Public bodies are responsible for billions of pounds of public expenditure and affect the interests of all groups in society. It is therefore important that the best people are appointed to the boards of these public bodies and that they reflect the society that they serve.

The Commissioner for Public Appointments regulates the appointments to the boards of around 1,000 specified UK and Welsh public bodies such as the BBC, the Commission for Equality and Human Rights, the Health and Safety Executive, the National Gallery, the Advisory Committee on Pesticides and particular NHS bodies. The appointments processes are the responsibility of individual government departments or, in the case of NHS bodies, the Appointments Commission. Further information on the Commissioner