The Competition and Markets Authority announced on 1 September 2026 that 12 new independent members had been appointed to its panel by the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade. The panel then consisted of 22 members appointed for up to 8 years, serving as independent decision makers in some CMA work, including phase 2 market investigations, merger inquiries and regulatory appeals.

Six appointments were scheduled to start on 1 September 2026: Shamshad Ali, Vicky Boiten-Lee, Martina Garcia, Patrick Bartlett, Aodhan O'Donnell and Professor Helen Simpson. Six more were due to begin on 1 October 2026: Michael Bender, Dr Sarah Deasley, Professor Ioannis Kokkoris, Stephen Unger, Frances Warburton and Patricia Treacy. The CMA said the group brings experience across business, academia, economics, finance and technology.

The CMA said members are appointed by the Secretary of State for Business through open competition, based on experience, ability and diversity of skills in competition, economics, law, finance and business. It said biographies of the new members were available online.