Monisha Shah

"I am particularly pleased that the proportion of women amongst those appointed – 38% – matches the proportion of women in the relevant segment of the profession. … The proportion of applicants from minority ethnic backgrounds who have been appointed is also broadly equal to the proportion of advocates in the relevant segment of the profession,"

"However, the pandemic has exposed vast structural inequalities in our systems. The work-place is sharply divided between those who have formal contracts with a right to fair treatment, severance pay and protection from bullying and harassment, and those on zero-hour contracts, or no contracts at all with no rights. News stories highlight how structural weaknesses in the social security system could see many families descend into poverty and how migrants and immigrants can struggle to access benefits even while we continue to benefit from their labour. The disproportionate effect of the pandemic on BAME communities and the fact we have yet to see a plan to deal with that is yet another example."

"The death of George Floyd in the US and the Black Lives Matter movement has done for racial inequality what William Wilberforce once said about slavery, “You may choose to look the other way, but you can never again say you did not know.”"