Q: What is a public body?

There are over 1,200 public bodies across the UK delivering important and essential public services. These include large public bodies managed by boards of directors and small, advisory committees made up of lay members, experts and specialists.

Examples of public bodies include:

• Key regulatory bodies such as the Competition Commission, the Environment Agency, the Equalities and Human Rights Commission and the Health and Safety Executive
• Expert, advisory bodies such as the Low Pay Commission, the Committee on Standards in Public Life and the House of Lords Appointments Commission
• A number of specialist scientific and technical committees
• Health authorities and NHS trusts
• National museums and galleries, including the British Museum, the Natural History Museum, the Tate and the National Gallery