Interim Chair Appointed to IMA

The Deputy Chair of the Independent Monitoring Authority for the Citizens’ Rights Agreements (IMA), Leo O’Reilly has been appointed as its Interim Chair as the recruitment process for a permanent Chair gets underway.

This follows the resignation of Sir Ashley Fox after being selected as the Parliamentary Candidate for the Bridgwater constituency for the Conservative Party.

Leo has been a Board Member and Deputy Chair of the IMA since its inception in December 2020. He is a Member of the Senate of Queen’s University Belfast and a member of the Council of the Institute of Professional and Legal Studies in Belfast.

Leo said, “I have thoroughly enjoyed being a part of the IMA Board for the past three years as we have established ourselves to undertake the important work of the IMA to monitor and promote how the rights of EU and EEA EFTA citizens and their family members are upheld by public bodies.

“I am proud of what has been achieved so far and am delighted to take on the role of Interim Chair to help continue the good work of the IMA until a permanent Chair is in place.”

Chief Executive of the IMA, Miranda Biddle said: “I am grateful for the support Leo has provided to the IMA since Sir Ashley stood down from his role. I look forward to continuing to work with Leo to ensure the IMA is fulfilling its duties to promote and protect the rights of those EU and EEA EFTA citizens who have rights under the Withdrawal and Separation Agreements so that they can continue to live, work and raise families, here and in Gibraltar, as they did before the UK left the EU.”

The IMA, Ministry of Justice and the public appointments team are now working at pace on the recruitment process for the permanent position of Chair of the IMA.

Full details of the recruitment process can be found here.