Anna Isaac

Anna Isaac’s painstaking investigation of rape, sexual harassment and bullying claims at business lobby group the CBI was fraught with the same journalistic risks and had an equally powerful impact as the earlier #MeToo coverage in The New Yorker and New York Times. Through winning the trust of multiple women, Isaac exposed deep failings and a toxic culture at the organisation, which – facing an existential crisis as the government, the opposition and big businesses cut ties with it – was forced to fundamentally reform its culture and management, including dismissing its director-general. 

The investigation, which also prompted John Allan to step down as president of the CBI and chairman of Tesco and Barratt Homes, sparked a debate about sexism and misogyny in business.

Isaac faced months of legal threats as she pursued an investigation into the taxes of former chancellor and Conservative chairman Nadhim Zahawi. Only after she revealed he was being investigated for tax irregularities and that he had paid a penalty to HMRC as part of a £5m tax bill, did he admit his wrongdoing, and was sacked.

Judges called Isaac’s work “hugely impactful and courageous,” exposing, as it did, “the clubby immoral behaviour of powerful people.”