GPhC Council members

The Council consists of 14 members equally split between registrant members (pharmacists or pharmacy technicians) and lay members (people who have never been registered as healthcare professionals). This allows the Council to reflect the diversity of the profession and the wider public and to bring in knowledge and experience from both inside and outside pharmacy.

All Council members are appointed and are required to act independently from the government, professionals and all other interest groups.

This page provides brief biographies of the chair, Gisela Abbam, and the members of our Council. We have also included a registers of interest for each member which publicly lists their financial and other interests that could potentially conflict with their role as a Council member.

Council members

Click on each name below to find out more:

Chair - Gisela Abbam

Yousaf Ahmad

Neil Buckley

Mark Hammond

Professor Ann Jacklin

Joanne Kember

Elizabeth Mailey

Dr Rima Makarem 

Penny Mee-Bishop

Dr Arun Midha 

Rose Marie Parr

Aamer Safdar

Jayne Salt

Selina Ullah   

 Gisela Abbam, GPhC Council Chair

Gisela is a Global Executive who has a wealth of experience in delivering change in the health and life sciences sector, both in the UK and globally including through her Executive roles at General Electric Healthcare and Abt Associates. She has a particular interest in improving access to and equality in global health and development.

Previously, Gisela was Chair of the British Science Association (BSA). Gisela became Chair of the BSA’s Council in January 2019, succeeding The Rt. Hon. Lord David Willetts. In that role, she led the BSA’s Council and championed the BSA mission and vision, driving forward an agenda on equality, diversity, and inclusion in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths).

Gisela has worked in collaboration with governments, the World Health Organisation, the United Nations, and other multilateral organisations to improve health outcomes for people across the world. She is the Senior Director for Government Affairs at Revvity, a global company that develops innovations for health, food and the environment. She also currently serves on a number of Advisory Committees and sits on the Board of the Bar Standards Board, the regulator for Barristers and specialised legal services businesses in England and Wales in the public interest; the Board of Everywoman Ltd., an organisation dedicated to advancing women in business; and the Board of Briyah Institute, USA a company focused on C-Suite ESG and sustainability training.

Gisela was the winner of the 2019 Black British Business Person of the Year Award and was awarded Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce for her contribution to social change.    

Gisela Abbam - Declaration of Interests

Neil Buckley

GPhC Council member, Neil Buckley

Neil has a number of non-executive appointments. He is chair of the Regulation Board of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and a lay board member of the Valuation Tribunal Service. Prior to pursuing a plural career, Neil was Chief Executive of the Legal Services Board, the oversight regulator for the legal professions in England and Wales. Neil is Employed as a part time director by the Chartered Institute of Insurers (CII) and Non Executive Board Member of the Personal Finance Society.

Neil Buckley - declaration of interests [PDF 843 KB]    


Selina Ullah

GPhC Council member, Selina Ullah

Selina Ullah has over 25 years of non-executive board experience. Selina is chair of a NHS hospital trust, board member of Locala Community Partnerships CIC, non-executive director of Accent Group and chair of various charities. 

Selina has experience in regulation, professional standards and education having chaired board sub-committees on standards, education and workforce.

Selina Ullah - declaration of interests [PDF 272 KB]  


Mark Hammond

GPhC Council member, Mark Hammond

Mark has worked in the civil service, the diplomatic service and local government. He was previously Chief Executive of the Equality and Human Rights Commission.  He has also been vice chair of West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group and a NED at the Crown Prosecution Service 

Current appointments include:
•    Director at Georgetown Associates Ltd.
•    Partner, Religion and Belief Literacy 
•    Company Secretary of GeoCultura Ltd
•    Chairman of GeoLogica Ltd, 
•    Visiting fellow, Bath University

Mark Hammond - declaration of interests [PDF 280 KB]


Penny Mee-Bishop

GPhC Council member, Penny Hopkins
Penny has extensive experience working as a pharmacy technician in both the NHS and private sector, and has held Chief or Lead Pharmacy Technician roles at several NHS Trusts. She is currently Principal Pharmacy Technician for Operational Service at Nottingham University Hospitals.

Penny Mee-Bishop - declaration of interests [PDF 297 KB] 


Professor Ann Jacklin

GPhC Council member, Professor Ann Jacklin

Ann is currently Associate Director, Digital Data, and Information for the, NHS England sponsored, National Wound Care Strategy Programme. 

Ann is also vice chair and trustee of Ealing and Hounslow Community Volunteer Service.

In 2015, she was appointed by Lord Carter to lead his national operational productivity reviews of pharmacy and medicines in acute trusts (2016) and mental health and community trusts (2018), based initially in the Department of Health and then in NHS Improvement.  These reviews formally established the link between pharmacy and medicines optimisation and set the strategic direction for hospital pharmacy services.

Ann has extensive experience in hospital pharmacy and was Chief Pharmacist at Imperial College Healthcare (and predecessor trusts) for over 20 years.

In 2000 she created the Centre for Medicines Safety and Service Quality, a joint academic pharmacy unit between University College London and Imperial College Healthcare Trust and is a visiting professor at Imperial College London.

Ann Jacklin - declaration of interests [PDF 281 KB]


Joanne Kember

GPhC Council member, Joanne Kember

Joanne has been registered as a pharmacist since 1980 and has worked in many different environments, both hospital and retail. She was previously the pharmacist in charge of a retail pharmacy for a number of years. In March 2017 Joanne took up the role of lead pharmacist for the North Wales Controlled Drug Intelligence Forum.

This role was extended in 2018 to that of Controlled Drug pharmacist for North Wales and National Lead for the Controlled Drug Local Intelligence Networks. Joanne has also taken up a role with the regulator for Social Care in Wales which has enabled her to continue to advance her interest in an integrated approach to health and social care.

In November 2022 Joanne took up the role of Trustee to Overton Jubilee Community Fund and in January 2023 a role as Trustee of the Rainbow Foundation a charity delivering outstanding services to improve the health and wellbeing of local communities in North East Wales.

Joanne Kember - declaration of interests [PDF 276 KB]   


Rose Marie Parr

GPhC Council member, Rose Marie Parr

Rose Marie Parr was the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for Scotland from 2015 until October 2020. She was previously chair of the Scottish Pharmacy Board of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain (RPSGB) and chair of the GPhC’s Board of Assessors, which oversees the registration assessment. 

Rose Marie has also held posts in hospital pharmacy and roles at NHS Education for Scotland. Rose Marie also holds honorary professorships at both Scottish schools of pharmacy – Strathclyde University and Robert Gordon University. From 31 March 2023, Rose Marie has been appointed as a Lay Member of the House of Commons, Committee on Standards.

Rose Marie Parr - declaration of interests [PDF 298 KB]   


Elizabeth Mailey

GPhC Council member, Elizabeth Mailey

Elizabeth has been registered as a pharmacist since 1984 and has worked in many different environments within healthcare. These include the Pharmaceutical and Medical Diagnostics industries, Management Consultancy, Public Relations, Government Affairs, Urgent Care, Community Pharmacy and Hospital Pharmacy in both the NHS and private sector. Elizabeth is an independent prescriber and has recently worked in 111 Integrated Urgent Care services as a Clinical Advisor. She has specialised in Mental Health for a number of years recently leading and developing a team of pharmacy professionals to provide support to Community Mental Health Teams in West Sussex. 

Elizabeth Mailey - declaration of interests [PDF 287 KB] 


Dr Rima Makarem

GPhC Council member, Dr Rima Makarem

Dr Rima Makarem initially trained as a scientist before going on to hold senior roles within the global pharmaceutical sector. She has built up a broad non-executive track record over recent years, including significant work locally, regionally and nationally in the health and care sector. She is currently Chair of Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes integrated care board and of Sue Ryder. 

Current appointments include:
•    Chair of Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes integrated care board
•    Chair of Sue Ryder
•    Chair of Queen Square Enterprises Ltd.
•    Trustee of LifeArc
•    Services on behalf of the Health and Social Care Select Committee

Previous appointments include:
•    External Commissioner and Audit Chair at the House of Commons Commission 
•    Senior Independent Director and Audit Chair at the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)
•    Non-executive director and Audit Chair at University College London Hospitals 
•    Expert on the Independent Expert Panel evaluating government commitments to pharmacy.

Rima Makarem - declaration of interests [PDF 287 KB]   


Yousaf Ahmad

GPhC Council member, Yousaf Ahmad

Yousaf Ahmad is currently the Director of Medicines Optimisation and Integrated Care System (ICS) Chief Pharmacist at Frimley ICS. Yousaf has extensive experience within secondary care, having worked primarily in large acute health boards in Scotland and in the Middle East. He has represented pharmacy at a national level through committee memberships with UKCPA and the RPS bodies. Yousaf also holds several Non-executive and Board roles at various institutions including a digital health care company and peer-reviewed research houses. 

Yousaf Ahmad - declaration of interests [PDF 290 KB]   


Dr Arun Midha

GPhC Council member, Dr Arun Midha

Arun was brought up in Gowerton and studied at several Universities (Swansea, Cardiff and Oxford) completing his PhD in the 1990s. Following many years in the University sector in Public Health Medicine and Medical Education with the University of Wales College of Medicine and then Cardiff University, Arun has built a portfolio of non-executive and lay member roles in the fields of regulation, standards, governance, health and education. He is currently an Independent Chair of Retrospective Continuing Healthcare Reviews in NHS Wales and England, an Advisor to the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and a member of the General Pharmaceutical Council.

Previous roles have included, lay member on the Select Committee on Standards, House of Commons, member of the General Medical Council serving as its Treasurer, member of the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, and member of the Welsh Language Board. Arun has served as a Justice of the Peace and was also High Sheriff of South Glamorgan in 2012.

Arun was also a Trustee of the Welsh Rugby Charitable Trust and a rugby union referee. He is an Assessor of the Queen’s Anniversary Prizes for Further and Higher Education and an active supporter of the charities Save the Children and Street Child United. He is a season ticket holder with Swansea City FC.

Arun Midha- declaration of interests [PDF 188 KB]   


Aamer Safdar

GPhC Council member, Aamer Safdar

Aamer is an experienced hospital pharmacist who has mainly worked at one of the largest hospitals in England, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust.  His career in the NHS spans over 25 years and he has been involved with pharmacy education and training for over 20 years developing innovative pre-registration training programmes.  Aamer has been involved with academia at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Aamer's current role is as the Director of Education for Imaan Healthcare. Aamer is the Chair of Education and Training for the Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists.

Aamer has been a member of the UKCPA General Committee and was an elected member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society English Pharmacy Board, serving for four years before he joined the General Pharmaceutical Council in 2019 as a registrant member. Aamer is a Fellow of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. He was Chair of the board of trustees of a unique multi-academy trust having served as a governor and trustee. Aamer is a lay member of NHS Blood and Transplant where he is currently attached to the Kidney and Ophthalmic Tissue Advisory Groups.

Aamer Safder - declaration of interests [PDF 510 KB]   


Jayne Salt

Jayne graduated from Leeds University with a degree in French that involved living and working in France for a year. She then trained as a lawyer and was admitted as a Solicitor in 1984. Jayne’s first few years were spent in private practice in Norfolk with a caseload of criminal defence, civil and family work before joining the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in the West Midlands. Jayne worked initially as a prosecutor before taking on a variety of management roles. She has been involved in many Criminal Justice Service initiatives at regional and national level and ended her CPS career as a senior manager heading up the regional Complex Casework Unit that specialises in serious and organised crime cases in the Midlands region and nationwide.

Current appointments include:

  • Advisor to Nursing and Midwifery Council fitness to practise panels
  • Chair of Parole Board hearings
  • Chair of the Dispute Resolution Panel for the 2019 Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing and Access from April 2022. 

Jayne Salt - declaration of interests [PDF 269 KB]