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Jonathan Harmsworth, 4th Viscount Rothermere

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The Right Honourable
The Viscount Rothermere
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
as a hereditary peer
1 September 1998 – 11 November 1999
Preceded byThe 3rd Viscount Rothermere
Succeeded bySeat abolished [a] 
Personal details
Born
Jonathan Harold Esmond Vere Harmsworth

(1967-12-03) 3 December 1967 (age 57)
NationalityBritish
Spouse
Claudia Caroline Clemence
​
​
(m. 1993)​
Children6
Parents
EducationGordonstoun School
Alma materDuke University
OccupationPublisher

Jonathan Harold Esmond Vere Harmsworth, 4th Viscount Rothermere (born 3 December 1967), is a British peer and owner of a newspaper and media empire founded by his great-grandfather Harold Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Rothermere. He is the chairman and controlling shareholder of the Daily Mail and General Trust, formerly "Associated Newspapers", a media conglomerate which includes the Daily Mail.

Early life and career

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Lord Rothermere was educated at Gordonstoun School and Duke University.[1]

Harmsworth held various positions in Associated Newspapers and was managing director of the Evening Standard, when the sudden death of his father in 1998 resulted in his becoming the controlling shareholder[2] and chairman of Associated and of its parent Daily Mail and General Trust just before his 31st birthday. One change he has instituted since becoming chairman is requiring directors to retire at age 75.

He has non-domicile (non-dom) tax status and owns his media businesses through a complex structure of offshore holdings and trusts.[3]

According to the International Business Times:

The Daily Mail owner did not deny claiming tax concessions as "non-dom", though he insisted this was because his father had lived in France. Lord Rothermere acquired France as his "domicile of birth" upon his birth as his father acquired a French "domicile of choice" by becoming a tax exile in Paris.[4]

In 2013, Private Eye reported that the non-dom status could be in doubt because of his stately home, Ferne House in Wiltshire, and status as a Freeman of the City of London.[3]

He was a supporter of the then Conservative Party leader David Cameron.[5]

He ranked fourth in the Publishing, Advertising, and PR section of the Sunday Times Rich List of 2013 with an estimated wealth of £720 million.[6] In April 2015, The Sunday Times estimated his net worth at £1 billion.[7]

The BBC's Newsnight programme at the end of January 2017 reported that David Cameron, when Prime Minister, had approached Lord Rothermere to sack Eurosceptic Paul Dacre, the editor of the Daily Mail in the run up to the 2016 EU membership referendum.[8] A representative of Lord Rothermere refused to confirm or deny the story, although a spokesman for Cameron confirmed that he had tried to persuade both Dacre and Rothermere over the vote. Rothermere's representative told the media: "Over the years, Lord Rothermere has been leant on by more than one prime minister to remove Associated Newspapers' editors but, as he told Lord Justice Leveson on oath, he does not interfere with the editorial policies of his papers".[9]

Lord Rothermere chairs the Imperial War Museum foundation, following the tradition set by his great grandfather, the first Viscount.[10]

Personal life

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Rothermere married Claudia DeVriese, daughter of Terence J. Clemence, on 15 July 1993.[11] They have five children:[citation needed]

  • Vere Richard Jonathan Harold (born November 1994)[12]
  • Eleanor Patricia Margaret (born November 1996)[13]
  • Theodora Mairi Ferne (born July 2001)[14]
  • Iris Geraldine Lilian (born 2004)
  • Alfred Northcliffe St. John (born 2010)

In 2002, The Guardian reported that Rothermere had fathered at least one more child prior to his marriage.[15] Rothermere confirmed this in his testimony to the Leveson Inquiry.[16]

Arms

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Coat of arms of Jonathan Harmsworth, 4th Viscount Rothermere
Coronet
A Coronet of a Viscount
Crest
Between two Ostrich Feathers Or a Cubit Arm erect proper the hand grasping a Roll of Paper Or
Escutcheon
Azure two Scrolls of Paper in saltire Or banded in the centre Gules between four Bees volant of the second
Supporters
On either side a Gladiator fully habited and accoutred the dexter holding in the exterior hand a Sword and the sinister holding on the exterior arm a Shield all proper each charged on the breast with a Fountain
Motto
Bene Qui Sedulo (He who acts diligently acts well)

Notes

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  1. ^ Pursuant to the House of Lords Act 1999.

References

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  1. ^ Greenslade, Roy (22 July 2002). "Seconds out, round two". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  2. ^ "Rothermere: 'DMGT remains committed to journalism'". Press Gazette. 21 January 2009. Archived from the original on 7 September 2012.
  3. ^ a b "Rothermere's patriot games". Street of Shame. Private Eye. 18 October 2013. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013.
  4. ^ "How much is Daily Mail owner Lord Rothermere worth?". International Business Times UK. 10 July 2017.
  5. ^ Vervier, Catherine (20 July 2008). "The end of the affair: Dacre moves towards Cameron". The Independent. Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2013.
  6. ^ Sweney, Mark (19 April 2013). "Barclay brothers named richest media figures in UK with £2.3bn fortune". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 5 November 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2013.
  7. ^ "Sunday Times Rich List". The Sunday Times. No. 34. 26 April 2014.
  8. ^ Ponsford, Dominic (1 February 2017). "BBC: David Cameron tried to get Paul Dacre sacked as Daily Mail editor because of his Eurosceptic stance". Press Gazette. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  9. ^ Walker, Peter (1 February 2017). "David Cameron 'asked Daily Mail owner to sack Paul Dacre over Brexit'". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  10. ^ "Plaque - Harmsworth - IWM". London Remembers.
  11. ^ General Register Office of England and Wales, Marriages, September quarter 1993, Westminster, Vol. 15, p. 1798.
  12. ^ General Register Office of England and Wales, Births, Register number E60C, Entry number 038, Westminster.
  13. ^ General Register Office of England and Wales, Births, Register number A65C, Entry number 255, Westminster.
  14. ^ General Register Office of England and Wales, Births, Register number C95C, Entry number 140, Westminster.
  15. ^ Roy Greenslade (22 July 2002). "Seconds out, round two". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 October 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2013.
  16. ^ "Statement by Lord Justice Leveson". Archived from the original on 22 January 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2014. He seemed to think the fact that I have an illegitimate son is of some concern. In fact, my son -- I'm very proud of my son, he's a member of my family, we go on holiday together and my children are very proud to call him their brother, so I don't make a secret of it and frankly the idea that I'm offended by it is slightly offensive.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
[edit]
Peerage of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Viscount Rothermere
1998–present
Member of the House of Lords
(1998–1999) 		Incumbent
Heir apparent:
Hon. Vere Harmsworth
Baron Rothermere
1998–present
Baronetage of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Baronet
of Horsey
1998–present 		Incumbent
Heir apparent:
Hon. Vere Harmsworth
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