Munira Mirza's family came to the United Kingdom from Pakistan; her father found work in a factory while her mother was a housewife and taught Urdu part-time.
19 Facts About Munira Mirza
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Munira Mirza had two older brothers and an older sister.
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Munira Mirza was the only pupil in her Sixth Form college to gain a place at Oxford University, studying English Literature at Mansfield College, graduating in 1999.
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Munira Mirza continued her studies at the University of Kent, completing an MA in Social Research in 2004 and a PhD in Sociology under Frank Furedi in 2009.
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Early on, Munira Mirza was involved in revolutionary politics, including being a member of the Revolutionary Communist Party, a small group that dissolved in 1997.
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Munira Mirza contributed to its magazine, Living Marxism, which was dissolved after losing a libel case to ITN over the Bosnian genocide.
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From 2008 to 2016, Munira Mirza worked for the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, initially as Cultural Adviser, and Director of Arts, Culture and the Creative Industries.
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In 2014, Munira Mirza said that she was not a Conservative.
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In 2016, Munira Mirza was a vocal advocate of Brexit, a stance which, in cultural circles, she later described as "the new being gay".
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Munira Mirza said the referendum result was achieved through a process of democracy that, in some way, echoed Magna Carta.
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In 2018, Munira Mirza was mentioned by the New Statesman as a possible Conservative Party candidate for the 2020 London mayoral election.
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On 24 July 2019, following her former boss Johnson becoming Prime Minister, Munira Mirza was appointed Director of the Number 10 Policy Unit, replacing James Marshall.
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Munira Mirza is a member of Arts Council England, London Area Council; and the board of the Institute of Contemporary Arts.
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Munira Mirza is a member of the board at the Royal Opera House and the Illuminated River Foundation.
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Munira Mirza is the director of HENI Talks, a non-profit initiative to promote art history online.
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Munira Mirza has a record of advocating for public investment in the arts, but has warned that organisations will need to become "more entrepreneurial and look for ways to stretch their resources", including through corporate sponsorship.
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In 2006, Munira Mirza was critical of the multiculturalism encouraged by New Labour, claiming that it accentuated differences between groups, encouraging conflict; she stated that treating people differently "fuels a sense of exclusion".
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In June 2020, following the George Floyd protests, Munira Mirza was asked to establish the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities.
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Munira Mirza's involvement attracted controversy, given her doubts about the existence of institutional racism and her criticism of previous reports on race relations.