The 2024 general election has resulted in a historic moment for the UK Parliament, with a record 29 Indian-origin members taking their seats in the House of Commons.
The Labour Party, which secured a landslide victory, boasts the most People of Indian Origin (PIO) MPs, with 19 representatives, including 12 first-time MPs. This influx signifies a transformative shift in the political landscape and highlights the increasing diversity within British politics.
Labour Party’s Indian-Origin MPs
Preet Kaur Gill: Retaining Birmingham Edgbaston, Preet Kaur Gill was born in Birmingham to Indian parents. Her father was the president of Guru Nanak Gurdwara, Smethwick, the UK’s first gurdwara. Gill has served as the Shadow Minister for International Development.
Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: Dhesi retains his seat in Slough. Born in Berkshire, Dhesi received much of his early education in Punjab before returning to the UK. He has degrees from University College London, Oxford, and Cambridge, and has been the MP for Slough since 2017.
Seema Malhotra: Holding onto Feltham and Heston, Malhotra co-founded the Fabian Women’s Network. She has been the MP for Feltham and Heston since 2011 and has served as a Shadow Minister for various departments.
Valerie Vaz: The sister of Keith Vaz, Valerie Vaz retained Walsall and Bloxwich. She set up Townsend Vaz as a qualified solicitor and became a Deputy District Judge. Vaz has been an MP since 2010 and has served as the House of Commons shadow leader.
Lisa Nandy: Winning in Wigan, Nandy has been an MP since 2010. She has served as Shadow Cabinet Minister for International Development and has degrees from Newcastle University and Birkbeck, University of London.
Navendu Mishra: Retaining Stockport, Mishra has been an MP since 2019. Before entering politics, he was a trade unionist and an organiser for Unison.
Nadia Whittome: Holding Nottingham East, Whittome was first elected in 2019 at the age of 23, becoming the UK’s youngest MP. She studied law at the University of Nottingham and worked as a care worker.
New Labour Entrants
Baggy Shanker: Winning Derby South, Shanker is a Sikh who works for Rolls-Royce. He has a history in local politics as a Labour councillor and was the leader of Derby City Council until June 2023.
Gurinder Singh Josan: Josan won the safe seat of Smethwick. Aged 51, he was appointed a CBE in 2019 for political service. He was previously a trustee of Guru Nanak Gurdwara, Smethwick.
Harpreet Uppal: Becoming Huddersfield’s first female MP, Uppal was born and raised in Fartown. Her father was a textile worker who emigrated from India in 1962.
Jas Athwal: Winning Ilford South, Athwal was born in Punjab and moved to the UK at the age of seven. He has been active in local politics for decades.
Dr Jeevun Sandher: Taking Loughborough from the Conservatives, Sandher is a British Sikh economist who leads the economics team at the New Economics Foundation.
Kanishka Narayan: Narayan won Vale of Glamorgan, becoming the first ethnic minority MP for a Welsh constituency. He has degrees from Oxford and Stanford and has advised ministers in the Cabinet Office.
Kirith Entwistle: Winning Bolton North East, Entwistle is of British Punjabi descent. Her family emigrated from Kenya and Delhi.
Satvir Kaur: Holding the Southampton Test, Kaur is a former Labour leader of Southampton City Council.
Warinder Juss: Winning Wolverhampton West, Juss has been active in the Labour Party for over 25 years and worked at a trade union law firm.
Sojan Joseph: Becoming the first Keralite MP in the British Parliament, Joseph won Ashford. He moved to the UK 22 years ago to work as an NHS nurse.
Sonia Kumar: Winning Dudley, Kumar is Dudley’s first-ever female MP.
Sureena Brackenbridge: Securing Wolverhampton North East, Brackenbridge served as Mayoress of Wolverhampton in 2021-22.
Conservative Party’s Indian-Origin MPs
Rishi Sunak: The outgoing Prime Minister retained his seat in Richmond and Northallerton. Despite his party’s overall losses, Sunak remains a prominent figure.
Suella Braverman: Winning Fareham and Waterlooville, Braverman has represented Fareham since 2015. She has a Goan-origin father and a Tamil-origin mother.
Priti Patel: Retaining Witham in Essex, Patel has been an MP since 2010. She is known for her strong stance on Brexit and has served in various ministerial roles.
Claire Coutinho: Holding East Surrey, Coutinho has been an MP since 2019. She has a background in social justice and government advisory roles.
Gagan Mohindra: Retaining South West Hertfordshire, Mohindra has been active in politics since 2002 and was first elected as an MP in 2019.
Shivani Raja: Winning Leicester East, Raja contested against fellow Indian-origin Labour candidate Rajesh Agrawal. The campaign focused on local issues such as the city’s Diwali lights.
Liberal Democrats and Independents
Munira Wilson: Retaining Twickenham, Wilson has been a significant figure for the Liberal Democrats, contributing to their gains in the election.
Iqbal Mohamed: Gaining Dewsbury and Batley as an Independent, Mohamed’s parents arrived in the UK from India in the 1960s.
Shockat Adam: Winning Leicester South, Adam is of Indian-Gujarati Muslim origin. His family moved to the UK from Malawi when he was three.
Historic Labour Victory
Keir Starmer’s appointment as the new Prime Minister marks the end of 14 years of Conservative rule. The general election not only brought a historic number of Indian-origin MPs into the House of Commons but also signalled a transformative shift in the UK’s political landscape. The new Parliament, with its diverse representation, reflects the evolving demographics and priorities of the nation.
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