 Williams was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2007 New Year Honours for "services to people with learning disabilities".An article in The Independent accuses Williams of using her authority as head of the CQC to carry out a campaign to smear fellow board member and whistle-blower Kay Sheldon, including commissioning a taxpayer funded psychiatric evaluation of Sheldon.On 7 September 2012, Dame Jo Williams announced her resignation as Chair of CQC.