He deals with the issues of racism, sexism and political correctness, and provides a rare insight into the workings of the judiciary, royalty and the establishment. Keith Hellawell QPM (born 18 May 1942) is a British retired police officer, [1] former UK Government drugs-czar, ex-chairman of Sports Direct plc.

He was required to give evidence to the House of Commons Select Committee on Scottish Affairs on 25 March 2015 in relation to alleged poor employment practices at the company – particularly around its widespread use of 'zero-hours contracts' and the dismissal by its wholly owned subsidiary, USC, of 200 warehouse staff in Scotland with only 15 minutes' notice. So Wednesday’s annual shareholder meeting at embattled retailer Sports Direct – where Hellawell will be bracing himself for investors to vote on his future as the company’s chairman – merely appears like the continuation of a trend. His mother, a club dancer, was always bringing home different men, and would tie him to the table-leg to keep him quiet. We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you.He fell out with his Whitehall bosses and, while he had already resigned, publicly announced his departure in 2002 during an interview on Radio Four’s Today programme. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. As a teenager he went to work in the coal mines, before joining the police force at 20, where he was promoted to the rank of sergeant in 1965 and inspector in 1966.

The tough life of one of Britain’s most senior policemen, who rose through the ranks from poverty and deprivation to the highest office, and went on to become Blair’s ‘Drug Czar’. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance. He later became Chief Constable of Cleveland police and in 1993 became Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police.He was appointed chairman of Goldshield in 2006, a pharmaceuticals business that was facing a criminal prosecution for colluding to overcharge the NHS for generic drugs. Hellawell resigned from his position as Sports Direct chairman in September 2018, on the day of the company's AGM. In September 2015, Hellawell faced pressure to remove him as chairman of the company by minority shareholders.