Competition Decisions Committee

Lesley Ainsworth was appointed to the CDC Panel in December 2018.

Lesley is also a Panel Member of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), a role she has held since July 2013. During her time at the CMA she has served on the panels for the energy and investment consultants market investigations. Lesley has over 30 years of experience working in the legal sector, including as a competition lawyer and partner at Hogan Lovells. She holds voluntary positions as Vice Chair of governors at St Albans School and is a member of the governing body of St Albans School for Girls.

Lesley is also a member of the Payment Systems Regulator’s Enforcement Decisions Committee[2] and Competition Decisions Committee[2].

Ulrike Hotopp was appointed to the CDC Panel in October 2023.

Ulrike has more than 25 years of experience as an economist working in Government and the private sector. For 16 years Ulrike was a member of the Government Economic Service. Her last role was as Director for Analysis and Chief Economist in DEFRA. In 2017 Ulrike founded LIVE Economics ltd, an economic consultancy company. Ulrike is a member of the Competition and Markets Authority’s merger panel, OfGEM’s Enforcement Decision Panel, and the Code Change Committee of the Market Operator for the non-household water market, MOSL. Ulrike teaches Economic Policy Analysis at the University of Kent.

Ulrike is also a member of the Payment Systems Regulator’s Competition Decisions Committee[3].

Simon Polito was appointed to the CDC Panel in December 2018.

Simon is a competition law specialist, with over 35 years’ experience working at Hogan Lovells. After leaving Hogan Lovells in 2011, Simon became Deputy Chairman of the Competition Commission. He then became Inquiry Chair at the CMA, a role he held for four years. Whilst at the CMA, he chaired Phase 2 mergers inquiries, the payday lending market investigation and four Case Decision Groups.

Simon is also a member of the Payment Systems Regulator’s Enforcement Decisions Committee[3] and Competition Decisions Committee[5].

David Thomas was appointed to the CDC Panel in December 2018. 

David has more than 30 years of experience in regulated sectors as both an accountant and economist and is currently a Specialist Panel Member at the Competition and Markets Authority. He is also a member of the Consumer Panel at the Civil Aviation Authority. David started his career at PwC and has held roles at Ofcom and KPMG, before starting his economic consultancy company, DT Economics in 2016. During his career, he has advised over 150 operators and regulators on matters such as competition, regulatory pricing, cost modelling and customer engagement.

David is also a member of the Payment Systems Regulator’s Enforcement Decisions Committee[6] and Competition Decisions Committee[7].

Claire Whyley was appointed to the CDC Panel in October 2023.

Claire is a highly experienced consumer research and policy professional. She specialises in consumer needs, decision-making and outcomes across a wide range of markets including financial and payment services, energy, water, retail, aviation, road and rail, and advertising. She brings particular expertise in outcomes-focussed regulation and consumer vulnerability. Claire is a member of the CMA Panel, Pay.UK’s End User Advisory Council, the FLA Lending Code Board, the Board of PHIN, and SSE’s Strategic Stakeholder Panel. Previous non-executive roles include membership of the FSA Consumer Panel, the Heathrow Consumer Challenge Board and Deputy Chair (South) of SGN’s Consumer Engagement Board. She was also Senior Fellow at the Personal Finance Research Centre, Head of Research and Policy at the Welsh Consumer Council and Deputy Director of Policy/Head of Consumer Futures at the National Consumer Council.

Claire is also a member of the Payment Systems Regulator’s Competition Decisions Committee[4].