Sir Richard Marchant Knowles (20 May 1917 – 18 February 2008) was a British politician known for his work in local government in Birmingham.
In 1974 he was elected as an Alderman and moved on to the Policy Committee, of which he was a member for three years until the Labour Party lost power.
He was influential in bringing about the International Convention Centre and Symphony Hall on Broad Street, which were to prove hugely important in the regeneration and reinvention of the city.
Lacking the resources to defend the case, Knowles agreed to pay damages of £1,000 to charity plus Hemming's legal costs.
[citation needed] He was still politically active as a governor of University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust well into his eighties.