Government appoints interim commissioners to the EHRC
The Minister for Women and Equalities has appointed Ali Harris and Professor Shazia Choudhry as interim commissioners at the EHRC.
- Ali Harris and Professor Shazia Choudhry appointed as interim commissioners at Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).
- They will ensure the EHRC can operate effectively while new commissioners are recruited.
- Appointments will run for 12 months from 1 January 2026.
- Appointments will ensure the EHRC can continue upholding and promoting equality and human rights and safeguarding and enforcing the laws that protect people’s rights to fairness, dignity and respect.
The Minister for Women and Equalities has appointed Ali Harris and Professor Shazia Choudhry as interim commissioners at the EHRC.
Ali Harris is Chief Executive of Equally Ours, a human rights charity. Shazia Choudhry is Professor of Law at the University of Oxford, and the Jeffrey Hackney Tutorial Fellow in Law at Wadham College. Their appointments ensure the EHRC can continue upholding and promoting equality and human rights while recruitment takes place for fixed commissioners.
On 3 November the Minister for Equalities launched a full, open recruitment campaign for at least 4 commissioners. These commissioners will continue to develop the EHRC and support long-term change and improvements to equality and human rights issues. The minister is working with the devolved governments to recruit a Wales and Scotland Commissioner.
Minister for Women and Equalities Bridget Phillipson said:
This government is committed to embedding fairness and equality into the heart of our agenda, and the EHRC has a key part to play in this.
Both Ali Harris and Professor Shazia Choudhry bring a wealth of experience and expertise in equality and human rights, and their appointments will ensure the EHRC can continue their crucial work as Britain’s independent equality and human rights regulator while recruitment is ongoing.
The EHRC is Britain’s equality and human rights regulator. They:
- regulate equality law in England, Scotland and Wales
- uphold human rights in England and Wales
- make their own decisions on enforcement and investigations
The EHRC is an independent non-departmental public body. They are sponsored by the Office for Equality and Opportunity in the Cabinet Office.