London, Sept 22: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has hailed the contributions of the South Asian heritage communities, who he described as the “driving force” of much of the innovation across the country.
In a message for the annual Asian Achievers Awards held in London on Friday night, which saw his Labour Party’s veteran British Indian parliamentarian Virendra Sharma win a Lifetime Achievement Award, Starmer hailed the changemakers being celebrated for their achievements across different walks of life.
Opposition Leader and Britain’s first Indian-origin former prime minister Rishi Sunak also congratulated the winners.
“British Asians are a driving force behind much of the social, cultural and economic innovation we see in Britain today,” read Starmer’s message.
Among the other winners of Indian heritage included Business Person of the Year Sukhpal Singh Ahluwalia, London-based founder of real estate, hospitality and asset management company Dominvs Group and distributor firm Euro Car Parts.
Krishan and Shyam Sedani won a Special Award for Young Business Persons of the Year for Quality Foods Online Ltd and Navita Yadav of financial solutions firm Apex Group won the award in the Professional Impact category.
“You represent so many of the values that help our communities thrive — ambition, hard work and inclusivity, to name just a few. This is why it is wonderful to see so many British Asian change-makers being recognised,” added Starmer.
It comes as the Labour Party’s first annual party conference since he took charge at 10 Downing Street in early July starts in Liverpool on Sunday.
The so-called political honeymoon of the new government that was voted in with a thumping majority, defeating the Sunak-led Conservatives in the general election, has proved short-lived with Starmer and several of his Cabinet members under pressure over accepting expensive gifts.
They have faced a barrage of UK media reports around thousands of pounds worth of clothing from donors including Lord Waheed Alli, a Labour peer of Indo-Trinidadian-Guyanese heritage and the party’s key fundraiser.
An investigation by ‘The Sunday Times’ claimed that Alli presented Starmer nearly GBP 19,000 worth of clothing and spectacles this year. While these were all declared as per UK parliamentary rules, it has generated widespread commentary around the influence such gifts could generate for the donors.
Downing Street has dismissed undue influence but indicated that the Prime Minister and Cabinet ministers would no longer be accepting expenses towards clothing.
British Indian Cabinet Minister Lisa Nandy, who declared not receiving any such donations, defended her boss and colleagues amid the row.
“I don’t make any judgment about what other members of Parliament do. The only judgement I would make is, if they are breaking the rules and they are trying to hide what they are doing, that is when problems arise,” she said.
As Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, she pointed out that Starmer accepting exclusive football tickets was a sensible move as it saved on the “huge security detail”, which would be disruptive to other spectators and “cost the taxpayer a lot of money”.
Besides, the government is also coping with internal leaks over the high salary paid to Starmer’s chief of staff and a backlash over the government’s decision to withdraw a winter heating allowance for pensioners.
As a result, the latest Opinium survey for ‘The Observer’ in time for the party conference shows Starmer’s approval rating has plunged below that of Rishi Sunak for the first time since the election, suffering a huge 45-point drop since July. While 24 per cent of voters approve of the job he is doing, 50 per cent disapprove, giving him a net rating of -26 per cent. (PTI)
The post PM Keir Starmer hails contributions of Britain’s South Asian communities appeared first on Daily Excelsior.