Aidan McQuade

Aidan Joseph McQuade is a former Director (Chief Executive) of Anti-Slavery International[1] from 2006-2017.[2]

He comes from South Armagh, Northern Ireland.[3]

McQuade is a contributor to The Guardian,[4] Equal Times[5] and The Independent[6] on issues of slavery, forced labour and related matters. In 2013 he highlighted the need for slavery eradication to be made a post-2015 Sustainable Development Goal.[7] In 2014 he called for greater regulation of international business to reduce slavery in global supply chains.[8] In an article for The Independent in March 2015 he accused Sepp Blatter of Fifa of moral responsibility for the death and enslavement of South Asian construction workers preparing Qatar for the 2022 World Cup.[9]

In 2012/13, he won the BBC's Mastermind Quiz with specialist subject, Abraham Lincoln.[10] When asked about the stress of the quiz, MacQuade replied "It takes as much energy to think as to panic".[10]

He received an honorary OBE for his work in anti-slavery in 2017, which he returned in 2024 in response to government policies, in particular the plan to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda[11]



References

  1. ^ "South Armagh man Aidan McQuade is Mastermind 2013". BBC News. 5 April 2013. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  2. ^ International, Anti-Slavery (11 September 2017). "Director of Anti-Slavery Aidan McQuade steps down". Anti-Slavery International. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  3. ^ Audley, Fiona. "Special Report: 14,000 caught in Britain's modern day slave economy". www.irishpost.co.uk. Irish Post. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
  4. ^ "Aidan McQuade". www.guardian.co.uk. The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  5. ^ "Aidan McQuade". www.equaltimes.org. Equal times. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  6. ^ "Aidan McQuade". www.independent.co.uk. The Independent. Archived from the original on 22 July 2015. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  7. ^ McQuade, Aidan (3 April 2013). "We can't ignore slavery in the bid to lift millions out of poverty". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  8. ^ McQuade, Aidan (3 June 2014). "Voluntary guidance on slavery is pointless – only radical action will help". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  9. ^ McQuade, Aidan (2 March 2015). "FIFA awarded the World Cup to a state where slavery is actively facilitated". www.independent.co.uk. The Independent. Archived from the original on 4 March 2015. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  10. ^ a b Poole, Amanda. "Terrifying... Mastermind champ's answer after being quizzed on that famous black chair". Belfasttelegraph.co.uk. Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
  11. ^ "Anti-slavery campaigner returns OBE over government's Rwanda scheme". BBC News. 19 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.