Oona King is a broadcaster, writer, and political campaigner.  Oona is Founding Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Genocide Prevention in the House of Commons; an Associate Fellow of Chatham House (The Royal Institute of International Affairs); Chair of the Institute for Community Cohesion (iCoCo), and Chair of Rich Mix Cultural Foundation.  Oona writes for papers including the Guardian, New Statesman, Sunday Telegraph, and Observer, and is a presenter for television and radio documentaries.  Oona’s book about her time in the House of Commons, “House Music – The Oona King Diaries” is published in September 2007 by Bloomsbury.

Oona was MP for Bethnal Green & Bow from 1997-2005, and became PPS to the Cabinet Minister for Trade & Industry.  Oona was appointed to two Select Committees (International Development and Urban Affairs). Other roles included Vice-Chair of the British Council, Chair of the All-Party Group on Business Services, Vice-Chair of London Labour MPs, and Treasurer of Friends of Islam.  Before being elected at 29, Oona was a Trade Union organiser representing low-paid workers, and spent 5 years as a researcher at the European Parliament in Brussels and Strasbourg.

Oona gained a 1st class politics degree from York University (1990), and a scholarship to Berkeley.  Oona’s father is African-American from Georgia and her mother is from Newcastle, from a Jewish family with roots in Hungary, Scotland and Ireland. Oona married Tiberio Santomarco in 1994, and they live in Tower Hamlets with their young son and daughter.  In her spare time, Oona enjoys cinema, dance music (in particular house music), cooking, history, and walking in Mile End Park.  Oona speaks French and Italian.