Anthony Lester, Baron Lester of Herne Hill

Anthony Paul Lester, Baron Lester of Herne Hill, QC (né Raab; 3 July 1936 – 8 August 2020) was a British barrister and member of the House of Lords. He was at different times a member of the Labour Party, Social Democratic Party and the Liberal Democrats. Lester was best known for his influence on race relations legislation in the United Kingdom and as a founder-member of groups such as the Institute of Race Relations, the Campaign Against Racial Discrimination and the Runnymede Trust. Lester was also a prominent figure in promoting birth control and abortion through the Family Planning Association, particularly in Northern Ireland.

Early life and education Lester was born Anthony Paul Raab to a Jewish family in London in 1936. His father immigrated to England from Hungary. In 1987, he was appointed as a recorder and was in office until 1993. As a barrister he worked from 2 Hare Court, latterly named Blackstone Chambers. In 1968, he co-founded the Runnymede Trust think-tank with Jim Rose. He was chairman of the Runnymede Trust from 1991 to 1993.

Special adviser A member of the Labour Party who was the party's candidate in Worthing in 1966, Lester was a special adviser to Roy Jenkins at the Home Office in the 1970s, and moved with Jenkins from Labour to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in 1981. Lester was a member of the Joint Committee on Human Rights.

Family Planning Association Lester was a patron of the Family Planning Association, previously called the National Birth Control Committee.

Peerage Lester's peerage was announced on 13 August 1993. He was raised to the peerage as Baron Lester of Herne Hill, of Herne Hill in the London Borough of Southwark, on 13 October 1993. He sat in the Lords as a Liberal Democrat until February 2018, when an allegation of sexual misconduct was made.

On 12 November 2018, the House of Lords Committee for Privileges and Conduct made a recommendation that he be suspended from the House of Lords until June 2022 as a result of a complaint of sexual harassment from Jasvinder Sanghera. On 15 November 2018, by a vote of 101–78, the House of Lords referred the matter back to the Committee for Privileges and Conduct on the ground that the Commissioner for Standards had failed to act in accordance with the principles of natural justice and fairness. After the matter was remitted to the committee, the Senior Deputy Speaker (the Chairman of the committee) expressed his disappointment at the decision of the House, saying that the Commissioner had "followed the processes as agreed by the House and that have not been questioned before today." The report of the Commissioner for Standards had responded to various criticisms of the fairness of the process. He said that he lacked the strength or health to continue, after the Committee disagreed with the House's conclusion regarding the fairness of the process and renewed the recommendation of his suspension until June 2022. Notwithstanding his retirement, the House subsequently confirmed the committee's recommendation.

In April 2019, he joined The Independent Group.

Honours Lester was elected an international member of the American Philosophical Society in 2003.

Collections University College London holds Lester's archive, which was donated to the institution by his daughter Maya. The collection contains correspondence, written answers from the House of Lords from questions put to them by Lester, and writings.

Lester died from heart disease at his home in London on 8 August 2020, at the age of 84.