Introduction
Tania Wyn Mathias (born 21 June 1964) is an British ophthalmologist and Conservative Party politician. She was elected as the Member of Parliament for Twickenham in May 2015.
Early life
Mathias was born on 21 June 1964 and brought up in Barnes, London, England. She was educated at St Paul's Girls' School, an all-girls independent school in Hammersmith, London. She studied at St Catherine's College, Oxford and Christ Church, Oxford, graduating with Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MB BCh) degrees in 1988.
Her grandfather, Fred Mathias, played rugby and cricket for Glamorgan and in 1918 was awarded the Military Cross after his exploits flying over enemy lines in Belgium and France.
Career
Medical career
Soon after graduating in medicine, Mathias was a refugee worker for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in the Gaza Strip and treated HIV, AIDS and tuberculosis patients in Africa. She has also treated leprosy patients in North Bihar, India and South China. She was employed by the NHS as an eye doctor.
Political career
In 2010, Mathias was elected to the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames as councillor for Hampton Wick. She was re-elected in 2014, but stepped down as a councillor shortly after becoming MP.
At the 2015 general election, Mathias was elected as the MP for Twickenham, defeating the Liberal Democrat cabinet minister, Vince Cable. She has been a member of the Science and Technology Select Committee of the House of Commons since July 2015.
Views
Mathias is an ardent opponent of the expansion of Heathrow Airport, having voiced her objection in the House of Commons on several occasions.
She reacted negatively to the UK government's decision to begin consultation for the construction of a third runway, declaring expansion “misguided and not in the nation's interest”. Mathias was opposed to Brexit prior to the 2016 referendum.