Background
Deighton was born in Carshalton, Surrey on 18 January 1956.
Deighton was born in Carshalton, Surrey on 18 January 1956.
He was educated at Wallington County Grammar School before going on to Trinity College, Cambridge, graduating in 1978 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics.
Deighton is a former investment banker who previously served as Chief Executive of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), the organisation responsible for planning the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. Deighton began his career at Bank of America and moved on to Security Pacific National Bank, where he specialised in corporate banking. In 1983, he joined investment bank Goldman Sachs, initially based in London.
He spent two years at their New York office from 1994, where he was joint Head of Controllers.
In 1996 he returned to London, where he was promoted to Head of European Operations and became a partner in the firm. In 2000 he became their Chief Operating Officer for Europe.
Deighton was appointed Chief Executive Officer of LOCOG after applying to an advertisement in The Economist. His appointment was announced on 19 December 2005.
Deighton, a sports enthusiast, commented that it was "the only job I would have considered leaving Goldman Sachs for".
He has been credited with contributing to the success of the London Olympics. Deighton received the Olympic Order from Count Jacques Rogge in 2012. In September 2012 Deighton was appointed by Prime Minister David Cameron a junior minister in Her Majesty Government as Commercial Secretary to the Treasury, with effect from January 2013.
The announcement stated that he would lead on infrastructure and economic delivery, with responsibility for implementing the Government"s National Infrastructure Plan and supporting the Culture Secretary with the 2012 Olympics legacy.
The delay in his taking up the appointment was necessary to allow him to complete his duties at LOCOG. To make him accountable to Parliament, he was created a life peer on 1 November 2012 as Baron Deighton, of Carshalton in the County of Surrey, and introduced in the House of Lords the same day. Deighton was succeeded as Commercial Secretary to the Treasury by Jim O"Neill in May 2015.