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David Isaac, CBE is a British solicitor and Provost of Worcester College, Oxford, where he took office in July 2021. He was previously a partner at law firm Pinsent Masons. He was appointed as the chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission in 2016, serving in that capacity until August 2020. He is also chair of the Court of Governors at University of the Arts London (2018–present). He was previously chair of Stonewall from 2003 to 2012. He was a director of the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund (2005–2014), the Big Lottery Fund (2014–2018), Black Mountains College (2019–20) and a trustee of 14-18 NOW (2016–2019).

Isaac was appointed a CBE in the 2011 Queen's Birthday Honours list for services to equality and diversity and was ranked 36th in the OUTstanding top 100 LGBT executives in October 2018.

Early life

Isaac was born in Wales and attended King Henry VIII Grammar School in Abergavenny. He went on to study law at Trinity Hall, Cambridge and socio-legal studies at Wolfson College, Oxford. He attended the College of Law in Guildford to pass the Solicitors Final Examination (1979–80).

Pinsent Masons

Isaac was a partner at Pinsent Masons law firm from 2000 to 2021. He was Head of the firm's advanced manufacturing and technology sector from 2014 – 2019 and Chair of the Pinsent Masons' Diversity and Inclusion group.

Equality and Human Rights Commission

Isaac was appointed as Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission in 2016. He said that the Commission would use its legal powers more, do more for disability rights and make sure that human rights were protected during Brexit.

His tenure came to an end in August 2020, and his initial replacement was interim chair Caroline Waters (previously deputy chair).

In 2021 Isaac claimed that the Equality and Human Rights Commission was "being undermined by political pressure" by the Second Johnson ministry.

Stonewall

During his time as chair of Stonewall, the charity lobbied to secure legislative change, such as the abolition of Section 28 and the introduction of Civil Partnerships.

References

1. "Welcome to our Provost David Isaac CBE". Worcester College, Oxford. 1 July 2021.
2. "EHRC appointments". GOV.UK. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
3. UAL (8 January 2019). "David Isaac CBE named new Chair of Governors". UAL. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
4. "Government nominates former Stonewall chair to head equality commission". PinkNews. 18 March 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
5. "Three Big Lottery Fund board members appointed". GOV.UK. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
6. "Team and Board". 14-18 NOW. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
7. "Birthday Honours 2011: CSV - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 25 July 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
8. "The OUTstanding lists 2018: LGBT+ leaders and allies". Financial Times. 25 October 2018. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
9. Sawer, Patrick (19 March 2016). "New equalities head would be biased against Christians, claim campaigners". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
10. "EHRC has become 'more muscular' on Equality Act enforcement, says chair". Disability News Service. 6 June 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
11. Bowcott, Owen (6 July 2016). "David Isaac: 'Disabled people face huge barriers'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
12. Doward, Jamie (13 January 2018). "Brexit bill leaves a hole in UK human rights". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
13. "Recruitment starts for new EHRC Chair and board members". GOV.UK. 29 June 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
14. Kotecha, Sima (28 July 2020). "Government 'failing to prioritise tackling racism', says watchdog boss". BBC News. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
15. Ng, Kate (9 August 2020). "'Toxic' debate around transgender rights harms the UK, says human rights expert". The Independent. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
16. "EHRC undermined by pressure to support No 10 agenda, says ex-chair". The Guardian. 18 January 2021. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
17. Sawer, Patrick (19 March 2016). "New equalities head would be biased against Christians, claim campaigners". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 16 December 2019.

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