Sajid Javid
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Sajid Javid (; born 5 December 1969) is a British politician who served as
Secretary of State for Health and Social Care The secretary of state for health and social care, also referred to as the health secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department of Health and Social Care. The incumbent ...
from June 2021 to July 2022, having previously served as
Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...
from 2018 to 2019 and
Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
from 2019 to 2020. A member of the
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
, he has been
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
for
Bromsgrove Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England, about northeast of Worcester and southwest of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 (39,644 in the wider Bromsgrove/Catshill urban area). Bromsgrove is the main town in the ...
since
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. Born in
Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...
, Lancashire, to a
British Pakistani British Pakistanis ( ur, (Bratānia men maqīm pākstānī); also known as Pakistani British people or Pakistani Britons) are British people, citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose ancestral roots lie in Pakistan. This includes ...
family, Javid was raised largely in
Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
. He studied Economics and Politics at the
University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a public university , public research university in Exeter, Devon, England, United Kingdom. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of Min ...
, where he joined the Conservative Party. Working in banking, he rose to become a Managing Director at
Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank AG (), sometimes referred to simply as Deutsche, is a German multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the New York Sto ...
. He was elected to the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
in May 2010. Under the
coalition government A coalition government is a form of government in which political parties cooperate to form a government. The usual reason for such an arrangement is that no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an election, an atypical outcome in ...
of
David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
he was a Junior Treasury Minister before being promoted to Cameron's
Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...
as
Culture Secretary The secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, also referred to as the culture secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for strategy and policy across the Department f ...
, following
Maria Miller Dame Maria Frances Miller'MILLER, Rt Hon. Maria (Frances Lewis)', Who's Who 2013, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2013; online edn, Oxford University Press, December 2012; online edn, November 2012 ...
's resignation. After the 2015 general election, Cameron promoted Javid to
Business Secretary The secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The incumbent is a mem ...
. Javid was a prominent supporter of the unsuccessful
Britain Stronger in Europe Britain Stronger in Europe (formally The In Campaign Limited) was an advocacy group which campaigned in favour of the United Kingdom's continued membership of the European Union in the 2016 British referendum. It was launched at the Old Truma ...
campaign for the UK to remain in the
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. Following the 2016 referendum vote to leave the European Union, he went on to serve under Cameron's successor Prime Minister
Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cab ...
, as
Communities Secretary The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, also referred to as the levelling up secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction o ...
from 2016 to 2018. When
Amber Rudd Amber Augusta Rudd (born 1 August 1963) is a British former politician who served as Home Secretary from 2016 to 2018 and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2018 to 2019. She was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Hastings and Rye, fir ...
resigned as a result of the Windrush scandal in 2018, Javid was appointed as her successor as
Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...
, becoming the first
British Asian British Asians (also referred to as Asian Britons) are British citizens of Asian descent. They constitute a significant and growing minority of the people living in the United Kingdom, with 6.9% of the population identifying as Asian/Asian Brit ...
to hold one of the
great offices of state The Great Offices of State are senior offices in the UK government. They are the Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary or, alternatively, three of those offices excluding the Prime Minister. Current ...
. After May's resignation, Javid stood for election as Leader of the Conservative Party in the 2019 leadership contest, finishing in fourth place. The successful candidate,
Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...
, appointed him Chancellor of the Exchequer in his first Cabinet. Javid resigned as Chancellor during the February 2020 cabinet reshuffle after refusing a demand from Johnson and his chief adviser
Dominic Cummings Dominic Mckenzie Cummings (born 25 November 1971) is a British political strategist who served as Chief Adviser to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson from 24 July 2019 until Cummings resigned on 13 November 2020. From 2007 to 2014, he was a ...
that he dismiss his advisers, and was succeeded by
Rishi Sunak Rishi Sunak (; born 12 May 1980) is a British politician who has served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party since October 2022. He previously held two Cabinet of ...
. In June 2021, following the resignation of
Matt Hancock Matthew John David Hancock (born 2 October 1978) is a British politician who served as Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General from 2015 to 2016, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from January to July 201 ...
, he was reappointed to Johnson's cabinet as Health Secretary. This made him a prominent figure in the British government response to the
COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom The COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the United Kingdom, it has resulted in confir ...
. He supported an end to most generalised public health restrictions such as face mask mandates until emergence of the
Omicron variant Omicron (B.1.1.529) is a variant of SARS-CoV-2 first reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) by the Network for Genomics Surveillance in South Africa on 24 November 2021. It was first detected in Botswana and has spread to become the ...
in November 2021, and expanded the vaccination programme. Javid resigned as Health Secretary on 5 July 2022, and was the first of 61 Conservative MPs to resign during the
government crisis A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
which culminated in Johnson's own resignation. He was succeeded by
Steve Barclay Stephen Paul Barclay (born 3 May 1972) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care since October 2022, having previously held the position from July to September 2022 under Boris Johnson. He served a ...
. Javid stood to replace Johnson in the July-September 2022 Conservative Party leadership election, but withdrew from the race before he could be nominated, and subsequently returned to the backbenches. In December 2022, Javid said that he would not stand for re-election at the next general election, due to be held no later than January 2025.


Early life

Javid was born on 5 December 1969 in
Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...
, Lancashire, one of five sons of Pakistani Punjabi immigrant parents. His family were farmers from the village of
Rajana Rajana is a town of district Toba Tek Singh, Punjab, Pakistan. It is 15 km away from Toba Tek Singh. It is located west of Faisalabad, east of Multan, south of Toba Tek Singh and north of Kamalia and Vehari. The closest villages are Chak ...
near
Toba Tek Singh Toba Tek Singh ( pnb, , ur, ) is a city and capital of Toba Tek Singh District in the Pakistani province of Punjab. It is surrounded by cities of Gojra, Kamalia, Rajana, Pir Mahal and Shorkot. History The city and district is named af ...
, Punjab, from where they migrated to the UK in the 1960s. His father worked as a bus driver. His mother did not speak English until she had been in the UK for ten years. His family moved from Lancashire to Stapleton Road, Bristol, as his parents took over a shop there, and the family lived in a two-bedroom flat above it. Javid is able to hold a conversation in broken Punjabi. Despite having an
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
ic upbringing, Javid no longer practises any religion. As a teenager, Javid developed an interest in
financial market A financial market is a market in which people trade financial securities and derivatives at low transaction costs. Some of the securities include stocks and bonds, raw materials and precious metals, which are known in the financial markets ...
s, following the Thatcher government's privatisations. He says that, at the age of fourteen, he borrowed £500 from a bank to invest in shares and became a regular reader of the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
''. From 1981 to 1986, Javid attended Downend School, a state comprehensive near
Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
. At school it was recommended that he should be a TV repairman. Javid has said he was told that he could not study maths at
O Level The O-Level (Ordinary Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education. It was introduced in place of the School Certificate in 1951 as part of an educational reform alongside the more in-depth ...
so he had to get his father to pay for it. When he later witnessed a video showing an assault on a Syrian refugee, he remarked that it was reminiscent of bullying he had experienced at school; Javid said he faced racial abuse when younger, being called a ' Paki', and having faced abuse from " National Front skinheads". Speaking in 2014, Javid said that while at school: "I was naughty, more interested in watching ''
Grange Hill ''Grange Hill'' is a British Children's television series, children's television drama series, originally produced by the BBC and portraying life in a typical Comprehensive school (England and Wales), comprehensive school. The show began its ru ...
'' than homework". After being told by his school that he could only study two A Levels when he believed he needed three to go to university, Javid subsequently attended Filton Technical College from 1986 to 1988, and finally the
University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a public university , public research university in Exeter, Devon, England, United Kingdom. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of Min ...
from 1988 to 1991, completing a BA in economics and politics. Javid was a
trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...
of the London Early Years Foundation, a
governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
of Normand Croft Community School, and has led an expedition to the summit of
Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It has three volcanic cones: Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world: above sea level and ab ...
in Tanzania, the highest mountain in Africa, to show his support of
Help the Aged Help the Aged was a United Kingdom based international charity founded in 1961 by Cecil Jackson-Cole and Hugh Faulkner to help disadvantaged older people who were affected by poverty, isolation and neglect. It merged with Age Concern in 2009 to f ...
.


Early political activism

At university, he joined the Conservative Party. In 1990, aged 20, Javid attended the annual
Conservative Party Conference The Conservative Party Conference (CPC) is a four-day national conference event held by the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. It takes place every year around October during the British party conference season, when the House of Commons is ...
for the first time and campaigned against the Thatcher government's decision that year to join the
European Exchange Rate Mechanism The European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM II) is a system introduced by the European Economic Community on 1 January 1999 alongside the introduction of a single currency, the euro (replacing ERM 1 and the euro's predecessor, the ECU) as ...
(ERM). He was handing out leaflets against the policy when he first met TV presenter
Jeremy Paxman Jeremy Dickson Paxman (born 11 May 1950) is an English broadcaster, journalist, author, and television presenter. Born in Leeds, Paxman was educated at Malvern College and St Catharine's College, Cambridge, where he edited the undergraduate new ...
. He has since said that Paxman first interviewed him at that same conference. From 1992 until 1996, he lived in New York City and rose to become the youngest Vice-President of
Chase Manhattan Bank JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase Bank or often as Chase, is an American national bank headquartered in New York City, that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of the U.S. multinational banking and fina ...
and during this period, he had a spell as an aide to
Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
nominee
Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 198 ...
's successful 1993 New York mayoral campaign. In 1998, Javid was selected as prospective Parliamentary candidate for
Brent North Brent North is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 1997 by Barry Gardiner of the Labour Party. History Created in 1974 from the former seats of Wembley North and Wembley South, Brent North was a Co ...
. However, he later withdrew. He worked as an adviser to Conservative MP
Gary Streeter Sir Gary Nicholas Streeter (born 2 October 1955) is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. Since 1997 he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for South West Devon, previously holding the nearby seat of Plymouth Sutton between ...
, the then
Shadow Secretary of State for International Development The shadow cabinet minister for international development is the lead spokesperson for the United Kingdom's Official Opposition on issues related to international aid, most notably to the third world. The shadow cabinet minister holds the Ministe ...
.


Banking career

Javid had an 18-year City career, during which he rose to become a board member of
Deutsche Bank International Deutsch or Deutsche may refer to: *''Deutsch'' or ''(das) Deutsche'': the German language, in Germany and other places *''Deutsche'': Germans, as a weak masculine, feminine or plural demonym * Deutsch (word), originally referring to the Germanic v ...
. Javid joined
Chase Manhattan Bank JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase Bank or often as Chase, is an American national bank headquartered in New York City, that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of the U.S. multinational banking and fina ...
in New York City immediately after graduation, working mostly in Latin America and selling Mexican government bonds prior to the
Mexican peso crisis The Mexican peso crisis was a currency crisis sparked by the Mexican government's sudden devaluation of the peso against the U.S. dollar in December 1994, which became one of the first international financial crises ignited by capital flight. ...
. Aged 25, he became a vice president. A 2012 article says he was vice-chairman, although his own website, among others, affirms the more probable claim that he was a vice president, a more junior role at the bank. He returned to London in 1997, and later joined Deutsche Bank as a
director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...
in 2000. In 2004, he became a managing director at Deutsche Bank and, the following year, global head of Emerging Markets Structuring. He was also an Advisor to
Lufthansa Deutsche Lufthansa AG (), commonly shortened to Lufthansa, is the flag carrier of Germany. When combined with its subsidiaries, it is the second- largest airline in Europe in terms of passengers carried. Lufthansa is one of the five founding m ...
in Germany. In 2007, he relocated to Singapore as head of Deutsche Bank's credit trading, equity convertibles, commodities and private equity businesses in Asia, and was appointed a board member of Deutsche Bank International Limited. He left Deutsche Bank in 2009 to pursue a career in politics. His earnings at Deutsche Bank would have been roughly £3 million a year at the time he left and the ''
Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format. In October 2009, after be ...
'' once estimated his career change would have required him to take a 98% pay cut. Javid applied for and held non-domicile status for six years during his banking career which allowed him to avoid paying tax in the UK on his overseas earnings.


Political career


Member of Parliament

On 28 May 2009, the sitting MP for
Bromsgrove Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England, about northeast of Worcester and southwest of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 (39,644 in the wider Bromsgrove/Catshill urban area). Bromsgrove is the main town in the ...
,
Julie Kirkbride Julie Kirkbride (born 5 June 1960) is a British Conservative politician. She was the Member of Parliament for the Conservative stronghold of Bromsgrove from the 1997 to the 2010 general elections. Early life Kirkbride was born in Halifax, Wes ...
, announced that she would be standing down at the next general election in light of the expenses scandal; Kirkbride had represented the constituency since
1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
. Her resignation was confirmed in December 2009, after she attempted to withdraw it. After a selection contest held by the Bromsgrove Conservative Association on 6 February 2010, in which he received over 70% of the votes cast by its members, Javid was announced as the official Conservative Party parliamentary candidate for the 2010 general election. The other candidates up for selection included
Ruth Davidson Ruth Elizabeth Davidson, Baroness Davidson of Lundin Links (born 10 November 1978), is a Scottish politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party from 2011 to 2019 and Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party in the Scottish ...
and Tina Stowell. On 6 May 2010, Javid received 22,558 votes, winning the seat by a majority of 11,308 votes. In terms of the number of votes cast in the constituency, this was an increase on the majority of 10,080 at the previous general election, though was a reduction when compared both to the actual number of votes his predecessor had received (24,387) and to the Conservatives' percentage share of the vote (43.7% versus 51.0% in 2005). The constituency's boundaries had reformed prior to the election. In the 2019 general election, Javid received 34,408 votes and was returned as the MP for Bromsgrove, receiving 63.4% of the vote and increasing his already sizeable majority to 23,106 over Labour.


Political recognition

According to former
Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...
Jack Straw John Whitaker Straw (born 3 August 1946) is a British politician who served in the Cabinet from 1997 to 2010 under the Labour governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. He held two of the traditional Great Offices of State, as Home Secretary ...
, those MPs first elected in 2010 "are the best new MPs for over thirty years", and he identified Javid as one of six Conservative MPs that he believed had "already made an impact in the first term". Javid was also one of six new MPs profiled by the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'', and was named as the Newcomer of 2010 by the
ConservativeHome ConservativeHome is a British right-wing blog which supports, but is independent of, the Conservative Party. It was first established by Tim Montgomerie in 2005 with the aim of arguing for a broad conservative spectrum, which is serious about bo ...
blog. In October 2012,
Iain Dale Iain Campbell Dale (born 15 July 1962) is a British broadcaster, author and political commentator, and a former publisher and book retailer. He has been a blogger since 2002. In 2005, he became the first openly gay Conservative candidate to c ...
in ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...
'' included Javid in his list of "Top 100 most influential figures from the Right". Dale wrote: "His fast rise up the greasy pole into George Osborne's inner circle is not only proof of this man's ambition but also his talent." Nicholas Watt in ''The Guardian'' also suggested that Javid could rise to the top. In ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' 2014 right-wing power list, Javid moved up 18 places to #8, with the article stating that he had emerged "as the senior member of the 2010 intake" and that if "the Tories want to jump a generation, then a Javid leadership candidacy would provide the opportunity." The 2014 GG2 Power List ranked Javid as the most influential British Asian, and, at the accompanying GG2 Leadership Awards event on 5 November 2014, then-Prime Minister
David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
described Javid as "the brilliant Asian man who I asked to join the Cabinet" and said that "I want to hear that title 'Prime Minister' followed by a British Asian name." In July 2014, ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'' magazine compared Javid to
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
and suggested that Javid could become the next
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As modern pr ...
. In January 2015, Javid was awarded the Politician of the Year award at the
British Muslim Awards The British Muslim Awards are an annual award ceremony that honours the success and achievements of British Muslim individuals, groups and businesses. It was established in 2013. Overview The British Muslim Awards was founded by Oceanic Consulti ...
. In November 2017, Sajid Javid won Patchwork Foundation's MP of the Year Award. In June 2018, a polling of Tory activists on ConservativeHome showed Javid was popular as a potential party leader. The poll is seen as a reliable barometer of grassroots opinion, although it is known to shift quickly. A separate poll of Conservative Party members by
YouGov YouGov is a British international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm, headquartered in the UK, with operations in Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. In 2007, it acquired US company Polimetrix, and sinc ...
in July 2018 also showed he had high levels of support to become party leader. YouGov found Javid reached the height of the charts on two measures; with 64% thinking he is "up to the job" and 69% calling him "competent".


Campaign against anti-Semitism

Javid's appointment as Home Secretary was welcomed by a number of Jewish organisations, including the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the
Jewish Leadership Council The Jewish Leadership Council (previously known as the Jewish Community Leadership Council) is an organisation in the United Kingdom, founded in 2003, whose declared aim is to forward the interests of the organised Jewish community in Britain. ...
. Previously, as Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Javid wrote to all local council leaders to ask them to adopt the IHRA's definition of anti-Semitism. In 2015, addressing the
Holocaust Educational Trust The Holocaust Educational Trust (HET) is a British charity, based in London, whose aim is to "educate young people of every background about the Holocaust and the important lessons to be learned for today." One of the Trust's main achievements ...
's annual dinner, the then Business Secretary Javid condemned "dinner party anti-Semites" and said, "I can't remember the last time I spoke to a Jewish friend or colleague who hasn't, at some point, found themselves sitting awkwardly at a dinner party while a fellow guest railed against the international ' kosher conspiracy'". In 2018, Javid suggested
Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialist ...
should quit as Labour leader following his decision to attend a 2014 wreath-laying at a cemetery which contained the graves of many Palestinian activists; including
Salah Khalaf use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = Carthage, Tunisia , death_cause = Assassination , resting_place = , resting_place_coord ...
and Atef Bseiso, members of the
Black September Organization The Black September Organization (BSO) ( ar, منظمة أيلول الأسود, translit=Munaẓẓamat Aylūl al-Aswad) was a Palestinian militant organization founded in 1970. Besides other actions, the group was responsible for the assass ...
.


Criticism

In March 2018, Javid called
Momentum In Newtonian mechanics, momentum (more specifically linear momentum or translational momentum) is the product of the mass and velocity of an object. It is a vector quantity, possessing a magnitude and a direction. If is an object's mass an ...
"neo-fascist" in the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
chamber. Momentum threatened legal action if he repeated the comment outside
Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
where
parliamentary privilege Parliamentary privilege is a legal immunity enjoyed by members of certain legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made in the course of their legislative duties. ...
does not protect him against a lawsuit. MPs including
Jon Trickett Jon Hedley Trickett (born 2 July 1950) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hemsworth in West Yorkshire since a 1996 by-election. He was Shadow Lord President of the Council from 2016 to 2020 and s ...
, Chris Williamson, Alex Sobel, Clive Lewis and
Caroline Lucas Caroline Patricia Lucas (born 9 December 1960) is a British politician who has twice led the Green Party of England and Wales and has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brighton Pavilion since the 2010 general election. She was re-elected ...
demanded Javid withdraw the statement and apologise. In July 2018, Javid back-tracked after
Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialist ...
had threatened legal action for linking Corbyn with
Holocaust denial Holocaust denial is an antisemitic conspiracy theory that falsely asserts that the Nazi genocide of Jews, known as the Holocaust, is a myth, fabrication, or exaggeration. Holocaust deniers make one or more of the following false statements: ...
. Labour MPs accused Javid of "peddling a lie" and called on
Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cab ...
to intervene. Javid rejected a request by the
Muslim Council of Britain The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) is a national umbrella body with over 500 mosques and educational and charitable associations affiliated to it. It includes national, regional, local, and specialist Muslim organisations and institutions from ...
for an independent inquiry into allegations of
Islamophobia Islamophobia is the fear of, hatred of, or prejudice against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general, especially when seen as a geopolitical force or a source of terrorism. The scope and precise definition of the term ''Islamophobia'' ...
within the Conservative Party. Javid said: "The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) does not represent Muslims in this country" and added "we don't deal with the MCB". Harun Khan, the MCB's secretary-general said, "it sadly indicates that the party has no interest in dealing with this matter with the seriousness it deserves". Javid was rebuked by MPs and human rights campaigners for tweeting about "Asian paedophiles", with the director of the
Runnymede Trust The Runnymede Trust is a race equality think tank in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1968 by Jim Rose and Anthony Lester as an independent source for generating intelligence for a multi-ethnic Britain through research, network building, ...
commenting: "racialising this crime and focusing on the ethnicity of the sexual predators has done little to address why and how these victims were vulnerable to the prey of these sexual predators". ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' suggested Javid had ulterior motives with an impending leadership battle and said, "If Javid imagines his racial and religious origins offer any defence to the charge of incendiary race-baiting, he must be out of his tiny mind." His comments were defended by
Fraser Nelson Fraser Andrew Nelson (born 14 May 1973) is a British political journalist and editor of ''The Spectator'' magazine. Early and personal life Nelson was born in Truro, Cornwall, England but raised in Nairn, Highland, Scotland. He attended Nairn A ...
, editor of ''
The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. It is owned by Frederick Barclay, who also owns ''The ...
'', who said: "The way to stop populists is for mainstream politicians to address difficult and important issues calmly and directly."
Baroness Warsi Sayeeda Hussain Warsi, Baroness Warsi, (; born 28 March 1971) is a British lawyer, politician, and member of the House of Lords who served as co-Chairwoman of the Conservative Party from 2010 to 2012. She served in the Cameron–Clegg coaliti ...
has criticised Javid for dog-whistling: "he should read what these people are saying, because however much he dog-whistles, however much he panders to the right of our party, sadly the right of our party still believe he's far too Muslim to be leader of the party". In August 2019,
John McDonnell John Martin McDonnell (born 8 September 1951) is a British politician who served as Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2015 to 2020. A member of the Labour Party, he has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Hayes and Harlington since 1997. ...
questioned Javid's suitability for the office of
Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
, citing his background in sales of
collateralized debt obligation A collateralized debt obligation (CDO) is a type of structured asset-backed security (ABS). Originally developed as instruments for the corporate debt markets, after 2002 CDOs became vehicles for refinancing mortgage-backed securities (MBS).Lepke ...
s (CDOs) and alleged links to tax avoidance schemes. Javid held several senior executive positions in investment banking, including a role with responsibility for sale of CDOs, and during his time
Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank AG (), sometimes referred to simply as Deutsche, is a German multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the New York Sto ...
had operated a tax avoidance scheme known as "dark blue" that channelled bankers' bonus payments through the
Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territory—the largest by population in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located to the ...
.


Conservative leadership elections


Joint leadership bid, 2016

In June 2016, following
David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
's resignation after the result of the
EU referendum This is a list of referendums related to the European Union, or referendums related to the European Communities, which were predecessors of the European Union. Since 1972, a total of 48 referendums have been held by EU member states, candidate st ...
, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Stephen Crabb announced that he would be standing in the 2016 Conservative leadership election, on a "joint ticket" with Javid. If Crabb became
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
, Javid would become
Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
. Crabb withdrew from the contest after the first round of voting amongst Conservative Members of Parliament. Shortly after withdrawing his bid, Crabb resigned from the Cabinet following allegations that he had sent suggestive messages to a young woman. In an interview with the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'', Javid said he had expected to be sacked when
Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cab ...
became Prime Minister in July 2016, instead he was moved across in a re-shuffle to
Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, also referred to as the levelling up secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction o ...
, and Crabb subsequently took a post as Parliamentary Chairman of "
Conservative Friends of Israel Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI) is a British parliamentary group affiliated to the Conservative Party, which is dedicated to strengthening business, cultural and political ties between the United Kingdom and Israel, as well as between the Br ...
".


Conservative leadership bid, 2019

In May 2019, Javid launched his bid to become Conservative leader with pledge to deliver Brexit and to "bridge divides" by promoting the shared values which unite Britain. He finished in fourth place. Javid's campaign was advised by Matthew Elliott, former chief executive of
Vote Leave Vote Leave was a campaigning organisation that supported a "Leave" vote in the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum. On 13 April 2016 it was designated by the Electoral Commission as the official campaign in favour of leavi ...
. The campaign received funding from both Remain- and Leave-supporting Conservative donors. Javid indicated he would be prepared to take Britain out of the EU without a deal, and called for no-deal preparations to be stepped up. Javid set out his Brexit strategy in a piece for the ''
Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...
'', declaring "no, no, no" to the idea of allowing either another Brexit referendum, an early general election or revoking of Article 50. Javid also proposed covering costs for implementing any new technology at the Irish border in a bid to try and break the deadlock over the Northern Ireland backstop. During the campaign, Javid also opposed the prorogation of parliament in order to deliver Brexit. He commented during the
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
Conservative Party leadership debate, "You don't deliver on democracy by trashing democracy... We're not selecting a dictator of our country." A third-party tweet which contained part of this quote on his leadership campaign Twitter account was deleted on 29 August 2019, the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson's controversial decision to prorogue parliament. In a
BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
interview on 31 August, Javid defended the prime minister's prorogation of parliament. The prorogation was ruled to be unlawful on 24 September by the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. Javid said he was prepared to scrap the 45p rate of income tax entirely in a bid to inject more "dynamism" into the economy, pointing to the fact that tax revenues increased after the decision to cut the 50p rate of income tax to 45p and his role in making the case for it when he worked in the Treasury. Javid was eliminated from the contest after achieving fewer votes than his three remaining competitors in the fourth round of voting.


Conservative leadership bid, 2022

On 10 July 2022, Javid announced his candidacy to replace Johnson in the
July 2022 Conservative Party leadership election July is the seventh month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is the fourth of seven months to have a length of 31 days. It was named by the Roman Senate in honour of Roman general Julius Caesar in 44 B.C., it being the mont ...
, but withdrew prior to the first ballot.


Early Parliamentary years (2010–2013)

Javid was briefly a member of the
Work and Pensions Select Committee The Work and Pensions Select Committee is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the committee is to examine the expenditure, administration, and policy of the Department for Work and Pensi ...
from June to November 2010, before relinquishing this position when he was appointed
Parliamentary Private Secretary A Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) is a Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom who acts as an unpaid assistant to a minister or shadow minister. They are selected from backbench MPs as the 'eyes and ears' of the minister in the H ...
(PPS) to John Hayes, then Minister of State for Further Education at the
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills , type = Department , logo = Department for Business, Innovation and Skills logo.svg , logo_width = 200px , logo_caption = , picture = File:Лондан. 2014. Жнівень 26.JPG , seal = , se ...
. Javid was one of the first MPs to become a PPS from the 2010 intake. On 14 October 2011, as part of a small reshuffle prompted by the resignation of
Liam Fox Liam Fox (born 22 September 1961) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for International Trade from 2016 to 2019 and Secretary of State for Defence from 2010 to 2011. A member of the Conservative Party, Fox has served as t ...
as
Defence Secretary A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...
, Javid was promoted to become PPS to then
Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
,
George Osborne George Gideon Oliver Osborne (born Gideon Oliver Osborne; 23 May 1971) is a former British politician and newspaper editor who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2010 to 2016 and as First Secretary of State from 2015 to 2016 in the ...
.


Treasury ministerial roles

In September 2012, Javid joined Osborne's Ministerial team as
Economic Secretary to the Treasury The Economic Secretary to the Treasury is the sixth-most senior ministerial post in His Majesty's Treasury, after the First Lord of the Treasury, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the Paymaster-General and the ...
. He was later promoted to
Financial Secretary to the Treasury The financial secretary to the Treasury is a mid-level ministerial post in HM Treasury, His Majesty's Treasury. It is nominally the fifth most significant ministerial role within the Treasury after the First Lord of the Treasury, first lord of th ...
on 7 October 2013, replacing Greg Clark. As Economic Secretary, Javid was responsible for overseeing government plans for state-owned
Royal Bank of Scotland Group NatWest Group plc is a British banking and insurance holding company, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The group operates a wide variety of banking brands offering personal and business banking, private banking, investment banking, insurance and ...
and
Lloyds Banking Group Lloyds Banking Group is a British financial institution formed through the acquisition of HBOS by Lloyds TSB in 2009. It is one of the UK's largest financial services organisations, with 30 million customers and 65,000 employees. Lloyds Ban ...
. Javid proposed to scrap rebate taxes for overseas investors in a bid to boost the competitiveness of asset management in the UK. In 2013, Javid was influential in getting the beer duty escalator abolished and cutting beer duty for the first time in over a half-century. In his honour, a commemorative beer was brewed called "Sajid's Choice" and served in the Strangers' Bar at the House of Commons and sold locally in
Bromsgrove Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England, about northeast of Worcester and southwest of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 (39,644 in the wider Bromsgrove/Catshill urban area). Bromsgrove is the main town in the ...
.


Culture Secretary

On 9 April 2014,
David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
appointed Javid to the
Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...
as
Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport The secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, also referred to as the culture secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for strateg ...
and
Minister for Equalities The minister for women and equalities is a ministerial position in the United Kingdom which leads the Government Equalities Office. This is an independent department within the wider Cabinet Office that has responsibility for addressing all form ...
following the resignation of
Maria Miller Dame Maria Frances Miller'MILLER, Rt Hon. Maria (Frances Lewis)', Who's Who 2013, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2013; online edn, Oxford University Press, December 2012; online edn, November 2012 ...
over her expenses. This made him the first MP to have been elected at the 2010 general election to join the Cabinet, and the first
British Pakistani British Pakistanis ( ur, (Bratānia men maqīm pākstānī); also known as Pakistani British people or Pakistani Britons) are British people, citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose ancestral roots lie in Pakistan. This includes ...
MP to lead a
Government Department Ministry or department (also less commonly used secretariat, office, or directorate) are designations used by first-level executive bodies in the machinery of governments that manage a specific sector of public administration." Энцикло ...
. Shortly after his appointment, he was made a
Privy Councillor A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...
. Javid defended media freedom and the right of the press to investigate wrongdoing by politicians and officials in his first appearance as Culture Secretary on BBC's ''
Question Time A question time in a parliament occurs when members of the parliament ask questions of government ministers (including the prime minister), which they are obliged to answer. It usually occurs daily while parliament is sitting, though it can be ca ...
'' programme. "The media are a cornerstone of our democracy, their freedom is very important and if they want to investigate wrongdoing by politicians or any other public official they should do that and nothing should stop them from doing that." It was reported in May 2015 that in March, Javid had opposed plans by then-
Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...
Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cab ...
to give
Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...
"counter-extremism powers" to vet British television programmes before they were broadcast. In a letter to
David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
, he commented that countries which had similar arrangements "are not known for their compliance with rights related to freedom of expression and the Government may not wish to be associated with such regimes". His speech as Culture Secretary to the
Union of Jewish Students The Union of Jewish Students of the United Kingdom and Ireland (UJS) represents Jewish students in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is a member of the World Union of Jewish Students (WUJS) and the European Union of Jewish Students (EUJS) and ...
' Annual Conference 2014 about the importance of diversity and free expression in the world of culture has been hailed by
Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman, Lady Walney (born 5 May 1986), is an English political journalist and the assistant editor of ''The Spectator''. In 2015, she was named Journalist of the Year at the Political Studies Association's annual awards. Early life Born ...
of ''The Spectator'' as "one of the finest speeches from a government minister I have ever read." In 2015, at a Board of Deputies of British Jews hustings event, Javid stated that publicly funded cultural institutions that boycott Israel risk having their government grants cut. Citing a boycott of the UK Jewish Film Festival by the
Tricycle Theatre The Kiln Theatre (formerly the Tricycle Theatre) is a theatre located in Kilburn, in the London Borough of Brent, England. Since 1980, the theatre has presented a wide range of plays reflecting the cultural diversity of the area, as well as ...
in Kilburn, Javid said: "I have made it absolutely clear what might happen to their he theatre'sfunding if they try, or if anyone tries, that kind of thing again." British playwright
Caryl Churchill Caryl Lesley Churchill (born 3 September 1938) is a British playwright known for dramatising the abuses of power, for her use of non- naturalistic techniques, and for her exploration of sexual politics and feminist themes.
raised concerns about political interference in the arts, and questioned: "All
Charlie Hebdo ''Charlie Hebdo'' (; meaning ''Charlie Weekly'') is a French satirical weekly magazine, featuring cartoons, reports, polemics, and jokes. Stridently non-conformist in tone, the publication has been described as Anti-racism, anti-racist, sceptica ...
? Except when freedom of expression means freedom to criticise Israel".


Business Secretary

Following the 2015 general election, Javid was appointed as
Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills The secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The incumbent is a memb ...
in the new Conservative majority government under Prime Minister
David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
. He was at this time described as "the most robust right-winger in the cabinet", and a "true
Thatcherite Thatcherism is a form of British conservative ideology named after Conservative Party leader Margaret Thatcher that relates to not just her political platform and particular policies but also her personal character and general style of manag ...
". After being appointed as Business Secretary, Javid said that there would be "significant changes" to strike laws under the new Conservative government, announcing that strikes affecting essential public services will need the backing of 40% of eligible union members under new government plans. Javid believed the UK ought to remain in the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
. He described himself as a Eurosceptic with "no time for ever-closer union", but he wrote in ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...
'', "Just like Bank of England Governor
Mark Carney Mark Joseph Carney (born March 16, 1965) is a Canadian economist and banker who served as the governor of the Bank of Canada from 2008 to 2013 and the governor of the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020. Since October 2020, he is vice chairman an ...
and IMF head
Christine Lagarde Christine Madeleine Odette Lagarde (; née Lallouette, ; born 1 January 1956) is a French politician and lawyer who has been serving as President of the European Central Bank since 2019. She previously served as the 11th managing director of the ...
, I still believe that Britain is better off in. And that's all because of the Single Market. It's a great invention, one that even Lady Thatcher campaigned enthusiastically to create." In February 2017, it was revealed in court that Javid had ignored the advice of a senior civil servant in order to continue to grant export licences for weapons to
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
, despite allegations of war crimes in the
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen Saudi may refer to: * Saudi Arabia * Saudis, people from Saudi Arabia * Saudi culture, the culture of Saudi Arabia * House of Saud The House of Saud ( ar, آل سُعُود, ʾĀl Suʿūd ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is c ...
. A February 2016 email from Edward Bell, head of the Export Control Organisation, was read out as part of a judicial review into British arms sales to Saudi Arabia. The email said: "To be honest, and I was very direct and honest with ajid Javid my gut tells me we should suspend eapon exports to Saudi Arabia. In a later email, he said: " ajid Javiddecided not to take a decision about this last night and the matter has now been raised with he prime minister. Creation of a pubs code and pubs code adjudicator (PCA); the SBEE Act 2015 compelled the Business Secretary to create the office of the PCA in one year (s42 (1) SBEE Act 2015) i.e. by 26 March 2016. The code was not published until 20 July 2016 and came into force the following day 21 July 2016, the unlawful delay to the code was overseen by Sajid Javid. Pub tenants were denied an opportunity to use their rights for months as the statutory deadline had been broken. This unlawful delay also pushed forward the pubs code review until 2019, when the code review could have happened a year earlier in 2018.


Communities Secretary

In July 2016, Javid was appointed
Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, also referred to as the levelling up secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction o ...
by Prime Minister Theresa May. In the role, he focused on increasing housing supply, including delivering a new generation of affordable and council housing. He had previously described council homes as "poor housing for the poor", but helped secure funds for new local council building in the 2017 budget. In 2017, Javid threatened to cancel Europe's largest
Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...
convention, Palestine Expo. Javid, whose department controlled the QEII Centre, had warned that he was "minded" to cancel the event. Javid's intervention came amid claims by various Jewish and pro-Israel groups that the organisers had previously praised Hamas. In 2017, a judge ruled that Javid acted unlawfully in issuing guidance to restrict local councils from pursuing Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions ( BDS) against Israel through their pension schemes. The Chair of the
Palestine Solidarity Campaign The Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) is an activist organisation in England and Wales. It was incorporated in the UK in 2004 as Palestine Solidarity Campaign Ltd. They officially support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement ...
called it a "victory for Palestine, for local democracy, and for the rule of law". As Communities Secretary, Javid launched a wide-ranging programme of leasehold and commonhold reform. This began with a forthright speech at the 2017 conference for the main leasehold property managers trade body ARMA (Association of Residential Managing Agents), where Javid targeted rogue managing agents as well as the exorbitant service charges faced by many leaseholders across England and Wales. This was well received by the Leasehold Knowledge Partnership charity. In September 2017, Javid championed innovation collaborative efforts between the UK and Commonwealth Nations by awarding the first Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship in Innovation to Joshua Cheong and Dr Khoo Hsien Hui respectively. In December 2017, after a public consultation which attracted a high response rate, it was announced that efforts to end "feudal" leasehold practices would include a ban on future leasehold houses as well as setting ground rents in new build flats to zero. By April 2018, a series of policies aimed at regulating both the managing and letting agent sectors was unveiled such as a new system for leaseholders to challenge unfair service charges, empowering leaseholders to switch managing agent and requirements for managing and letting agents to professionalise their operations.


Home Secretary

On 30 April 2018, Javid was appointed as Home Secretary after
Amber Rudd Amber Augusta Rudd (born 1 August 1963) is a British former politician who served as Home Secretary from 2016 to 2018 and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2018 to 2019. She was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Hastings and Rye, fir ...
resigned for misleading MPs about "targets for removing illegal immigrants", a consequence of the ongoing Windrush scandal. Javid began his role saying that he was determined to fix the injustices of the Windrush scandal, and launched a consultation. In becoming Home Secretary, he became the first person from an Asian background to hold one of the
Great Offices of State The Great Offices of State are senior offices in the UK government. They are the Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary or, alternatively, three of those offices excluding the Prime Minister. Current ...
in the UK. In his first months in charge, he put clear water between his tenure and
Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cab ...
's lengthy stint at the Home Office. He offered an olive branch to the Police Federation, secured a review on medicinal
cannabis oil Hash oil or cannabis oil, is an oleoresin obtained by the extraction of cannabis or hashish. It is a cannabis concentrate containing many of its resins and terpenes – in particular, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol (CBD), and other can ...
, and won an increase in tier 2 visas for skilled workers. Javid won plaudits from
Lord Tebbit Norman Beresford Tebbit, Baron Tebbit (born 29 March 1931) is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet from 1981 to 1987 as Secretary of State for Employment (1981–1983), Secretary of State for Trad ...
, who suggested "Sajid Javid has seized control of his notoriously bloody minded department".


Immigration

In June 2018, Javid lifted the cap on immigration for NHS doctors and nurses and proposed adjustments to the "hostile environment" policy on immigration. Javid has argued against EU citizens having preferential rights to live and work in the UK after
Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...
, saying, "There's no magical reason it should be only from the EU and I think being a global Britain means that should be from across the world." This was seen to be at loggerheads with Chancellor of the Exchequer,
Philip Hammond Philip Hammond, Baron Hammond of Runnymede (born 4 December 1955) is a British politician and life peer who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2016 to 2019, Foreign Secretary from 2014 to 2016, and Defence Secretary from 2011 to 2014. ...
. Javid has said that EU citizens who have lived in the UK for at least five years would be eligible for a new "settled status" in the country post-Brexit. Child chess prodigy Shreyas Royal was allowed to stay in the UK after Javid personally intervened in the case under "exceptional talent" rules; it is very rare for the talent of a child to be a consideration in an immigration case. Javid unveiled plans at Cabinet for a crackdown on the number of low-skilled migrants coming to the UK after Britain leaves the EU, despite objections from Hammond and Greg Clark, the
Business Secretary The secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The incumbent is a mem ...
. It represented a significant victory for May and Javid and came after months of "Cabinet clashes" over the issue.


= Asylum and re-migration

= In January 2019, Javid suggested denying asylum to asylum-seekers coming across the English Channel, questioning whether they were "genuine" and vowing to "do everything we he UKcan to make sure that you are often not successful". This was objected to as a violation of
international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...
by bodies such as the
Refugee Council The Refugee Council is a UK based organisation which works with refugees and asylum seekers. The organisation provides support and advice to refugees and asylum seekers, as well as support for other refugee and asylum seeker organisations. The R ...
and
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
. Javid made similar comments in February of that year when he said that British citizens who joined
ISIS Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...
would not be allowed to return to the United Kingdom, despite a statement from the Justice Secretary
David Gauke David Michael Gauke (; born 8 October 1971) is a British political commentator, solicitor and former politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for South West Hertfordshire from 2005 to 2019. He served in the Cabinet under Theresa May, ...
to the contrary. On 19 February, Javid revoked the British citizenship of Shamima Begum, a British 19-year-old who left to join ISIS in 2015, when she was 16. He said that she had Bangladeshi citizenship, the country of her mother which she had never lived in, but both the Bangladesh state authorities and Begum denied this. The government had already failed in a similar move involving statelessness and Britons of Bangladeshi descent in 2017. This move enjoyed widespread popular support in the UK, with 78% of voters in a
Sky News Sky News is a British free-to-air television news channel and organisation. Sky News is distributed via an English-language radio news service, and through online channels. It is owned by Sky Group, a division of Comcast. John Ryley is the hea ...
poll saying that Javid was right to strip her of her citizenship. However, ''Guardian'' journalist Amy Walker suggested that this feeling was not wholly shared in the area in which she formerly resided,
Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in the East End of London northeast of Charing Cross. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common land, Green, much of which survives today as Bethnal Green Gardens, beside Cambridge Heat ...
, and that many residents of the area did not believe she posed a threat or could not be reintegrated. Javid's decision was also opposed by
Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
bishops and Javid's political opponent,
Shadow Home Secretary In British politics, the Shadow Home Secretary (formally known as the Shadow Secretary of State for the Home Department) is the person within the shadow cabinet who shadows the Home Secretary; this effectively means scrutinising government polic ...
Diane Abbott, who said that the move was a breach of Begum's human rights.
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
stated that revoking Begum's citizenship was "morally and legally questionable". On 8 March 2019, it was announced by Begum's family and officers of the
Democratic Federation of Northern Syria The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), also known as Rojava, is a de facto autonomous region in northeastern Syria. It consists of self-governing sub-regions in the areas of Afrin, Jazira, Euphrates, Raqqa, Tabqa, Ma ...
that Begum's newborn son had died. Javid was widely criticised for his actions, and held directly culpable for the death of the boy, Jarrah, by a number of commentators, including British human rights lawyer
Clive Stafford Smith Clive Adrian Stafford Smith (born 9 July 1959) is a British attorney who specialises in the areas of civil rights and working against the death penalty in the United States of America. He worked to overturn death sentences for convicts, and h ...
.


Police and crime

In 2018, his first speech to the Police Federation, Javid said, "I'm listening and I get it". He then promised a shift in priorities in a bid to better protect police officers in the next Home Office spending review. In his speech, Javid gave his support to stop and search powers. In July 2018, Javid announced the UK government would not object to the United States seeking the death penalty for two suspected British members of ISIL, waiving its long-standing objection to foreign executions. In response to the child sexual exploitation scandal, Javid ordered research into why men convicted of grooming-gang sex crimes are disproportionately of Pakistani origin. He has argued that "we need an honest, open debate on child sexual exploitation, including racial motivation". The decision won praise, with
Trevor Phillips Sir Mark Trevor Phillips (born 31 December 1953) is a British writer, broadcaster and former politician who served as Chair of the London Assembly from 2000 to 2001 and from 2002 to 2003. He presented '' Trevor Phillips on Sunday'', a Sunda ...
suggesting "in his assault on liberal guilt over race, Sajid Javid is putting his Labour opponents to shame" and
Camilla Cavendish Hilary Camilla Cavendish, Baroness Cavendish of Little Venice (born 20 August 1968) is a British journalist, Senior Fellow at Harvard University and former Director of Policy for Prime Minister David Cameron. Cavendish became a Conservative Me ...
commented that the "home secretary's heritage gives him a powerful voice against groomers". Javid vowed to use counter-terrorism powers to strip dual citizens involved in child-grooming gangs and other serious crimes of their British citizenship. In December 2018, in what may be the first case of its kind, a man's dual citizenship was removed on the basis that when he applied to be a UK citizen he lied about the fact he was sexually abusing a child. Javid launched an investigation into the Home Office's handling of forced marriage cases after ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' revealed that abusers are being handed visas. In a series of tweets, he said: "We will be doing more to combat it and support victims. Those who force British women into marriage, be warned that we are redoubling our efforts to make sure you pay for your crimes." Javid rejected a cross-party demand to introduce exclusion zones around all abortion centres in England and Wales, saying it would not be a "proportionate response". More than 150 MPs wrote to Javid, shortly after he took over from Rudd, calling on him to introduce a national ban. In 2018, Javid showed concern for the growing child abuse online making the use of technology insecure for children. He spoke at the
NSPCC The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) is a British child protection charity. History Victorian era On a trip to New York in 1881, Liverpudlian businessman Thomas Agnew was inspired by a visit to the New Yor ...
headquarters for online child sexual exploitation held on 3 September 2018. During his speech he announced the allocation of £21.5m for the investigation of the online child sex offenders on different technological and social platforms. He also announced the allocation of £26m for prevention activities to be carried out by different bodies.


Drug policy

Javid used an exceptional power as home secretary to issue a licence for a child with acute epilepsy to be treated with medical
cannabis oil Hash oil or cannabis oil, is an oleoresin obtained by the extraction of cannabis or hashish. It is a cannabis concentrate containing many of its resins and terpenes – in particular, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol (CBD), and other can ...
as a matter of urgency. Javid also launched a new panel to consider applications from patients seeking to use cannabis oil and announced a review of medicinal cannabis. Following advice from the Chief Medical Officer and the
Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) is a British statutory advisory non-departmental public body, which was established under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. Mandate Its terms of reference, according to the Act, are as follows: '' ...
, Javid announced that medicinal cannabis will be available for prescription on the NHS. Javid, writing in ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'', stated that prescribing medicinal cannabis was not a step towards legalisation for recreational use.


Security

In February 2019, Javid laid an order in Parliament adding
Hezbollah Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
's political wing to the UK's list of proscribed terror organisations. In 2018, Javid was a keynote speaker at the
Conservative Friends of Israel Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI) is a British parliamentary group affiliated to the Conservative Party, which is dedicated to strengthening business, cultural and political ties between the United Kingdom and Israel, as well as between the Br ...
Conference and stated he intends to strengthen the partnership between UK and Israel, "especially in security". In 2019, Javid announced the government would increase funding for the security of synagogues, schools and other Jewish centres. The government's new pledge will bring the amount it has allocated to the ''Jewish Community Protective Security Grant'' to £65.2 million since its introduction in 2015. In response to the
Christchurch mosque shootings On 15 March 2019, two consecutive mass shootings occurred in a terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. The attacks, carried out by a lone gunman who entered both mosques during Friday prayer, began at the Al Noor Mosque ...
, Javid warned social media firms that they would face the "force of the law" if they did not do more to remove extremist content and announced a forthcoming online harms
white paper A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue and presents the issuing body's philosophy on the matter. It is meant to help readers understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision. A white paper ...
, which is expected to introduce legal regulation of online publishers and social media, including new censorship rules. Javid has condemned some critics of the government's Prevent anti-terror scheme for being "on the side of the extremists."


Equality

Javid vowed to tackle anti-LGBT hate crime and set up a new LGBT Advisory Panel to deliver the Government's action plan. Javid apologised for historical homophobia within the Home Office: "Undercover police were instructed to loiter in bars, entrap gay men and put them in jail. Let me tell you, as the current Home Secretary, that was wrong, wrong, wrong, and I'm sorry that it ever happened". Javid announced a full
Law Commission A law commission, law reform commission, or law revision commission is an independent body set up by a government to conduct law reform; that is, to consider the state of laws in a jurisdiction and make recommendations or proposals for legal chang ...
review of hate crime, including the possible addition of new "protected characteristics" such as misogyny and age in the same way as offences motivated by hostility based on race, religion, sexual orientation or disability. In 2018, charities estimated around one million older people were victims of physical, financial, psychological and sexual abuse each year. However, criminal convictions were rare and sentences considered lenient.


Chancellor of the Exchequer

On 24 July 2019, Javid was appointed
Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
in the new
Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...
cabinet. Upon his appointment, he tweeted that he was looking forward to working at the
Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be state or royal property, church treasure or i ...
to prepare the United Kingdom for leaving the EU. In his first media intervention after becoming Chancellor, Javid pledged in ''
The Sunday Telegraph ''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings. It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', kn ...
'' to overhaul the Treasury's approach to Brexit, beginning with "significant extra funding" to get Britain ready to leave with or without a deal. In September 2019, Javid stood by Johnson's statement to suspend parliament and leave the EU. He confirmed that though Johnson would be looking for a new deal in the 17 October Council in Brussels, he would not ask for extension of Article 50 and hence the UK would leave the EU come 31 October. On 26 January 2020, a 50p coin to mark Brexit was unveiled by Javid, bearing the inscription 'Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations' and the new leaving date of 31 January. Javid helped raise thousands of pounds at the
Jewish Care Jewish Care is a British charity, working mainly in London and South East England, providing health and social care support services for the Jewish community. The charity runs over 70 centres and services which include care homes, community centr ...
business breakfast by auctioning a Brexit 50p coin, co-signed by himself and Boris Johnson. Javid intervened to ensure Andrew Bailey was appointed as
Governor of the Bank of England The governor of the Bank of England is the most senior position in the Bank of England. It is nominally a civil service post, but the appointment tends to be from within the bank, with the incumbent grooming their successor. The governor of the Ba ...
. Dominic Cummings had lobbied for appointment of
Andy Haldane Andrew G. Haldane, (; born 18 August 1967) is a British economist who worked at the Bank of England between 1989 and 2021 as the chief economist and executive director of monetary analysis and statistics. He resigned from the Bank of England i ...
to take over from
Mark Carney Mark Joseph Carney (born March 16, 1965) is a Canadian economist and banker who served as the governor of the Bank of Canada from 2008 to 2013 and the governor of the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020. Since October 2020, he is vice chairman an ...
as Governor.


Resignation

Tensions between
10 Downing Street 10 Downing Street in London, also known colloquially in the United Kingdom as Number 10, is the official residence and executive office of the first lord of the treasury, usually, by convention, the prime minister of the United Kingdom. Along wi ...
and Treasury had come to a head during August 2019, when the prime minister's chief adviser
Dominic Cummings Dominic Mckenzie Cummings (born 25 November 1971) is a British political strategist who served as Chief Adviser to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson from 24 July 2019 until Cummings resigned on 13 November 2020. From 2007 to 2014, he was a ...
relieved one of
Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
Javid's aides, Sonia Khan, of her employment, without Javid's permission and without informing him. It was alleged that, during her dismissal, Cummings "went outside No 10 and asked an armed officer to enter the building and escort Khan off the premises." Javid "voiced anger" to Johnson over the dismissal of Khan and Cummings faced the prospect of a probe by a governmental ethics watchdog following the dismissal. In November 2019, following questions of a rift between Johnson and Javid, Johnson gave his assurance that he would retain Javid as Chancellor after the 2019 general election. However, in the weeks leading up to the reshuffle, a number of briefings in the press had suggested that a new economic ministry led by
Rishi Sunak Rishi Sunak (; born 12 May 1980) is a British politician who has served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party since October 2022. He previously held two Cabinet of ...
might be established, to reduce the power and political influence of the
Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be state or royal property, church treasure or i ...
. Sunak was considered to be a Johnson loyalist, seen as the "rising star" minister who had ably represented the prime minister during the 2019 election debates. By February 2020, it was reported that Javid would remain in his role as Chancellor and that Sunak would stay on as
Chief Secretary to the Treasury The chief secretary to the Treasury is a ministerial office in the government of the United Kingdom. The office is the second most senior in the Treasury, after the chancellor of the Exchequer. The office was created in 1961, to share the burde ...
, in order to "keep an eye" on Javid. On 13 February 2020, the day of the reshuffle, Javid resigned as Chancellor of the Exchequer, following a meeting with the prime minister. During the meeting, Johnson had offered to let him keep his position on the condition that he fire all of his advisers at the Treasury, to be replaced with individuals selected by Number 10. Upon resigning, Javid told
PA Media PA Media (formerly the Press Association) is a multimedia news agency, and the national news agency of the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is part of PA Media Group Limited, a private company with 26 shareholders, most of whom are national and re ...
that "no self-respecting minister would accept those terms". The Chancellor's resignation was unexpected, given Johnson's commitment to retain Javid within the Cabinet and recent reports that an alternative finance ministry would not be made. Robert Shrimsley, chief political commentator of the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'', stated that the prime minister's choices at the time risked damaging the government, that "good government often depends on senior ministers – and the Chancellor in particular – being able to fight bad ideas". Javid became the first Chancellor in 50 years not to deliver a budget. His time as Chancellor, 204 days, at the time represented the second-fewest days in office since the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.


Return to the backbenches

Javid returned to being a backbench MP after resigning as Chancellor. In his first speech as a backbencher, after
Prime Minister's Questions Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs, officially known as Questions to the Prime Minister, while colloquially known as Prime Minister's Question Time) is a constitutional convention in the United Kingdom, currently held as a single session every W ...
, he said that he felt he still had "more to give" in regards to his political future. In June 2020, Javid announced that he would be working with the
Centre for Social Justice The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) is an independent centre-right think tank based in the United Kingdom, co-founded in 2004 by Iain Duncan Smith, Tim Montgomerie, Mark Florman and Philippa Stroud. Political positions The organisation's stated ...
think tank to lead an inquiry into
child sexual abuse in the UK Child sexual abuse in the United Kingdom has been reported in the country throughout its history. In about 90% of cases the abuser is a person known to the child. However, cases during the second half of the twentieth century, involving religiou ...
. He wrote in ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...
'' of his concern that the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
lockdown was leading to a surge in child sexual abuse cases. Javid was a senior fellow at
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
's
Harvard Kennedy School The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...
, Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government in 2020–2021. In August 2020, Javid began in a paid role as a senior adviser to
JPMorgan Chase JPMorgan Chase & Co. is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered in New York City and incorporated in Delaware. As of 2022, JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the United States, the ...
. He joined on the bank's Europe, Middle East and Africa advisory council. His appointment was criticised by Labour MP
Zarah Sultana Zarah Sultana (born 31 October 1993) is a British Labour Party politician. She has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Coventry South since the 2019 general election. A supporter of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, she is on the left w ...
as "undermining democracy" and she advocated the banning of MPs from taking second jobs.


Health Secretary

Javid replaced
Matt Hancock Matthew John David Hancock (born 2 October 1978) is a British politician who served as Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General from 2015 to 2016, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from January to July 201 ...
as
Secretary of State for Health and Social Care The secretary of state for health and social care, also referred to as the health secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department of Health and Social Care. The incumbent ...
on 26 June 2021 during the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, after Hancock's resignation. Javid took over the prominent role in the government's response to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
as the
SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant The Delta variant (B.1.617.2) was a variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. It was first detected in India in late 2020. The Delta variant was named on 31 May 2021 and had spread to over 179 countries by 22 November 2021. The ...
was driving a third wave in cases across the country. Despite this, Javid confirmed that he would push for an end to public health restrictions, saying: "We are going to have to learn to accept the existence of COVID and find ways to cope with it – just as we already do with flu", a strategy supported by other Conservative MPs but prompting criticism from some scientists and health experts. He said the country could have as many as "100,000 daily cases", while pushing for relaxation of social distancing and self-isolation rules, and saying "there is no going back". On 17 July 2021, Javid tested positive for
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. Eight days later, he reported that he had recovered. He was criticised for insensitivity by several opposition MPs and the pressure group
Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice (also known as Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK) is a pressure group of over 4,000 relatives of people who have died during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. The group created the Natio ...
for saying "if you haven't yet – get your jab, as we learn to live with, rather than cower from, this virus". Javid later deleted the tweet and apologised for the "cower" remark, stating: "It was a poor choice of word" and that he was "expressing gratitude that the vaccines help us fight back as a society." In early September 2021, although the JCVI "failed to recommend
COVID-19 vaccine A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Prior to the COVID19 pandemic, an e ...
s for healthy 12- to 15-year-olds, and instead advised that more children with underlying health conditions and vulnerable relatives should be offered the jab", Javid announced a plan to make vaccines available for the age group. Javid also announced plans to make COVID-19 vaccines compulsory for all
NHS The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
and care home staff. He was warned of staff shortages as a result of this policy. In a press conference in October 2021, Javid rejected calls to reintroduce general public health measures such face mask mandates and more home working, as COVID-19 cases, hospitalisations and deaths began to rise. He warned the country could report 100,000 daily cases over the winter. He encouraged the public to follow government advice and for those who had not been vaccinated to do so.


Resignation

On 5 July 2022, Javid resigned as Health Secretary, in the fallout from controversy around sexual assault by Deputy Chief Whip
Chris Pincher Christopher John Pincher (born 24 September 1969) is a British independent politician and a Conservative Party member, who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Tamworth since 2010. Pincher previously served as Government Deputy Chief Wh ...
, and suppression of reports by the Conservative Party. Javid said that he had originally given Johnson the benefit of the doubt, but decided to resign following a Parliament prayer breakfast about integrity in public life. In his resignation letter to Boris Johnson, Javid said: "The tone you set as a leader, and the values you represent, reflect on your colleagues, your party and ultimately the country. Conservatives at their best are seen as hard-headed decision-makers, guided by strong values. We may not have always been popular, but we have been competent in acting in the national interest. Sadly, in the current circumstances, the public are concluding that we are now neither." On 6 July 2022, Javid delivered in addition to the letter a personal statement in the House of Commons, calling on colleagues to consider following his lead of resigning from cabinet. He mentioned "enough is enough" and "I also believe a team is as good as its team captain, and that a captain is as good as his or her team. So loyalty must go both ways. The events of recent months have made it increasingly difficult to be in that team."


Return to the backbenches

In December 2022, Javid said that he would not stand for re-election at the next general election.


Political positions


Brexit

In 2016, Javid became a supporter of remaining in the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
as a member of the
Britain Stronger in Europe Britain Stronger in Europe (formally The In Campaign Limited) was an advocacy group which campaigned in favour of the United Kingdom's continued membership of the European Union in the 2016 British referendum. It was launched at the Old Truma ...
advocacy group in the
EU referendum This is a list of referendums related to the European Union, or referendums related to the European Communities, which were predecessors of the European Union. Since 1972, a total of 48 referendums have been held by EU member states, candidate st ...
campaign. In the event, the public narrowly voted to leave the EU, resulting in
Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...
, the UK's
withdrawal Withdrawal means "an act of taking out" and may refer to: * Anchoresis (withdrawal from the world for religious or ethical reasons) * ''Coitus interruptus'' (the withdrawal method) * Drug withdrawal * Social withdrawal * Taking of money from a ban ...
from the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
. Javid was a supporter of the single market, describing it as a "great invention, one that even Prime Minister Thatcher campaigned enthusiastically to create." Javid is known to have historically held Eurosceptic views; as a student in 1990 he was thrown out of the Conservative Party conference for handing out leaflets opposing Britain joining the
European Exchange Rate Mechanism The European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM II) is a system introduced by the European Economic Community on 1 January 1999 alongside the introduction of a single currency, the euro (replacing ERM 1 and the euro's predecessor, the ECU) as ...
, the forerunner of the single currency. In 2015, Javid was an advocate for holding an EU referendum. While pro-Brexit Conservatives had long assumed he would join the Leave campaign, in the end he backed Remain. He was not often seen as very committed to that cause, and subsequently became a Leave supporter. While Javid said this was not as a result of pressure from either
David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
or
George Osborne George Gideon Oliver Osborne (born Gideon Oliver Osborne; 23 May 1971) is a former British politician and newspaper editor who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2010 to 2016 and as First Secretary of State from 2015 to 2016 in the ...
, the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'' reported that Osborne "got the thumbscrews out" because it would have been completely unacceptable for a Conservative Business Secretary to have advocated Brexit. Javid has maintained his position that politicians should respect the result of the referendum, and when judges ruled that the PM could not trigger the formal Brexit process without Parliament's backing, Javid accused British High Court judges of attempting to thwart the will of the British people. Since the referendum Javid said that he was sceptical of softer Brexit options such as remaining in the customs union, saying the free trade area was an "intrinsic" part of the European Union and that voters had given "clear instructions" when they voted to Leave. In 2019, Javid said he considered the
Brexit Party Reform UK is a Right-wing populism, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. It was founded with support from Nigel Farage in November 2018 as the Brexit Party, advocating hard Euroscepticism and a no-deal Brexit, and was bri ...
not to be extremist and praised
Nigel Farage Nigel Paul Farage (; born 3 April 1964) is a British broadcaster and former politician who was List of UK Independence Party leaders, Leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) from 2006 to 2009 and 2010 to 2016 and Brexit Party#Leaders, Lea ...
: "I applaud Nigel Farage for walking away, calling
UKIP The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest p ...
thugs and extremists." The move was seen by some as an effort by the Conservative Party to "extend an olive branch" to the Brexit Party. As Chancellor, Javid drew up plans for millions of 50p Brexit coins to be minted in time for Britain's departure from the EU. Javid's proposal for the coins to be produced for mass circulation was portrayed as a statement of intent that the Treasury is fully behind Brexit, in contrast to previous Chancellor Philip Hammond. In January 2020, Javid said regarding the future relationship with the EU: "There will not be alignment, we will not be a ruletaker, we will not be in the single market and we will not be in the
customs union A customs union is generally defined as a type of trade bloc which is composed of a free trade area with a common external tariff.GATTArticle 24 s. 8 (a) Customs unions are established through trade pacts where the participant countries set up ...
– and we will do this by the end of the year".


Israel and Palestine

Javid was regarded as one of Israel's staunchest supporters in the Cabinet, and is a long-time supporter of
Conservative Friends of Israel Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI) is a British parliamentary group affiliated to the Conservative Party, which is dedicated to strengthening business, cultural and political ties between the United Kingdom and Israel, as well as between the Br ...
. At a 2012 event hosted by them, he said he would, out of all the countries in the Middle East, choose Israel as home: only there, he said, would his children feel the warm embrace of freedom and liberty. Addressing the
World Jewish Congress The World Jewish Congress (WJC) was founded in Geneva, Switzerland in August 1936 as an international federation of Jewish communities and organizations. According to its mission statement, the World Jewish Congress' main purpose is to act as ...
(WJC) in 2017, Javid commented that attempts to block contacts with Israel are failing, and that the government will "celebrate the Balfour centenary with pride".
Ronald Lauder Ronald (Ron) Steven Lauder (born February 26, 1944) is an American businessman, billionaire, philanthropist, art collector, and political activist. He is the president of the World Jewish Congress since 2007. He and his brother, Leonard Lauder, ...
, president of the WJC, said the global Jewish community "treasured" Mr Javid as a staunch friend of the Jewish people. At a joint meeting between the
American Jewish Committee The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is a Jewish advocacy group established on November 11, 1906. It is one of the oldest Jewish advocacy organizations and, according to ''The New York Times'', is "widely regarded as the dean of American Jewish org ...
and the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Javid told his audience, "As long as I am in government, as long as I am in politics, I promise you that I will do everything within my power to fight back against those who seek to isolate and undermine Israel". At the Conservative Friends of Israel Conference of 2018, Javid explained how a school trip to Israel by his brother forty years ago set off his lifelong support for Israel and added, "my dad explained the history, how it came about and why it is such a special place. Since then I always wanted to visit." Javid visited when he and his wife spent their honeymoon there.


Visit to the Western Wall

In 2019, Javid became the first British minister in 19 years to visit the
Western Wall The Western Wall ( he, הַכּוֹתֶל הַמַּעֲרָבִי, HaKotel HaMa'aravi, the western wall, often shortened to the Kotel or Kosel), known in the West as the Wailing Wall, and in Islam as the Buraq Wall (Arabic: حَائِط ...
in the
Old City of Jerusalem The Old City of Jerusalem ( he, הָעִיר הָעַתִּיקָה, translit=ha-ir ha-atiqah; ar, البلدة القديمة, translit=al-Balda al-Qadimah; ) is a walled area in East Jerusalem. The Old City is traditionally divided into ...
. Visits to the Western Wall by foreign dignitaries are opposed by Palestinians, who say they legitimise Israeli claims to the eastern half of the city, which they claim for the capital of a future Palestinian state. Javid was advised by officials not to visit the Western Wall during a visit to Israel because of "long-standing policy of over two-decades". In January 2020, at the reception of ''Conservative Friends of Israel'', he told the audience that his response was – "You know what? I told them to 'get stuffed' and I went anyway".


Campaign against BDS

Javid has a history of campaigning against
Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) is a Palestinian-led movement promoting boycotts, divestments, and economic sanctions against Israel. Its objective is to pressure Israel to meet what the BDS movement describes as Israel's obligations ...
(BDS). In 2014, he told attendees at the
Union of Jewish Students The Union of Jewish Students of the United Kingdom and Ireland (UJS) represents Jewish students in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is a member of the World Union of Jewish Students (WUJS) and the European Union of Jewish Students (EUJS) and ...
conference that he will "always be proud to stand up and resist calls for boycotts of Israel". In 2015, as
Culture Secretary The secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, also referred to as the culture secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for strategy and policy across the Department f ...
, Javid advised The Board of Deputies that he had "no tolerance for cultural boycotts of Israel". In 2016, as
Communities Secretary The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, also referred to as the levelling up secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction o ...
, Javid announced measures to prevent British councils from imposing
boycotts of Israel Boycotts of Israel are the refusal and incitement to refusal to have commercial or social dealings with Israel in order to inflict economic hardship upon the state. The objective of boycotts of Israel is to influence Israel's practices and pol ...
and issued local authorities' with investment guidance affecting
Local Government Pension Scheme The Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) is one of the largest public sector pension schemes in the United Kingdom, with 4.6 million members. Administration is carried out through 99 regional pension funds such as Greater Manchester Pension Fund a ...
(LGPS). In 2018, at a Conservative Friends of Israel conference, Javid detailed his parliamentary record against BDS: "When I became the Business Secretary I was lobbied every day to support the BDS campaign. I thought the best reaction is obviously not to support the campaign but to do everything I could to boost trade with Israel."


Affiliations

Javid paid subscriptions to pro-Brexit group the
European Research Group The European Research Group (ERG) is a research support group and caucus of Eurosceptic Conservative Members of Parliament of the United Kingdom. The journalist Sebastian Payne described it in the ''Financial Times'' as "the most influential ese ...
(ERG) from 2013 to 2016.


Political influence


Thatcherism

Javid's father inspired a devotion to
Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...
in Javid: "My dad lived through the
winter of discontent The Winter of Discontent was the period between November 1978 and February 1979 in the United Kingdom characterised by widespread strikes by private, and later public, sector trade unions demanding pay rises greater than the limits Prime Minis ...
and used to vote Labour, but switched to Thatcher, saying, 'look how she's sorting out the country'. I agreed". Javid has spoken of Thatcher's handling of the
Falklands Conflict The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland I ...
as a defining moment, saying, "That was a big moment for me in understanding war and how it happens, and admiring Margaret Thatcher and her decisiveness. That's how my political awareness really took off." In 2013, when he became
Financial Secretary to the Treasury The financial secretary to the Treasury is a mid-level ministerial post in HM Treasury, His Majesty's Treasury. It is nominally the fifth most significant ministerial role within the Treasury after the First Lord of the Treasury, first lord of th ...
, he rejected works of art from the
Government Art Collection The Government Art Collection (GAC) is the collection of artworks owned by the UK government and administered by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). The GAC's artworks are used to decorate major government buildings in t ...
and personalised his office with a portrait of Thatcher. Javid was described by
Tim Montgomerie Timothy Montgomerie (born 24 July 1970) is a British political activist, blogger, and columnist. He is best known as the co-founder of the Centre for Social Justice and as creator of the ConservativeHome website, which he edited from 2005 unt ...
as the "first of Thatcher's children". Javid met the former Prime Minister at a Conservative Party fundraiser in his late twenties and at the meeting Thatcher purportedly said, "Sajid, you will protect our great island."


The Fountainhead

In 2018, activist
Tim Montgomerie Timothy Montgomerie (born 24 July 1970) is a British political activist, blogger, and columnist. He is best known as the co-founder of the Centre for Social Justice and as creator of the ConservativeHome website, which he edited from 2005 unt ...
wrote that Javid "identifies the libertarian writer
Ayn Rand Alice O'Connor (born Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum;, . Most sources transliterate her given name as either ''Alisa'' or ''Alissa''. , 1905 – March 6, 1982), better known by her pen name Ayn Rand (), was a Russian-born American writer and p ...
as an inspiration". Javid recounted once that he regularly reread the courtroom scene from her novel ''
The Fountainhead ''The Fountainhead'' is a 1943 novel by Russian-American author Ayn Rand, her first major literary success. The novel's protagonist, Howard Roark, is an intransigent young architect, who battles against conventional standards and refuses to com ...
'', saying that he admired its description of "the power of the individual ... sticking up for your beliefs, against popular opinion". At a Crossbench Film Society event, Javid chose to introduce the film version of ''The Fountainhead'' and described the profound effect it had on him after watching it as a 12-year-old. Javid's wife once threatened to divorce him if he did not stop reading ''The Fountainhead'' aloud to her. Javid said in 2019 that he had never believed in Rand's philosophy of
Objectivism Objectivism is a philosophical system developed by Russian Americans, Russian-American writer and philosopher Ayn Rand. She described it as "the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with prod ...
, stating he is instead motivated by
altruism Altruism is the principle and moral practice of concern for the welfare and/or happiness of other human beings or animals, resulting in a quality of life both material and spiritual. It is a traditional virtue in many cultures and a core as ...
and appreciates ''The Fountainhead'' because he identifies with the main protagonist: "It's about the underdog. Whatever
Howard Roark ''The Fountainhead'' is a 1943 novel by Russian-American author Ayn Rand, her first major literary success. The novel's protagonist, Howard Roark, is an intransigent young architect, who battles against conventional standards and refuses to comp ...
wanted to do there were people lining up against him and saying—'no, you will fail'—and he kept going right to the end".


Neoconservatism

Javid has been a regular attendee and speaker at US
neoconservative Neoconservatism is a political movement that began in the United States during the 1960s among liberal hawks who became disenchanted with the increasingly pacifist foreign policy of the Democratic Party and with the growing New Left and coun ...
thinktank
American Enterprise Institute The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, known simply as the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), is a center-right Washington, D.C.–based think tank that researches government, politics, economics, and social welfare. ...
's (AEI) annual conference, whose members include
Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He is currently the oldest living former U ...
,
Paul Wolfowitz Paul Dundes Wolfowitz (born December 22, 1943) is an American political scientist and diplomat who served as the 10th President of the World Bank, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia, and former dean of Johns Hopkins ...
and
John Bolton John Robert Bolton (born November 20, 1948) is an American attorney, diplomat, Republican consultant, and political commentator. He served as the 25th United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to 2006, and as the 26th United Sta ...
. Javid has consistently supported foreign military intervention, having voted for intervening in Gaddafi's Libya, as well as air strikes in Iraq and Syria. In March 2014, Javid accused then- Labour Party leader
Ed Miliband Edward Samuel "Ed" Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician serving as Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero since 2021. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Doncaster North since 2005. Miliband ...
of having some responsibility for the crisis in Crimea, alleging that there was "a direct link" between Miliband's refusal to support military intervention in Syria and the subsequent Russian activity in Ukraine. In 2018, Javid declared in his Commons register of interests that the AEI had paid £9,266 to fund his trip to the conference in
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
.


Personal life


Family

Javid was raised in a two-bed flat above a shop in
Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
with four brothers. His brother Bas Javid was Commander of
Solihull Solihull (, or ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in West Midlands County, England. The town had a population of 126,577 at the 2021 Census. Solihull is situated on the River Blythe i ...
Police division, and later promoted as Commander at
Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's 32 boroughs, but not the City of London, the square mile that forms London's ...
, in charge of front-line policing. Bas Javid had previously served in the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
, wherein his military service included the
Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
, for which he received a commendation for teamwork and bravery. In 1997, Javid married his childhood sweetheart Laura King, whom he met while sharing a stapler at the local
Commercial Union Commercial Union plc was a large insurance business based in London. It merged with General Accident in 1998 to form CGU plc. History Commercial Union was established following a conflagration near London Bridge in 1861, known as the Great T ...
branch during a summer job. She is a church-going Christian and they have four children. The couple had their honeymoon in Israel. Their children are privately educated, something that Javid attributed to the couple's desire to "do what's best for them". The family own properties in
Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
,
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
, Bristol and
Bromsgrove Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England, about northeast of Worcester and southwest of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 (39,644 in the wider Bromsgrove/Catshill urban area). Bromsgrove is the main town in the ...
. They own a
Cavapoo This is a list of common dog crossbreeds. These are crossbreed dogs created deliberately by crossing two purebred dogs. Some are known as designer dogs and are bred as companion dogs, often given portmanteau names derived from those of the pare ...
named 'Bailey', which featured prominently in Javid's 2019 campaign video to be Conservative Party leader. Javid's eldest brother Tariq died in July 2018 in "an unnatural death"; a full inquest was held, in which the coroner ruled Tariq had intentionally killed himself after drinking alcohol and taking codeine at the luxury
South Lodge Hotel The South Lodge Hotel is a 19th-century five star country house hotel set near Horsham, West Sussex in the south of England. The hotel has also been used in a number of feature films including the 2014 film '' A Dark Reflection''. History In 188 ...
, which was near his home in
Horsham Horsham is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
. In a letter left to Sylvia, his partner of 15 years, Tariq suggested that, due to ill health, he would not "last long". Tariq was a successful businessman and managed a supermarket chain. His other siblings are Khalid, a financial advisor, and Atif, a multi-millionaire property tycoon. Before he became an MP, Javid was briefly a director of Atif's main investment vehicle, SA Capital.


Religion

Javid is said to have received religious hate mail in the form of a " Punish a Muslim day" parcel; as of March 2018, he was the fifth British MP to receive such abuse. While his family's heritage is Muslim, Javid himself is non-practising but has remarked that he was 'the first Muslim Home Secretary to be invited (to the iftar)', whereas his wife is a practising Christian. Addressing a church-hosted husting in his inaugural election campaign for Bromsgrove on 22 April 2010, Javid told the audience: Javid has said that it is "lazy" and "wrong" to suggest terror has nothing to do with Islam. Speaking at a Muslim News, Muslim News Awards ceremony in 2017, Javid said that those who attack and kill in the name of Islam had no right to do so and that "we can't deny that these people think they are Muslims. They identify as Muslims. They genuinely believe they are acting for the glory of Islam." Javid wrote in ''The Times'' that, "there's a special, unique burden on the Muslim community" to do something about terrorism. Javid has criticised those in the Muslim community who question his Muslim faith and refer to him as a "Coconut (slur), Coconut" or an "Uncle Tom". In March 2019, Wayne Kirby, a Tommy Robinson (activist), Tommy Robinson supporter, was jailed for 28 days for posting threatening and abusive comments on Facebook about Javid. Kirby referred to Javid as "a Muslim terrorist" and threatened Javid would be "hung, drawn and quartered" if anything happened to Robinson. In 2021, Javid said he was rejected early in his political career by a Conservative Association to be their candidate because of his religion and that an Association Chairman has explained: "some members didn't think locals would vote for a Muslim to be their MP".


Notes


References


External links

* *
Sajid Javid is fifth MP to get 'Punish a Muslim' parcelSajid Javid MP
Conservative Party profile
Bromsgrove Conservatives
*
Official channel
at YouTube
Resignation speech 2022Debrett's People of Today
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Javid, Sajid 1969 births Living people Alumni of the University of Exeter British Secretaries of State British bankers British expatriates in the United States British former Muslims British politicians of Pakistani descent Chancellors of the Exchequer of the United Kingdom Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Critics of Islamism Deutsche Bank people Economic Secretaries to the Treasury English people of Pakistani descent English people of Punjabi descent Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Politicians from Bristol People from Littleborough, Greater Manchester Presidents of the Board of Trade Secretaries of State for Health and Social Care Secretaries of State for the Home Department UK MPs 2010–2015 UK MPs 2015–2017 UK MPs 2017–2019 UK MPs 2019–present Free Enterprise Group