Joan Harbison

Who is Joan Harbison?

Dame Joan Irene Harbison is a Northern Irish public servant and activist. She was a teacher and lecturer who served as Chief Commissioner of the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland until July 2006. She previously was the vice chair of the Eastern Health and Social Services Board and the Standing Advisory Commission on Human Rights.

She was a member of the General Dental Council for the United Kingdom and the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, as well as serving on the Financial Services Authority Consumer Advisory Panel. She was actively involved in the Citizens Advice Bureau for many years and was its Chair from 1994 to 1995. She is currently a member of the Judicial Appointments Commission for Northern Ireland and the HPSS Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority.

In 2005 she received an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws from the University of Ulster for her contributions to public life in Northern Ireland. She was appointed as an Older People's Advocate on 3 November 2008, in the interim pending the establishment of a full Commissioner for Older People.