The APPG Maternity benefits from a great deal of parliamentary support and a wealth of experience drawn from numerous fields of expertise. The leadership is provided by a small group of dedicated parliamentarians who donate their time and attention to improving maternity services for all.
E xecutive Committee of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Maternity
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Emily Thornberry MP
Emily was elected as Member of Parliament for Islington South & Finsbury on 5 May 2005. Emily, a mother of 3, joined the Labour Party when she was 17, motivated by her experiences being raised by her mother, a single parent living on a council estate. Before becoming an MP, she campaigned successfully at the national level with trade unions and parents' groups for more family-friendly employment policies and access to childcare - particularly for women. She has helped over 11,000 individual constituents, and has been an independent-minded voice for her constituents in Parliament. Emily has a strong sense of justice and traditional Labour values and has been active in anti-racist campaigns across London. She is backed TGWU and has strong links with other trade unions. As a human rights lawyer she has many years' experience of representing people as a criminal lawyer, working to achieve greater justice, equality and human rights
Vice-Chairs
Lord Patel
Lord Narendra Babubhai Pateli is a doctor of medicine specialising in obstetrics. Prior to entering Parliament as a life Peer in 1999, Lord Patel worked for more than 30 years at Dundee’s Ninewells Hospital and Medical School. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences and the Royal Society of Edinburgh, an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England and the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Chairman of the Clinical Standards Board for Scotland, Quality Improvement Scotland. He was Vice President of FIGO, the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics. He has also held the positions of Chairman of the National Health Quality Improvement Scotland, Member of the Council of the General Medical Council, member of the Academy of Medical Sciences, Chairman of the Genetic Advisory Committee of the Medical Research Council of the United Kingdom, President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Lord Patel lists his clinical and academic interests as; high risk obstetrics, premature labour, foetal growth, retardation, obstetric epidemiology and quality of the standards of health and clinical provision.
Baroness Cumberlege
Baroness Julia Cumberlege comes from a medical family and after a period in Local Government, she was appointed to chair the Brighton Health Authority and subsequently the South West Thames Regional Health Authority. In 1992 Julia was appointed a Junior Health Minister and for five years covered all health and social services matters in the House of Lords. Julia is a Trustee of Cancer Research UK, Leeds Castle in Kent and Chailey Heritage School. She is a Senior Associate of the King’s Fund, and a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of General Practitioners. Baroness Cumberlege is involved in a number of charities and is Patron of the National Childbirth Trust.
Treasurer
Betty Williams MP
Betty Williams was first elected to Parliament in 1997, she has served as member for Conwy in Wales ever since. Prior to entering Parliament Mrs Williams sat as a district councillor for more than 20 years, she also has a long history of voluntary work including such posts as; Meals on wheels transport organiser, Christian Aid local organiser, community centre committee chair, Sunday School superintendent/teacher, chair of National Eisteddfod of Wales local fundraising committee. Betty cites her interests as including opera and sheepdog trials.
http://www.epolitix.com/EN/MPWebsites/Betty+Williams
Secretary
Sandra Gidley MP
Sandra Gidley was first elected to Parliament for the constituency of Romsey 2000 having previously been elected the youngest ever mayor of the area. She has previously held the position of party spokeswoman on women’s issues and older people and is currently frontbench spokeswoman on health matters for the Liberal Democrats. Prior to Sandra’s election to Parliament she worked as a pharmacist in the retail sector.