The APPG on Long Covid was officially formed in 2025, providing a vital cross-party forum to focus on the ongoing challenges of Long Covid. It will enable like-minded Parliamentarians and organisations to work together on relevant issues such as the prevalence of Long Covid, research, healthcare and raising awareness of the profound impacts Long Covid has on millions of people, whilst outlining our asks to Government.
As a new APPG, there is a lot of work ahead. With Long Covid Support as secretariat, the charity brings not only personal experiences of Long Covid but knowledge built over several years from working in the Long Covid space, along with the voices from the Long Covid community, to provide support to the APPG to help them conduct their work on this life-altering condition.
OFFICERS
MEMBERS
- Luke Akehurst - MP for North Durham (Labour)
- Dan Aldridge - MP for Weston-super-Mare (Labour)
- Tonia Antoniazzi - MP for Gower (Labour)
- Catherine Atkinson - MP for Derby North (Labour)
- Maureen Burke - MP for Glasgow North East (Labour)
- Bambos Charalambous - MP for Southgate and Wood Green (Labour)
- Marsha De Cordova - MP for Battersea (Labour)
- Jim Dickson - MP for Dartford (Labour)
- Tim Farron - MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale (Liberal Democrat)
- Catherine Fookes - MP for Monmouthshire (Labour)
- Tom Gordon - MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Liberal Democrat)
- Sarah Hall - MP for Warrington South (Labour)
- Lloyd Hatton - MP for South Dorset (Labour)
- Sharon Hodgson - MP for Washington and Gateshead South (Labour)
- Louise Jones - MP for North East Derbyshire (Labour)
- Ruth Jones - MP for Newport West and Islwyn (Labour)
- Alicia Kearns - MP for Rutland and Stamford (Conservative)
- Clive Lewis - MP for Norwich South (Labour)
- Alice Macdonald - MP for Norwich North (Labour)
- Abtisam Mohamed - MP for Sheffield Central (Labour)
- James Naish - MP for Rushcliffe (Labour)
- Connor Naismith - MP for Crewe and Nantwich (Labour)
- Adrian Ramsay - MP for Waveney Valley (Green)
- Alex Sobel - MP for Leeds Central and Headingley (Labour)
- Peter Swallow - MP for Bracknell (Labour)
- Paul Waugh - MP for Rochdale (Labour)
- Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench)
- Baroness Grey-Thompson (Crossbench)
- Baroness Harris of Richmond (Liberal Democrat)
- Baroness Hodgson of Abinger (Conservative)
- Baroness Nuala O'Loan (Crossbench)
- Baroness Watkins of Tavistock (Crossbench)
- The Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench)
Members of the House of Commons (MPs) and the House of Lords (Peers) are still able to join the APPG on Long Covid, so if your MP is eligible and is not listed as an Officer or Member, do contact them and ask them to join. If you are not sure who your MP is, you can search for them here.
If you are a Member of the Commons or Lords and would like to join the APPG, please do get in touch (contact details are below).
ABOUT APPGS
An APPG (All-Party Parliamentary Group) is made up of MPs and Peers from any party, who are interested in working together on a particular topic. They can also engage with people and organisations from outside of Parliament. They are run by and for Members of the Commons and Lords.
They are not official Parliamentary bodies and do not have the same authority as Select Committees, but there are various rules around the make-up of APPGs that must be followed. For example, there must be four Officers who must include a member of the Government party and a member of the main opposition, and there must be at least 20 Members of the APPG. Government Ministers are not permitted to join.
More information on the rules surrounding APPGs can be found on the UK Parliament website here.
So what's the purpose of the APPG on Long Covid?
The APPG is formed by MPs and Peers who have a particular interest in Long Covid and the many issues faced by people with the condition. Some of the APPG have Long Covid themselves, have family members or friends with Long Covid, or have been contacted by constituents about Long Covid. As MPs and Peers from any political party can join, the APPG provides a powerful, combined voice in Parliament regarding the wider issues surrounding Long Covid.
There are various ways in which an APPG can spread awareness, raise matters in Parliament and have an impact, including contacting relevant Ministers directly about certain issues, holding a 'Drop-In Session' where any MP can come along and learn about Long Covid, holding an inquiry (where people can be asked to come and provide evidence) and producing a report, and more.
MEETINGS
The APPG will meet several times a year. The Secretariat can arrange for guest speakers to attend meetings, to help ensure expert information is on-hand.
APPGs are for Members of the House of Commons and House of Lords. Under Parliamentary security rules, "meetings must not be advertised as public meetings". Non-Parliamentary individuals can, however, be invited personally to specific meetings when appropriate, for example as a speaker or to give evidence.
Minutes will be shared on this page as soon as possible after the meetings.
Next meeting:
Our next meeting will be arranged for after the summer recess.
Minutes from Meetings
Meeting on 15th July 2025:
Minutes are available here.
The meeting welcomed guest speaker Prof. Chris Brightling - Professor of Respiratory Medicine at the University of Leicester, NIHR Senior Investigator, and Chief Investigator of leading UK Long Covid research study, PHOSP-COVID. Next steps for accelerating Long Covid research on drug targeting and therapeutics were discussed, including current challenges faced by researchers. It was agreed that the recent NIHR EME (Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation) funding call is a positive step. Actions for the APPG were identified to advocate for advancements in research funding and development of the infrastructure required for coordinated and effective Long Covid research.
The Timms Review of the PIP Assessment was also discussed. Chair Jo Platt reported that the Minister for Social Security and Disability, Sir Stephen Timms, has agreed to a meeting on the topic, following his attendance at the previous APPG meeting in May.
Covid-19 and Long Covid prevention was also raised. The Secretariat produced a briefing note on Covid Vaccine Eligibility and Access. In addition, the issues of public health messaging and safe air were highlighted. Actions for the APPG were identified.
Meeting on 14th May 2025:
Minutes are available here. This was a joint meeting with the APPG on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME). Sir Stephen Timms MP (Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions) attended the first part of the meeting to discuss the Government's proposed welfare reforms, with APPG Members and Secretariats raising concerns.
The remainder of the meeting focused on research, with guest speakers Prof. Danny Altmann, Dr. Binita Kane, Prof. Chris Ponting and Prof. David Strain. All the research talks are available to watch, with subtitles (three of which were re-recorded afterwards due to sound quality issues). Click on the speakers' names below:
Prof. David Strain Prof. Chris Ponting Prof. Danny Altmann Dr. Binita Kane
Meeting on 26th February 2025:
Minutes are available here. At the request of the APPG, Long Covid Support produced a brief Status Report for that meeting, which is available here.
CONTACT INFORMATION
The Secretariat for the APPG is Long Covid Support. The APPG can be contacted here:
Please note that the APPG is unable to assist with individual cases. Under Parliamentary rules, MPs can only work on personal matters for their own constituents. We therefore recommend that you contact your own MP if you would like to raise a personal issue.
DISCLAIMER
This is not an official website of Parliament. It has not been approved by either House. APPGs are informal groups of Parliamentarians with a common interest in particular issues. The views expressed are those of the group.
Photographs of Officers are used under this license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/