Barrister Deirdre Malone has been appointed as the new director of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC).

Malone (small picture) was executive director of the Irish Penal Reform Trust from 2014 to 2019, and was also legal manager of the Public Interest Law Alliance from 2019 to 2021.

A former global director within the legal policy team at Twitter, she holds an honours degree in law from Trinity College Dublin, and a diploma in Charity Law, Trusteeship and Governance from the Law Society of Ireland.

She was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 2006, and practised as a barrister for several years, specialising in inquests and actions against the police.

‘Deep commitment’

Sinéad Gibney (Chief Commissioner of IHREC) said that, through her extensive experience in law and public policy, Malone brought a depth of knowledge of senior management and public affairs to the role.

She added that the new director’s professional experience demonstrated “a deep commitment to the promotion of human rights and equality in Ireland”.

The appointment follows a competitive recruitment process run by the Public Appointments Service.