Clive Ponting is a British writer and academic.

Formerly a civil servant, Clive Ponting achieved notoriety in 1984, when he admitted having leaked information to Labour MP, Tam Dalyell, about the sinking of the General Belgrano, a key incident in the Falklands War of 1982. He was charged under the Official Secrets Act, and was confidently expected to go to prison. On February 11, 1985, he was acquitted by a jury. The case was a milestone in British legal history.

Ponting currently teaches politics at the University College of Swansea , Wales. He has written numerous books on political history, including a biography of Winston Churchill and an account of the Crimean War.