Siddiq Musa, Partner at KPMG, Sadiq Khan, MP, Patch work Foundation patrons, John Pienaar [also BBC Radio 5 Live Chief Political Correspondent] and Martyn Lewis
Elham Asaad Buaras
Labour’s London Mayoral candidate, Sadiq Khan, has been named the Patchwork Foundation’s People’s Choice MP of the Year, in an annual ceremony held in the Speaker’s House in Parliament.
This is the second time the Tooting MP won the award – he was named Labour MP and MP of the year in 2013.
Through the MP of the Year Awards, the Patchwork Foundation highlights and acknowledges those MPs – nominated by individuals and grassroots community organisations, and subsequently picked by an independent panel of judges – that have excelled in representing such communities.
The People’s Choice is their most prestigious award and was presented by well-known news presenter Martyn Lewis and BBC journalist John Pienaar.
As the MP for Tooting, Khan represents over 105,000 constituents – Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, Sikhs and those who do not follower a particular faith – in a constituency which is one of the most ethnically diverse in the country. Khan regularly visits faith centres and religious services, and works closely with the Balham and Tooting Community Association (BATCA) to celebrate Tooting’s diversity.
In a statement Khan said: “It’s a real honour to receive this award and I would like to thank all of my constituents who nominated me.
“After ten years in the job I still take great pride in getting to represent my community in Parliament – and I am grateful for the support local residents continue to show me.
“In Tooting we are blessed with an incredibly diverse and harmonious community and being a Muslim and the son of Pakistani migrants, it has always been my priority to work hard to make sure I engage with, and represent, all of the religious and ethnic groups in my constituency.”
Leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, said: “It is quite fitting that Sadiq Khan has won the overall People’s Choice Award for MP of the Year 2015. He is the people’s champion. A proud son of a bus driver, to human rights lawyer to the destroyer of glass ceilings. Sadiq is someone who personifies aspirations.”
