Celia and Annabel. He is the nephew of Lord Sainsbury. His cousins are the Conservative peer Lord Sainsbury of Preston Candover, Simon Sainsbury, and former Tory MP Sir Tim Sainsbury. His great-grandparents, John James Sainsbury and Mary Ann Staples, established a grocer's at 173 Drury Lane in 1869 which became the British supermarket chain Sainsbury's.
He attended Eton College before going on to the University of Cambridge, where he earned a degree in History and Psychology at King's College. He then completed an MBA at Columbia Business School in the United States.