Lindsay Todd, Kathleen Russ, Rogelio Alonso and Professor Brice Dickson have been appointed as non-executive commissioners of the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR).

The appointments were made by Northern Ireland secretary Chris Heaton-Harris on the recommendation of Sir Declan Morgan, the former lord chief justice turned chief commissioner of the new body.

Mr Todd, the lead non-executive commissioner, has spent almost 25 years as an equity partner with PwC where he held various senior finance and general management roles, including serving as part of the company’s UK leadership team.

Ms Russ is a former executive chair of London law firm Travers Smith. She currently sits on the board of JUSTICE, a human rights charity.

Mr Alonso is a Spanish academic with expertise in terrorism and security. He has lectured on Northern Ireland politics at the University of Ulster and held various fellowships at the Institute of Irish Studies and the Institute of Governance.

Professor Dickson is emeritus professor of law with expertise in human rights law. He has taught at both Ulster University and Queen’s University Belfast. He was the first chief commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and has also served on the NI Policing Board.

He is the only commissioner to have declared political activity in the last five years. He is a member of the Alliance Party and serves as secretary of its South Belfast association and as chair of the party’s administration and finance committee.

The Northern Ireland courts are currently hearing several legal challenges against the legislation underpinning the ICRIR on the basis of its alleged incompatibility with human rights law.

The Irish government has said it is considering calls for it to bring an inter-state case against the UK to the European Court of Human Rights in connection with the law.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar yesterday told TDs that the government has “received detailed and comprehensive legal advice from the Attorney General” and will make a decision before the 17 January 2024 deadline.