Iqbal Mohamed
Iqbal Mohamed | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of Parliament forDewsbury and Batley | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Majority | 6,934 (18.2%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Iqbal Hussain Mohamed Dewsbury,England |
| Political party | Independent(part of theIndependent Alliance) |
| Alma mater | Durham University |
| Website | imohamed4mp |
Iqbal Hussain Mohamedis a Britishindependentpolitician, engineer andIT consultantwho has served as theMember of ParliamentforDewsbury and Batleysince 2024.[1]Mohamed defeated Heather Iqbal of theLabour Partywhilst campaigning on a pro-Palestineplatform.[2][3]He became the first independent MP to be elected to a seat in Yorkshire since 1907.[4]
Early life and career
[edit]Mohamed was born inDewsburyinto an Indian Muslim family fromBharauch,Gujurat,where he attendedWestborough High SchoolandHuddersfield New Collegebefore attendingDurham Universitywhere he studied applied physics and electronics.[5][6]
Before his election as an MP, he worked in manufacturing and electrical engineering and later as a consultant in business and technology management.[5]
Member of Parliament
[edit]Mohamed was elected as an independent candidate in a shock victory, defeating hisLabour Partyrival by a margin of 6,934 votes. He was the first independent MP to be elected to a constituency in Yorkshire since the1907 Colne Valley by-election.[4]He was one of five independent candidates elected across England in the2024 general election,a result which is suggested to be in part a result of anger at Labour's stance on theIsrael-Hamas War.[7]
Mohamed's campaign focused on calling for a ceasefire and two-state solution to the widerIsraeli-Palestinian conflict,as well as tackling theUK cost of living crisis.[5]
Mohamed sponsored theIndependent—Green"Amendment B" to abolish thetwo child benefit cap,and voted in support of theScottish National Party's"Amendment D" to abolish the cap.[8][9]Both amendments were voted down by the Labour Party.[9]Shortly after the vote Iqbal Mohamed,Shockat Adam,Jeremy Corbyn,Adnan Hussain,andAyoub Khanproduced a joint letter decrying thetwo major partiesand stating the need for a caring alternative.[10]Adam and Corbyn had been in discussions with Khan, Hussain, and Mohamed regarding how to impact policy, with Adam stating that the five were "looking at options that would give us more access to the levers of power".[11]On 2 September 2024, Mohamed was a founding member of theIndependent Allianceparliamentary group.[12]
Iqbal Mohamed voted against theTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill,instead arguing to increase funding to and quality of palative care.[13][14]
In December 2024, Conservative MPRichard Holdensubmitted aten-minute rulebill to ban marriages between first cousins.[15]Iqbal Mohamed agreed that there were health risks associated with first-cousin marriages but argued against the bill, stating that a ban would be ineffective and the issues would be best addressed through education programmes to raise awareness of the risks. Mohammed also argued for more education about the risks of first-cousin marriage, and for test screening for children of prospective couples.[16]TheLabour governmentsaid it had no plans to adopt the bill.[17][18]
References
[edit]- ^Siddique, Haroon (7 July 2024)."Who are the pro-Gaza independents who unseated Labour MPs?".The Guardian.Retrieved9 July2024.
- ^"Dewsbury and Batley - General election results 2024".BBC News.Retrieved5 July2024.
- ^Imran, Yousra Samir (1 July 2024)."Is Labour trying to split the Muslim vote in Dewsbury and Batley?".Hyphen.Retrieved5 July2024.
- ^abJones, Steve (5 July 2024)."Dewsbury voters welcome historic independent MP".BBC News.Retrieved6 July2024.
- ^abc"Who am I?".Iqbal Mohamed. Archived fromthe originalon 6 July 2024.Retrieved6 July2024.
- ^"Gujarat-origin Iqbal Mohamed wins UK's Yorkshire seat".english.gujaratsamachar.7 July 2024.Retrieved14 July2024.
- ^"Pro-Gaza candidates dent Labour's UK election victory".Reuters.Retrieved6 July2024.
- ^Green, Daniel (18 July 2024)."King's Speech: Government to face four amendments on two-child benefit cap".LabourList.Retrieved4 September2024.
- ^abstaff, Politics co uk (23 July 2024)."How every MP voted on the two-child benefit cap amendment".Politics.co.uk.Retrieved4 September2024.
- ^Gye, Hugo; Vaughan, Richard (24 July 2024)."Corbyn trying to form rebel alliance to fight Starmer after Labour benefits revolt".inews.Archivedfrom the original on 24 August 2024.Retrieved3 September2024.
- ^"Jeremy Corbyn in talks to form new group with independent MPs".BBC News.9 August 2024.Retrieved3 September2024.
- ^Elgot, Jessica (2 September 2024)."Jeremy Corbyn to form alliance with four independent pro-Gaza MPs".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077.Retrieved2 September2024.
- ^"Dewsbury and Batley MP Iqbal Mohamed will vote against assisted dying bill".Dewsbury Reporter.28 November 2024.Retrieved12 December2024.
- ^Voce, Antonio; Clarke, Seán (29 November 2024)."How did your MP vote on assisted dying?".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077.Retrieved12 December2024.
- ^Wheeler, Richard (9 December 2024)."Parliament to be warned of risks of marrying your own cousin".The Independent.Retrieved11 December2024.
- ^"Marriage (Prohibited Degrees of Relationship) Bill - Hansard - UK Parliament".hansard.parliament.uk.16 December 2024.Retrieved16 December2024.
- ^"MP calls for first-cousin marriage to be banned".BBC News.10 December 2024.Retrieved10 December2024.
- ^Wheeler, Richard (10 December 2024)."MP opposes calls to ban first-cousin marriage in the UK".The Standard.Retrieved10 December2024.
External links
[edit]