Fourth Secretary General takes office

Peter Smithers, the Council of Europe’s fourth Secretary General, had already lived a colourful life before his election to the British parliament as a Conservative MP and his subsequent membership of the British delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly. A close friend of author Ian Fleming, he provided the inspiration for Fleming’s most famous character, James Bond, and once received a gift from his novelist friend of a pistol disguised as a pen. He was a keen botanist who kept over two thousand species of cactus which he brought with him to Strasbourg on his appointment to the Council of Europe. He also gave the chauffeurs a welcome break, piloting his own boat to the Council headquarters every day.

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