He became the first Indian-born Deputy Speaker of the House of Lords in 2008 and was also appointed to the Privy Council in 2009.
From 2000 to 2008, he was the member of the London Development Agency. He chaired the London Development Agency Olympics Delivery Committee between 2005 to 2008, which was responsible for delivering the land and infrastructure for the London 2012 Olympic Games on time and on budget.
