Stephen Parkinson
Kingsley Napley

Who? Stephen Parkinson, 47-year-old senior government barrister on secondment for two years to Kingsley Napley in London. Specialises in public inquiries, regulatory and criminal work.

Why is he is the news? Represents David Westwood, the Chief Constable of Humberside. Mr Westwood was criticised in the Bichard report arising out of the Soham case. Despite the fact that the wide-ranging systemic failures of the force predated Mr Westwood’s appointment in 1999 and were put right by 2002, home secretary David Blunkett concluded that the maintenance of public confidence required his suspension. The Humberside Police Authority disagreed, but was eventually forced to suspend Mr Westwood after Mr Blunkett went to court. Mr Parkinson made a statement on Mr Westwood’s behalf after the court made its order.


Route to the case: Kingsley Napley acts for the Chief Police Officers Staff Association, of which Mr Westwood is a member.


Thoughts on the case: ‘The case is at an interim stage and so it would be inappropriate to comment on it. I have acted in many inquiries, including representing the No10 and Cabinet Office witnesses in the Hutton Inquiry, and Baroness Thatcher, John Major and Michael Heseltine in the BSE Inquiry. I am reminded of the words of Sir Cecil Clothier, who said: “Whenever some great disaster befalls the human race, the instinctive reaction of most people is to seek its cause and try to prevent a recurrence. But behind this civilised response there lies a darker motivation – the urge to lay blame”.’


Dealing with the media: Apart from this case, Mr Parkinson has been quoted in The Times and appeared on the BBC’s ‘Now you’re talking’ debate programme. As a civil servant, he was frequently involved in providing advice on media handling. ‘Keep press statements short, otherwise they will not be quoted in full, and keep them relevant to the news agenda. Don’t try to make too many points: focus on the main issue and stick to that.’