More than 500 people of diverse background attended the awards event. (Credit: Abdul Datoo/The Muslim News)
Lord Newby Liberal Democrats’ Group Leader, House of Lords
It was a great pleasure to attend The Muslim News Awards for Excellence event and to present one of the awards. I normally hate such events.
They tend to be over-long, full of self-important people and ungracious award-winners. In this case, the opposite was the case. Not only was the event run with real pace and efficiency, but it was really inspiring to hear the stories of the award winners and to see the humility with which they accepted their awards.
In principle, giving awards for achievement—where the achievements relate to contributions to society—is to be welcomed. For society to flourish, we need as many people as possible to devote their time, energy, and talents to promoting the good of others, not just themselves and their families.
Rich, vibrant communities are a patchwork quilt of groups of people working together for a common purpose. Some of these groups have extremely serious goals—for example, religious organisations or those looking after people’s physical or mental health.
Some are simply for enjoyment—sports, musical or theatrical groups, for example. But all of them enrich the lives of the people who are involved, either as organisers, participants, or beneficiaries. They supplement the work of the state, which is inappropriate or lacks the resources, flexibility, or sheer inventiveness to replicate them all.
At a time when people’s well-being is challenged by economic uncertainty or hardship, this is particularly important. Typically, the people who run these organisations or make major contributions to them do so for the sake of it, and certainly not with an eye to formal recognition.
Awards ceremonies such as that organised by The Muslim News, however, play a valuable role in celebrating that service, and in doing so, encouraging others to get involved in the type of activity that the award-winners exemplify.
This concept of service to the communities in which we live is deeply embedded in Muslim teaching and practice. But you do not need to be a Muslim to share these values and hope to see them promoted across all ethnic and religious groups.
They reflect all that is best about our shared humanity, and all of us, whatever our faith or background, should promote them where we can and celebrate them whenever we have the opportunity.
As a politician, I am only too well aware that the qualities which we celebrated at the Awards are equally relevant to public life. Following earlier political scandals, these qualities were enshrined as the Nolan principles.
There are seven of them: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty, and leadership.
These should not be controversial. But they have not all been followed by all politicians in recent times. And faith in politics has been undermined. The resignation of the Prime Minister should give all politicians pause to consider how we can now rebuild trust by exemplifying the Nolan principles in everything we do.
For me, I will have The Muslim News Award-winners in my mind as exemplars of public service, which I could do well to emulate.
