Professor Tony DOWNES has recently been appointed Chair of Trustees at the Commonwealth Pharmacists Association. He is also Chair of Trustees for a small local Citizens Advice charity.
Immediately before retiring, in 2018, he was Provost and Chief Executive Officer of the University of Reading Malaysia; and is a Professor of Law.

He worked at the University of Reading from 1990 and was previously Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University and has twice served as Acting Vice- Chancellor. As Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Downes had responsibility for planning and operational issues throughout the University.

In 2008 he first initiated and then chaired the Reading- Malaysia project, and so was been a regular visitor to the region from that time. He also oversaw the construction of new halls of residence for 2,000
students; and the integration of Henley Business School into the University.

Educated at the Universities of Oxford and Aix-en-Provence, he began his career as a Lecturer in Law at the University of Durham and as Visiting Professor at the University of Iowa before joining the University of Reading as Reader in European Community Law in 1990. During that time he held visiting teaching positions in France, Germany and Hungary. Subsequently he held a number of senior posts within the University, including Dean of Faculty and Pro-Vice-Chancellor. He was appointed Provost and Chief Executive Officer of the University of Reading Malaysia in 2012. He and his wife live in north Hampshire, where they enjoy walking, tennis and garden-taming.