The Rt Hon Andrew Mitchell MP has been the Member of Parliament for Sutton Coldfield since 2001.  He was previously the Member of Parliament for Gedling from 1987 to 1997 during which time he held office as a Government Whip and was Minister for Social Security. He also served as a Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party 1992-93. Andrew was educated at Rugby School and studied History at Cambridge University.  He was elected as President of the Cambridge Union in 1978.  He served in the Army (Royal Tank Regiment) and was a United Nations Peacekeeper in Cyprus before joining Lazard, the international investment bank.

In November 2003 he was pointed Shadow Minister for Economic Affairs and from September 2004 he was the Shadow Minister for Police. Following the General Election in May 2005, he was appointed Shadow Secretary of State for International Development.  He then served as the Secretary of State for International Development from May 2010 – September 2012 and Government Chief Whip from September – October 2012.

Andrew has campaigned on a variety of issues, particularly the protection of human rights. With regards to the Syrian conflict, Andrew has been vocal about the need to protect refugees and has visited those caught on the Turkish Syrian border. He has campaigned to keep refugees as close to the areas form which they have been driven as possible so that one day they can return.