Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Court of Saint James's

Born on 21 February 1953 in Cherkasy, Ukraine.
Education: Faculty of International Relations and International Law of the T.G.Shevchenko Kyiv State University
1975 – 1976 – interpreter at the construction of metallurgical works in Karachi, Pakistan
1976 – 1979 – Attaché, Third Secretary of the Press Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
1979 – 1983 – Attaché at the Permanent Mission of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic to UN
1983 – 1985 – Second Secretary of the Press Department, Second Secretary of the Department of International Organizations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
1985 – 1988 – First Secretary of the Secretariat General, First Secretary of the Office of Principal Advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
1988 – 1992 – First Secretary of the Permanent Mission of the USSR to UN
1992 – 1994 – Advisor, Deputy Permanent Representative of Ukraine to UN, Acting Permanent Representative of Ukraine to UN
1994 – 1995 – Chief of the Department of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
1995 – 1998 – Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Chairman of the National Commission of Ukraine on UNESCO Affairs
1996 – 1998 – Representative of Ukraine to the UNESCO Executive Council
1998 – 2000 – Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Canada, Representative of Ukraine to the International Civil Aviation Organization
2000 – 2002 – Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
2000 – 2005 – Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Kingdom of Belgium, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Head of the Mission of Ukraine to NATO (with residence in Belgium)
October 2005 – January 2006 – Director of the Department for NATO
January 2006 – July 2007 – Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
From July 2007 – First Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
March 2009 – October 2009 – Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
Foreign languages: Russian, English, French
Married, with son and daughter

John Whittingdale has been Member of Parliament for Maldon since 1992. He lives locally and has two children, Henry and Alice.

John was educated at Winchester College and University College, London, where he graduated with a degree in economics. Prior to his election, John worked both in Whitehall and the City. Having worked in the Conservative Research Department, he was appointed Special Adviser to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in 1984, serving three successive Secretaries of State until 1987. He then went to work at NM Rothschild Merchant Bank in the City before returning to Government work in 1989 when he was appointed Political Secretary to the then Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. He continued in that role until Margaret Thatcher left office in 1990 and he was awarded the OBE in her resignation honours list.

In 1992, John was elected Member of Parliament for South Colchester and Maldon. He served as a member of the House of Commons Select Committee on Health from 1993 to 1997 and was also Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Minister for Education and Employment between 1994 and 1996.

In 1997, John was elected to represent the new constituency of Maldon and East Chelmsford. He spent a year as an Opposition Whip and in 1998 was appointed a front bench Treasury spokesman. Following this, in 1999 he became Parliamentary Private Secretary to the then Leader of the Opposition, William Hague. After the 2001 General Election, John was appointed to the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Secretary of State for Trade and Industry and in July, 2002 Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. Following a year covering the Agriculture portfolio, John returned as Shadow Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport in September 2004 - leaving the post after the election in 2005. In July 2005 he was elected Chairman of the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee. In 2010 John became Chair of All Party Parliamentary Ukraine Group.

In 2006, John was elected as one of three Parliamentary representatives on the Board of the Conservative Party. He was also elected Vice Chairman of the Conservative Parliamentary Party 1922 Committee.

John Grogan

John Grogan was Member of Parliament for Selby, North Yorkshire between May 1997, when he was elected as the first ever Labour MP to represent the seat, until May 2010.

Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, John studied at St Michael's School in Leeds before obtaining a place at St John's College, Oxford in 1979 to read for a degree in History and Economics. He graduated three years later and went on to spend a year as the first ever Labour President of the Oxford Student Union.

Prior to being elected John worked as Communications Co-ordinator at the City Council until 1994. He then took up the offer of a job working as the Press Officer for the Labour Party in the European Parliament in Brussels, before going on to run a small business arranging conferences and events.

John was a member of the Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee from 1997 to 2001 and again since the 2005 General Election. He was Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Groups on Beer, Mongolia, the BBC and Joint-Chair of the Parliamentary Labour Party Health and Social Services Committee. John was also Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Ukraine Group in 2006-2010.

Dr. Yaroslav Voitko

Dr Yaroslav Voitko was the Head of the Trade and Economic Mission at the Embassy of Ukraine in the UK from September 2006 to September 2010.

A graduate of the Kyiv State Shevchenko University in International Economic Relations and Ph.D. in Economics of the Institute of the USA and Canada, Dr. Voitko started his career as a lecturer in Economics before moving on to the Ministry of the Higher and Secondary Special Education of Ukraine and then Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. From 1992 to 1996 Dr. Voitko worked at the Embassy of Ukraine in Washington, DC being one of the first Ukrainian diplomats to represent the newly independent Ukraine in the United States. From 1997 through March 1999 he worked as the Head of the Department for Trade and Economic Relations with the Americas at the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade of Ukraine (Kyiv, Ukraine).

In 1999 – 2003 Dr. Voitko worked as Chief of the Trade and Economic Mission of Ukraine at the Embassy of Ukraine to the USA (Washington, DC) promoting trade and investment cooperation between the two countries. In 2003 – 2006 Dr. Voitko worked as Director of the Department of Bilateral Trade and Economic Cooperation at the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine in Kyiv. While in office, he has participated in the organisation of dozens of meetings of bilateral commissions on trade and economic cooperation with a number of countries of the world, as well as visits of foreign economic officials to Ukraine and of Ukrainian trade missions abroad.

Patrick (Paddy) Gillford, Earl of Clanwilliam

Founding Partner of Gardant (formerly the Policy Partnership) PA Agency

Paddy founded the company in 1993. He started his business career with Hanson plc and was seconded to the Home Office to advise the Rt. Hon Douglas Hurd CBE, then Home Secretary. He returned to Hanson as manager of their public affairs unit until joining one of the UK's leading firms of lobbyists.

Over the years, Paddy has acted as consultant to some of the top companies in the UK and US, such as the Prudential, BT, UPS, and Brooklyn Union, as well as a number of foreign governments including Azerbaijan, Bahrain and Morocco.

He is the non-executive Chairman of Cleveland Bridge UK Ltd, Europe's leading bridge & large steel construction company and chairs the transport committee of the London Chamber of Commerce. He is also active within the Conservative Party. He was elected for two consecutive four-year terms to serve as a councillor in the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea and held the position of Chairman of Traffic & Highways Committee.

Tamara Demidenko

Tamara Demidenko is a promoter/dealer of Ukrainian art in the UK and abroad since 1992 when she established her company Danusha Fine Arts. Prior to this she was a Financial Consultant in the City, then consultant/negotiator on trade agreements between British and then Soviet companies. Tamara holds Masters of Science Degree (Economic Geography) from Kyiv State University, Diploma in Marketing from The Institute of Marketing, London and Master of Business Administration from Clayton University, USA. Tamara is a Ukrainian living in London with her son since 1983.