PM appoints new Deputy Chair to the Security Vetting Appeals Panel
Sir John Saunders appointed as Deputy Chair of the Security Vetting Appeals Panel.
The Prime Minister has appointed Sir John Saunders as Deputy Chair of the Security Vetting Appeals Panel for a four-year term starting 8 September 2026.
Called to the Bar in 1972, Sir John specialised in criminal and licensing law and took silk in 1991. He became Recorder of Birmingham in 2004 and a High Court Judge in 2007, serving as Presiding Judge of the South Eastern Circuit and managing the terrorist case list (2014–2016) before retiring from full-time judicial duties in 2016.
During his career on the bench, he presided over high-profile trials, including parliamentary expenses and phone hacking cases, alongside numerous terrorism trials. Since 2016, he has served as a Deputy High Court Judge in the Court of Appeal Criminal Division, a Commissioner in Jersey, and President of the Court of Appeal for St Helena and the Falkland Islands.
He has also delivered judicial training on terrorist trials and criminal law across Africa, Trinidad, Mexico, and Europe.
Sir John served as Vice Chairman of the Parole Board of England and Wales (2016–2020) and was a Visiting Fellow at Magdalen College, Oxford (2016–2017) researching criminal law.