James Bethell, 5th Baron Bethell

The Hon. James Nicholas Bethell was educated at the independent, fee-paying Harrow School before going on to study for a Scottish Master of Arts (an undergraduate degree) at the University of Edinburgh.[1]

Bethell worked as a journalist, and then managed the Ministry of Sound nightclub, before founding Westbourne Communications which he sold to Cicero Group after succeeding to his family titles.[2]

He unsuccessfully contested Tooting in 2005, losing to Labour candidate and future Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

Bethell contested the 2009 primary to become the Conservative Party's prospective parliamentary candidate for the constituency of Gosport. He came second behind Caroline Dinenage, who went on to become the Member of Parliament in the 2010 general election.[3]

Bethell entered the House of Lords in July 2018, after successfully contesting a Conservative hereditary peers' by-election.[4]

In July 2019, he was appointed a Lord-in-Waiting and, in March 2020, was appointed as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Innovation at the Department of Health and Social Care.[5][6] As of August 2020 his responsibilities included:[7]

• the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA),
• COVID-19 response:
  • NHS Test and Trace,
  • supply,
  • treatments and vaccines,
  • research into long term health impacts
• Life Sciences
• Medicines
• Research
• Antimicrobial resistance
• Global Health
• International Diplomacy and relations
• Data and Technology
• Rare Diseases
• NHS security management, including cyber security
• Blood and transplants and organ donation

It was reported in November 2020 by the Times of London that Bethell is the Minister for NHS Test and Trace, a novelty formed as part of the Johnson ministry's efforts to control the coronavirus. He "was a surprise appointment in March having chaired Matt Hancock's leadership campaign in 2019 and giving [him] a ₤5,000 donation."[8] He opened himself to charges of "cronyism" published in The Guardian over his selection to an advisory role of lobbyists like George Pascoe-Watson, whose clients include the Boston Consulting Group "which has won several large government contracts during the pandemic."[9]

Bethell is married to Melissa (née Wong), a businesswoman,[10] Lord and Lady Bethell have four children.[11] He succeeded his father Nicholas as Baron Bethell in 2007.

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