Group of MPs, including a former Silver Fern, heading to the UK for netball tournament

Members of the "Parly Ferns", who are headed to UK for a parliamentary netball contest next month. Photo / Supplied

After again defeating their trans-Tasman rivals, Parliament's inter-party netball team is heading to London to test their skills against a team of UK parliamentarians.

The Parly Ferns – Parliament's netball team made up of National and Labour MPs – are competing in a three-way tournament near Parliament Square at Westminster next month.
The team is co-captained by Labour's Louisa Wall – a former Silver Fern.

"Sport provides an excellent opportunity to cross-cultural and geographical barriers, and meet and engage with members from other parliaments, while at the same time within our team encouraging members from different parties to work and compete together," she said.

"We are also proud to raise the profile of, and support, for women's sport, and we seek to support charities that improve the lives of girls through sport, and in particular the Tania Dalton Foundation."

While in the UK, the team of MPs will also attend a Women and Equality Committee at Westminster and a reception with parliamentarians at Australia House.

They will then travel to Liverpool to support the Silver Ferns in their first Netball World Cup match against Malawi.

The Parliamentary Sports Trust helped raise funds for the trip but the MPs have contributed the rest of the travel costs personally.

"We look forward to a successful visit, both on the netball court and in our relationship-building with fellow parliamentarians," Wall said.

Other members of the team include National's Maureen Pugh – also co-captain – Nikki Kaye, Labour's Meka Whaitiri and Anahila Kanongata'a-Suisuiki.

But these are not the only MPs using the upcoming three-week recess to compete on the sports field.

Labour MP Kieran McAnulty and National's Chris Bishop are co-captaining the New Zealand Parliament Cricket XI at the upcoming Inter-Parliamentary Cricket World Cup in the UK.

Indian cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar, who served as an MP from 2012 – 2018, is rumoured to be a part of an Indian team which will compete alongside Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa in the eight-team competition.

UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn is playing for the UK side.