Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people were interviewed for the recent appointment of Chair of the Charity Commission; who conducted the interviews; and whether a candidate was recommended by the interview panel to ministers for appointment.

Six candidates were shortlisted for interview for the Chair of the Charity Commission role. The Advisory Assessment Panel comprised:

• Sue Owen Panel Chair and DCMS Permanent Secretary
• Charles MacKay Senior Independent Panel Member
• Julia Unwin Independent Panel Member with Sector experience
• Alan Downey Charity sector representative

Paragraph 3.1 of the Cabinet Office Governance Code for Public Appointments stipulates that Advisory Assessment Panels must not rank candidates unless specifically requested by the appointing Minister. The Advisory Assessment Panel received no such request for this competition and candidates were therefore assessed as either ‘appointable’ or ‘unappointable.’

Following the satisfactory completion of the interview process, the Advisory Assessment Panel presented Ministers with a list of of three individuals and Ministers selected the candidate who they assessed as most suitable for the role. As a result, Baroness Stowell has been appointed as Chair of the Charity Commission.