Andrew Tyrie endorsed as Chair of the Competition and Markets Authority

• Read the report: Pre-appointment hearing with the Government's preferred candidate for Chair of the Competition Markets Authority

Preferred candidate

The Rt Hon Andrew Tyrie is the Government's preferred candidate for Chair of Competition and Markets Authority. The BEIS Committee's report makes a series of recommendations relating to the appointment and notes the disappointing performance from the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (DBEIS) in its efforts on gender parity in the number of women in senior roles in DBEIS partner organisations.

CMA faces challenges on Big Data and Brexit

Rachel Reeves MP, Chair of the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee, said:

"Andrew's record in Parliament shows he has the competence and independence of mind needed to be an effective Chair of the Competition and Markets Authority.

I wish him every success in this role and in ensuring that the CMA is a champion for consumers and delivers competition which works for all.

The CMA faces big challenges in the coming years, not least in areas such as Big Data and on Brexit, and we look forward to engaging with the CMA in the future on these and other competition issues".

In endorsing Andrew Tyrie for the position, the BEIS Committee's report outlines a number of recommendations to ensure public and parliamentary confidence in the competition and markets regime.

These include recommendations relating to the importance of political impartiality, the need for regulators to ensure they are assertive in fulfilling their responsibilities, and the challenge which Brexit poses for the CMA and the competitions and markets regime.

As part of its preparations for the hearing, the BEIS Committee requested details from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the gender diversity of senior staff in its partner organisations, including the Low Pay Commission, OFGEM, and the Small Business Commissioner. The Department's diversity statistics showed that of the 47 public body chairs appointed by the DBEIS, only four are women.

The department needs to do more to promote women into senior positions

Rachel Reeves MP, Chair of the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee, said:

"To boost equality and ensure that the best talents are being harnessed to deliver success, it is vital that business does much more to promote women into senior positions. DBEIS should be taking a lead on this issue but its own performance is woefully lacking.

From a Department committed to being 'truly inclusive' and 'embedding diversity and inclusion', it is extremely disappointing that they have only been able to appoint four women to the 47 chair positions available in its partner bodies.

The Department must make far greater efforts in their recruitment to ensure women are interviewed and appointed to these roles ".

Further information

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