Officers of the APPG for Malaria & Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs)

Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green

Joined: 28 September 2017, Chair since 2019

Catherine West has been the Member of Parliament for Hornsey and Wood Green since 2015.

Catherine was born in Mansfield, a small town in Australia. A mother of two, Catherine holds a degree in Social Science and Languages from the University of Sydney, a Masters Degree in Chinese Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies and speaks five languages including Mandarin. She developed her Mandarin whilst teaching English as a second language in Nanjing, China.

Catherine moved to London in 1998 where she worked in welfare and housing, using her language skills to meet with newly arrived communities. She worked for David Lammy MP both problem solving for Haringey residents and helping him make the case for social change in the constituency. She became a Labour Councillor and, before being elected as an MP in 2015, Catherine was leader of Islington Council.

In Parliament, Catherine is the Shadow Foreign Minister for Asia and the Pacific. She has previously served as Shadow Foreign Minister for Europe and the Americas and Shadow Sports Minister, and also spent time serving as a member of the Parliamentary Select Committee on International Trade, the joint Committee on Arms Export Controls, and member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.

In 2017, Catherine established the first All-Party Parliamentary Group on Swimming and she continues to Chair the Group. She is also Deputy-Chair of the APPG on China, Vice-Chair of the APPG on North Korea, and the Patron of Hong Kong Watch. Catherine has previously chaired the APPG for Ethics and Sustainability in Fashion.

Crossbench - Life Peer

Joined: 29 August 2018, Co-Chair since 2023

Professor the Lord Trees graduated in 1969 from the Royal School of Veterinary Studies, Edinburgh. Following a research expedition to Kenya and a year in mixed general practice, Lord Trees completed a PhD on bovine babesiosis and then worked at Elanco (Rome) as veterinary advisor fortheir Middle-East/North African operations.

In 1980 he was appointed Lecturer in Veterinary Parasitology at the University of Liverpool, based in the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.  He was a Council member of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, a founding Diplomate of the European Veterinary Parasitology College, is an Executive Board member of the World Association for Veterinary Parasitology.

In 2021 he assumed the role as Chair of the Steering Committee of the United Against Rabies Forum, established by the tripartite organisations, WHO, FAO and OIE.

Labour - Slough

Joined: 20 May 2020

Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi has served as the Member of Parliament for Slough since 2017, the first ever turbaned Sikh in any European Parliament.

Born in Berkshire, having spent his formative years in Slough, Tan received most of his primary education in the Punjab, India, before returning to the UK when he was nine years old. He studied Mathematics with Management at University College London, MSc Applied Statistics at Oxford University, before an MPhil at Cambridge in South Asian history and its connections with Great Britain.

After his studies, Tan worked in construction and even ran his own small company in Scotland.  In 2007, he was elected as a councillor in Gravesham, where he subsequently became Mayor in 2011. During this time he became a Cabinet Member, Constituency Party Chairman and had many voluntary roles including as a School Governor, as a trustee of an Alzheimer’s and Dementia charity Trustee, as a Mencap Society advisor, and as an Independent Police Advisory Group member.

In Parliament, Tan is the Shadow Minister for Exports. Prior to this, Tan was Shadow Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, and between 2020-2023, he was the Shadow Minister for Railways. He is the Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group campaigning for a Western Rail Link to Heathrow and has spearheaded the campaign for National Sikh War Memorial.

Conservative - Bracknell

Joined: 21 April 2021

James Sunderland has served as the Member of Parliament for Bracknell since 2019.

James was born in Chertsey and grew up in the local area. After leaving school, he was educated at the University of Birmingham, Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, King's College London and Royal College of Defence Studies. He was commissioned into the British Army in 1993 and served on operations worldwide. He held a variety of command and staff appointments, both in the UK and overseas, before retiring with the rank of Colonel to stand for Parliament.

He has served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to multiple departments and chaired the Armed Forces Bill Committee. His interests in Parliament include the Armed Forces, Veterans, Special Educational Needs, malaria and neglected tropical diseases, motorsport, and the Overseas Territories.