Special Guests

Speakers

Pixie Geldof

British singer and model

Pixie Geldof is a British singer and model. She is a self-proclaimed animal lover and has a Chihuahua named Buster Sniff. As a passionate advocate of animal welfare, Pixie is keen to use her profile to help bring about an international end to the unnecessary testing of cosmetics on animals.

Sirpa Pietikäinen

MEP and President, Animal Welfare Intergroup

MEP Pietikäinen is a Finnish Member of the European Parliament representing European People’s Party (EPP) since 2008. She was Finland’s Minister of Environment in between 1991 and 1995 and a Member of the Finnish Parliament from 1983 to 2003.

MEP Pietikäinen has been President of the Intergroup since 2016 and is one of the outstanding promoters for animal welfare in the European Parliament and on EU level. Due to her commitment to the cause, she has won the “MEP of the year award” in the category animal welfare, in 2015.

Michelle Thew

Chief Executive, Cruelty Free International

Michelle is Chief Executive of Cruelty Free International – the leading organisation working to end animal experiments worldwide.

For over 15 years Michelle has championed the cause of animals in testing laboratories across the world, speaking on their behalf in both the UK and EU Parliaments, and taking the message to media, regulators and industry representatives from Europe and the USA to Asia.

Michelle spearheaded the decade-long campaign to end cosmetics testing on animals in Europe, which was instrumental in achieving the European ban on animal testing for cosmetic and toiletry products and ingredients that came into effect on March 11th 2013.

Since 2012, Michelle has encouraged over 600 cosmetics and consumer brands to go cruelty free by signing up to Cruelty Free International’s Leaping Bunny certification scheme (the Humane Standards).

Michelle is known for her dynamic, passionate, innovative and determined approach to ending animal testing, and is one of the most respected and accomplished individuals in the animal protection movement.

Jessie Macneil-Brown

Head of Global Campaigns, The Body Shop International

Jessie leads The Body Shop’s global campaigns and is currently responsible for the Forever Against Animal Testing campaign which has secured over 3 million signatures since launching in June 2017.
A key team member behind The Body Shop’s corporate responsibility strategy Enrich Not Exploit, Jessie works to ensure that the company’s campaigns and corporate responsibility strategies are activated across customer facing communications to increase brand profile and customer engagement, including The Body Shop’s 3,000 stores in 66 countries. With experience in leading global campaigns at Amnesty International and The Body Shop, Jessie also led the most successful campaign in The Body Shop’s history, Stop Sex Trafficking of Children and Young People which secured over 7 million signatures globally and changed legislation in 24 countries. In her spare time Jessie is chairwoman of a human rights theatre group, launched the non-partisan Tower Hamlets branch of the Women’s Equality Party in 2017 and was recently invited to join the newly formed Global Fund For Women UK board.

Birgitta Ohlsson

Swedish Parliament

Birgitta is a Swedish politician and is the former Minister of European Affairs, Democracy, Consumer Rights in the Swedish government from 2010 to 2014. Birgitta is currently an MP in the Liberal Party of the Swedish Parliament (2002-2018).

Lisa Cameron

MP, East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow

Dr Lisa Cameron MP was born and raised in Westwood, East Kilbride and still lives in South Lanarkshire with her husband Mark and their 2 children. After graduating from Strathclyde University with a degree in Psychology, Lisa went on to gain a Doctorate in Clinical Practice from Glasgow University. Working as an NHS Doctor in Wishaw General, Dykebar Hospitals and Carstairs, specialising in supporting clients with mental health and learning difficulties. Lisa has been able to use this experience in the House of Commons and since being elected in 2015 has led adjournment debates on mental health provision for armed forces veterans.

Lisa has been an active trade union representative for the UK’s biggest trade union Unite for more than 12 years, campaigning for workers’ rights, pay, pensions and on issues of discrimination and equality in the workplace and has continued to highlight these vital matters as a Member of Parliament.

Lisa is the Shadow SNP Mental Health Spokesperson, chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group on Disability and Chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group for Dog Welfare. Lisa has coordinated a successful campaign that called on the UK Government to ban third party sales of dogs. After several years of campaigning, the Government announced a consultation on this ban.