Member

Some have sought to present my election and that of other independents as sinister or a threat to democracy. In fact, I was selected from 12 applicants to stand as the sole independent candidate in an open, rigorous and democratic process. My election had nothing to do with sectarian politics or caricatures about Muslim voters being manipulated by their spiritual leaders. It had everything to do with the state of our country and the raw anger over Tory complicity in, and Labour’s refusal to call out, the unfolding genocide in Palestine. The attacks on 7 October were appalling, and I reiterate the calls for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages on both sides and unfettered access to humanitarian aid. When the Prime Minister endorsed the right of the Israeli Government to cut off water and electricity to the people of Gaza, people in Dewsbury and Batley said, “No, not in our name.” What has happened in Gaza since is beyond words.