Sayeeda Hussain Warsi, Baroness Warsi, (; born 28 March 1971) is a British lawyer, politician, and member of the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
who served as
co-Chairwoman of the Conservative Party from 2010 to 2012. She served in the
Cameron–Clegg coalition
The Cameron–Clegg coalition was formed by David Cameron and Nick Clegg when Cameron was invited by Queen Elizabeth II to form a new administration, following the resignation of Prime Minister Gordon Brown on 11 May 2010, after the gene ...
, first as the
Minister without portfolio between 2010 and 2012, then as the Minister of State for the
Foreign and Commonwealth Office (styled as "Senior Minister of State") and as the
Minister of State for Faith and Communities, until her resignation citing her disagreement with the Government's policy relating to the
Israel–Gaza conflict in August 2014.
Warsi grew up in a family of Pakistani Muslim immigrants living in
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...
.
She became a
solicitor with the
Crown Prosecution Service
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in England and Wales. It is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The main responsibilities of the CPS are to provide legal advi ...
(CPS). In 2004, she left the CPS to stand, unsuccessfully, for election 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. T ...
.
After being raised to the
peerage in 2007, Warsi served as
Shadow Minister for Community Cohesion and Social Action. She became the first Muslim to serve as a Cabinet Minister.
Early life and career
Warsi is the second of five daughters born in
Dewsbury,
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...
to Pakistani immigrants from
Bewal,
Gujar Khan
Gujar Khan (Punjabi/ ur, گُوجر خان) is a city in Rawalpindi District, Punjab, Pakistan. It is also the headquarters of Gujar Khan Tehsil, the largest tehsil of Punjab by land area.
Gujar Khan is approximately southeast of Islamabad, t ...
; her ancestors are from southern Punjab. Her father, Safdar Hussain, is owner of a bed manufacturing company, with a turnover of £2 million a year, who started life as a mill worker and a bus driver. Warsi has said that her father's success led her to adopting Conservative principles.
Warsi was educated at
Birkdale High School,
Dewsbury College (now Kirklees College), and the
University of Leeds
, mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased
, established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds
, ...
. She attended
the College of Law, York (now the University of Law), and completed her professional legal training thereafter with both the
Crown Prosecution Service
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in England and Wales. It is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The main responsibilities of the CPS are to provide legal advi ...
and the
Home Office Immigration Department. After qualifying as a solicitor in 1996, she worked for the Conservative MP for Dewsbury,
John Whitfield, at Whitfield Hallam Goodall Solicitors, and then set up a practice in Dewsbury.
Political career
Warsi was the Conservative
parliamentary candidate for
Dewsbury at the
2005 general election, having been added to the Conservative Party A-List for priority candidates, and thereby becoming the first Muslim woman to be selected by the Conservatives.
Although she was unsuccessful in her 2005 election bid, she served as a Special Adviser to
Michael Howard for Community Relations, and was appointed by
David Cameron as Vice Chair of the Conservative Party with specific responsibility for cities.
House of Lords
On 2 July 2007, Warsi was appointed
Shadow Minister for
Community Cohesion. To enable her to fulfil this post, she was created a
life peer as Baroness Warsi, of
Dewsbury in
the County of West Yorkshire, on 11 October 2007 and was
introduced in the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
on 15 October 2007. On joining the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
, she became its youngest member.
On 1 December 2007, Warsi travelled to
Khartoum
Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...
, with the Labour peer
Lord Ahmed
Nazir Ahmed, Baron Ahmed ( ur, , born 24 April 1957) is a former British Labour politician of Pakistani origin. He was appointed a life peer in 1998 by the Labour Government.
Many of his political activities related to the Muslim communi ...
, to mediate in the
Sudanese teddy bear blasphemy case (a British citizen teaching at
Unity High School had been prosecuted and jailed for
insulting Islam after allowing her class to name a teddy bear
Muhammad
Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...
). Although the peers' meeting with
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir did not lead directly to Gillian Gibbons being pardoned, it is acknowledged that, along with the enormous efforts made by her family, friends, and others, it was a helpful contribution to her release. Gibbons' son thanked Warsi and Ahmed for "their hard work behind the scenes" and the Prime Minister,
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in Tony B ...
, praised both peers, saying "I applaud the particular efforts of Lord Ahmed and Baroness Warsi in securing her freedom." ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' newspaper referred to the incident as "Tory Peer's Triumph".
In government
Minister without Portfolio
On 12 May 2010,
David Cameron appointed Warsi as Minister without Portfolio in
Cabinet, when she succeeded
Eric Pickles
Eric Jack Pickles, Baron Pickles, (born 20 April 1952) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentwood and Ongar from 1992 to 2017. He served in David Cameron's Cabinet as Secretary of State for ...
as Chairman of the Conservative Party. This appointment made Warsi the first Muslim woman to serve in the Cabinet. Warsi was sworn into the
Privy Council the next day.
Cabinet reshuffle
Ahead of
David Cameron's
first Cabinet reshuffle in 2012, Warsi told ''The Daily Telegraph'': "If I genuinely had a choice, I would like to stay doing what I'm doing." Speaking in
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and shallow estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west-central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The largest freshwater ...
, Florida, where she had been attending the United States' Republican Party Convention, Warsi said the Prime Minister knew her strengths and weaknesses. She said the Party needed more votes from people in urban areas and more women. She said: "If you look at the demographics, at where we need to be at the next election, we need more people in the North voting for us, more of what they call here blue collar workers and I call the white working class. We need more people from urban areas voting for us, more people who are not white and more women. I play that back and think, I'm a woman, I'm not white, I'm from an urban area, I'm from the North, I'm working class—I kind of fit the bill. All the groups that we're aiming for are groups that I'm familiar with. I believe you've got to have the right people in the right job," she added.
In the same interview, she said that she was angry some viewed hers "as a tokenistic appointment". Lord Ashcroft found "at the 2010 election, only 16% of ethnic minority voters supported the Conservatives. More than two thirds voted Labour. Not being white was the single best predictor that somebody would not vote Conservative. The gulf between the Conservative Party and ethnic minorities is a well-known feature of British politics. It persists in spite of the Tories' efforts in recent years to reach beyond their core voters." In the event, on 4 September 2012, Warsi was appointed to the restyled post of "Senior Minister of State" in the
Foreign Office and Minister for Faith and Communities in the
Department of Communities and Local Government
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), formerly the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for housing, communities, local government i ...
(a role created specifically for her in a ministry she had shadowed in Opposition). Warsi announced she had been removed as Party Chairman via Twitter, tweeting, "It's been a privilege and an honour to serve my party as co-chairman, signing off @ToryChairman".
Minister in UK
Minister of State
At the Foreign Office she was responsible for:
*Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh
*Central Asia
*Human rights
*The UN, OIC, international organisations and the International Criminal Court
*All FCO business in the House of Lords
At the
Department for Communities and Local Government
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), formerly the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for housing, communities, local governme ...
Lady Warsi worked with religious and community leaders to promote faith, religious tolerance and stronger communities within the UK.
Islamic finance
Warsi established and co-chaired HM Government's first
Ministerial Task Force on
Islamic Finance.
She said that the industry is worth around $1.85 trillion (£1.15 trillion) globally, with growth rates of up to 15 percent each year. She argued "with billions of pounds in reported assets, and with the world's financial capital, the UK is an increasingly important global player in the Islamic finance". Iconic buildings like London's
Shard
Shard or sherd is a sharp piece of glass, pottery or stone.
Shard may also refer to:
Places
* Shard End, a place in Birmingham, United Kingdom
Architecture
* Dresden Shard, a redesign of the Bundeswehr Military History Museum in Dresden, Germa ...
have been given life with the help of Islamic finance, and London is home to a growing number of banks, law firms and other service providers with expertise in the sector.
Added to this she argued "is Britain’s wider business offer. From our legal system and regulatory framework to our time-zone and track record of innovation, the UK is rightly seen as a partner of choice". She said the Government was determined to play its part in the development of the Islamic finance market. This is why the Prime Minister announced that we want to become the first country outside the Islamic world to issue an Islamic bond, a
sukuk
Sukuk ( ar, صكوك, ṣukūk; plural of ar, صك, ṣakk, legal instrument, deed, cheque, links=no) is the Arabic name for financial certificates, also commonly referred to as "sharia compliant" bonds.
Sukuk are defined by the AAOIFI ( Acco ...
. She argues Britain is "a first class destination for trade and investment" and she is determined to "cement Britain's position as the leading player for Islamic finance". At the World Islamic Economic Forum, the UK Government announced that Warsi would chair a new Global Islamic Finance and Investment Group.
Persecution of Christians
In a public speech at
Washington D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...
in 2013, Warsi stated, "there are parts of the world today where to be a Christian is to put your life in danger. From continent to continent, Christians are facing discrimination, ostracism, torture, even murder, simply for the faith they follow."
Declaring it a "global crisis", Warsi made the case for an international response, calling for a "cross-faith, cross-continent unity on this issue – for a response which isn't itself sectarian. Because a bomb going off in a Pakistani church shouldn't just reverberate through Christian communities; it should stir the world."
Gay rights
The gay rights organisation
Stonewall, as well as several Labour politicians, questioned her suitability for a high-profile Conservative Party role owing to leaflets issued during her 2005 election campaign that contained views which they claimed were homophobic. Some of her 2005 campaign leaflets claimed that Labour's lowering of the homosexual
age of consent from 18 to 16, under the
Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000
The Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000 (c.44) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It changed the age of consent for male homosexual sexual activities (including anal sex) from 18 (or for some activities, 21) to that for hetero ...
, was "allowing schoolchildren to be propositioned for homosexual relationships", and that homosexuality was being "peddled" to children as young as seven in schools.
On a 2009 episode of ''Question Time'' episode featuring
Nick Griffin
Nicholas John Griffin (born 1 March 1959) is a British politician and white supremacist who represented North West England as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2009 to 2014. He served as chairman and then president of the far-righ ...
of the
British National Party
The British National Party (BNP) is a far-right, fascist political party in the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in Wigton, Cumbria, and its leader is Adam Walker. A minor party, it has no elected representatives at any level of UK gover ...
(see Immigration section below), Warsi said of same-sex
civil partnership
A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...
s, "I think that people who want to be in a relationship together, in the form of a civil partnership, absolutely have the right to do that." Speaking in December 2013 at a
BNP Paribas event in support for
the Kaleidoscope Trust, she apologised for her leaflets and said the Conservative Party had been "on the wrong side of history" on gay rights.
Immigration
On immigration matters, Warsi declared that people who back the
British National Party
The British National Party (BNP) is a far-right, fascist political party in the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in Wigton, Cumbria, and its leader is Adam Walker. A minor party, it has no elected representatives at any level of UK gover ...
(BNP) may have a point: "They have some very legitimate views. People who say, 'we are concerned about crime and justice in our communities – we are concerned about immigration in our communities'". On 22 October 2009, Warsi represented the Conservatives on a
controversial edition of ''Question Time'' marking the first ever appearance of
Nick Griffin
Nicholas John Griffin (born 1 March 1959) is a British politician and white supremacist who represented North West England as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2009 to 2014. He served as chairman and then president of the far-righ ...
, leader of the BNP.
Islam
On 30 November 2009, Warsi was pelted with eggs by a group of Muslims during a walkabout in
Luton
Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable a ...
. The protesters accused her of not being a proper Muslim and of supporting the
death of Muslims in Afghanistan. Warsi told the BBC that these men were "idiots who did not represent the majority of British Muslims". She later continued her walkabout with a police escort.
In the context of the
United Kingdom debate over veils
The British debate over veils began in October 2006 when the MP and government minister Jack Straw wrote in his local newspaper, the ''Lancashire Evening Telegraph'', that, while he did not want to be " prescriptive", he preferred talking to ...
, a Tory MP proposed banning
burqa
A burqa or a burka, or , and ur, , it is also transliterated as burkha, bourkha, burqua or burqu' or borgha' and is pronounced natively . It is generally pronounced in the local variety of Arabic or variety of Persian, which varies. Examp ...
s in public in 2010. Warsi responded that the garment does not limit women from engaging in everyday life. Amid critics who say the burqa is divisive and has no place in British society, she argued that the choice of what to wear should be down to the individual.
Warsi argued against following the example of France by banning Muslim women from wearing the veil, as this was "not the British way"; she said "that allowing people to wear what they want was the basis of a free society". She added: "I think I would be as offended if I was told 'actually you must wear a miniskirt to work because that's what we like women to wear' as I would be if somebody came to me and said 'we want you to be covered from head to toe because that's what we like woman to wear'." But she also insisted that those who choose to wear garments such as the full-face veil must accept that there are some situations in which it is not appropriate and some jobs they might not be able to do.
Warsi received support in her stance from Tory colleague and Immigration Minister,
Damian Green
Damian Howard Green (born 17 January 1956) is a British politician who served as First Secretary of State and Minister for the Cabinet Office from June to December 2017 in the Second May government. A member of the Conservative Party, he has b ...
who said banning the face veil would be "un-British" and would be at odds with Britain's "tolerant and mutually respectful society".
In 2009, she was named as "Britain's most powerful Muslim woman" by an
Equality and Human Rights Commission panel and in 2010 as one of the world's "500 most influential Muslims" by the
Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre is a research centre affiliated with the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought.
Its publications include:
*'' A Common Word Between Us and You''
*'' The Amman Message''
*''Forty Hadith on Divin ...
, a Middle East
think tank
A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...
.
She once said: "But today ladies and gentlemen I want to focus on an aspect of my identity that I have rarely mentioned publicly: my
Sunni-
Shia
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, mo ...
upbringing. The diversity of my religious teaching and the inquisitive approach to religion that was encouraged in our home. As a child
Ashura was as much as part of my life as regular attendance at a
Deobandi mosque."
In the April 2016 issue of ''
Dabiq Magazine'', The
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...
declared her a ''
murtadd
Apostasy in Islam ( ar, ردة, or , ) is commonly defined as the abandonment of Islam by a Muslim, in thought, word, or through deed. An apostate from Islam is referred to by using the Arabic and Islamic term ''murtād'' (). It includes ...
'' (or
apostate
Apostasy (; grc-gre, ἀποστασία , 'a defection or revolt') is the formal religious disaffiliation, disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of emb ...
) for being among a group of "overt
crusaders
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...
" who "directly involve themselves in politics and enforcing the laws of
''kufr''".
Church and society
In September 2010, during the visit of
Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...
to England and Scotland, Warsi said the Labour Government appeared to have viewed
religion
Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
as "essentially a rather quaint relic of our pre-industrial history. They were also too suspicious of faith's potential for contributing to society – behind every faith-based charity, they sensed the whiff of conversion and exclusivity. And because of these prejudices they didn't create policies to unleash the positive power of faith in our society."
She returned to this theme, as a Cabinet minister, in February 2012, saying "Britain is under threat from a rising tide of militant secularisation", before an official visit to the
Vatican
Vatican may refer to:
Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum
The Holy See
* The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...
to mark the 30th anniversary of the re-establishment of full diplomatic ties between the UK and the Vatican.
She added, "I am not calling for some kind of 21st century theocracy. Religious faith and its followers do not have the only answer. There will be times when politicians and faith leaders will disagree. What is more, secularism is not intrinsically damaging. My concern is when secularisation is pushed to an extreme, when it requires the complete removal of faith from the public sphere". A Muslim herself, Warsi says that Europe needs to be "more confident and more comfortable in its Christianity".
[
On the ]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 Britai ...
, she insists she had "no doubts whatsoever" about maintaining its position as the Established Church, describing it as a "bedrock" of society. She believes "the system works": "We have an Established Church", it has "a unique position" and an "obligation to all of its parishioners irrespective of their faith". She thinks "it is an incredibly positive aspect of our life in Britain and long may it continue."
In November 2013, Warsi told an audience at the University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...
that faith was being put back at the "heart of government", as it had been under Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...
and 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 from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...
. The Coalition, she argued, is one of the "most pro-faith governments in the West ... More often than not, people who do God do good." She said that religious groups must be allowed to provide public services without the State being "suspicious of their motives". Quoting Thatcher she said, "I wonder whether the State services would have done as much for the man who fell among thieves as the Good Samaritan did for him?"
Resignation
On 5 August 2014, Warsi resigned from the Government citing concerns that she was no longer able to support the Cameron Government's policy on the escalation of violence in the Israel–Gaza conflict, describing the Government's position as "morally indefensible". In her resignation letter, Warsi wrote that the UK Government's "approach and language during the current crisis in Gaza is morally indefensible, is not in Britain’s national interest and will have a long-term detrimental impact on our reputation internationally and domestically" and that it was "not consistent with the rule of law and our long support for international justice".
Warsi criticised the British Government by saying it could "only play a constructive role in solving the Middle East crisis if it is an honest broker and at the moment I do not think it is." She explained: "Our position not to recognise Palestinian statehood at the UN in November 2012 placed us on the wrong side of history and is something I deeply regret not speaking out against at the time."
After resigning she called for an arms embargo against Israel: "It appalls me that the British Government continues to allow the sale of weapons to a country, Israel, that has killed almost 2,000 people, including hundreds of kids, in the past four weeks alone. The arms exports to Israel must stop."
''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 f ...
'' said that her resignation was a blow to the Prime Minister David Cameron as it highlights divisions within Conservative MPs about criticising Israel for the high levels of civilian deaths in Gaza. Her resignation letter praised ministers that had lost their positions in the recent Cabinet reshuffle: William Hague
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
whom she called "one of the finest Foreign Secretaries this country has seen", and Kenneth Clarke
Kenneth Harry Clarke, Baron Clarke of Nottingham, (born 2 July 1940), often known as Ken Clarke, is a British politician who served as Home Secretary from 1992 to 1993 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1993 to 1997 as well as serving as de ...
and Dominic Grieve
Dominic Charles Roberts Grieve (born 24 May 1956) is a British barrister and former politician who served as Shadow Home Secretary from 2008 to 2009 and Attorney General for England and Wales from 2010 to 2014. He served as the Member of Parl ...
as strong upholders of international law. She expressed concern about the way recent decisions were made in the Foreign Office.
While calling her decision "bold", ''Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...
'' magazine wrote that her whole story is rooted in commitment to a higher calling, further adding that "It makes her decision to resign all the more dramatic, and it sends a strong statement that political will requires moral courage". Time quoted Warsi: "I always said that long after life in politics I must be able to live with myself for the decision I took or the decisions I supported ... By staying in Government at this time I do not feel I can be sure of that", she wrote in her resignation letter. The magazine concluded that she may have resigned, but that does not mean her voice had been silenced, and that it might, in fact, grow louder as a result.
''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' called her an 'uncomfortable fit in Tory ranks', adding that her appointment to David Cameron's first top team was seen as an attempt to broaden the party's appeal to women and minorities; but from the beginning, Warsi's rapid rise was viewed with suspicion by some in the Party's grassroots and the rightwing press, who regarded her position as tokenistic. The paper claimed that in the early days, Warsi had genuine influence on Conservative policy, helping the party formulate its thinking on extremism and speaking out frequently against what she saw as an increase in prejudice against faith, especially Islamophobia; however, the paper continued, her star began to fall among the Tory hierarchy some years before mainly because of unpopularity with the old guard and a series of outspoken gaffes that annoyed the spin doctors.
In an editorial, Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
i newspaper ''The Express Tribune
''The Express Tribune'' is a daily English language, English-language newspaper based in Pakistan. It is the flagship publication of the ''Daily Express (Urdu newspaper), Daily Express'' media group. It is Pakistan's only internationally affiliat ...
'' admired Warsi's decision to resign on a matter of principle. The paper also stated that her resignation was going to further aggravate internal tensions and that Tory grandees, who had long disliked and resented her, were already briefing against her, accusing her, among other things, of being a Hamas
Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam ...
sympathiser. The paper termed her resignation over the Israeli actions in Gaza as having far-reaching implications for the British Government, and that she remained a potent figure on the UK political stage.
Writing in ''The Guardian'', journalist Michael White claimed that Warsi should gain some support in the British Muslim community for putting her job where her mouth is over Gaza, further adding, "This is the first time that I can recall a senior Muslim politician, even one who is an unelected patronage appointee, throwing some community weight around ...."
Controversies
Roger Helmer defection
In March 2012, Warsi was criticised by a number of Conservative MPs at a meeting of the 1922 Committee
The 1922 Committee, formally known as the Conservative Private Members' Committee, is the parliamentary group of the Conservative Party in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The committee, consisting of all Conservative backbench member ...
for her handling of MEP Roger Helmer
Roger Helmer (born 25 January 1944) is a British politician and businessman. He was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the East Midlands region from 1999 to 2017. Before becoming an MEP, he was a business executive.
Helmer was electe ...
's defection to 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 ...
. A witness to the meeting said, "She had a very very tough time. She got it with both barrels from MPs across the party. For the Party Chairman to get treated like that shows what people think of the Party Chairman." Another is reported to have said, "I just thought she was out of her depth. I have never seen anything like it – other than the last time she was before the 1922 Committee. I genuinely think she is the worst chairman we have ever had."
Financial declarations
In May 2012, Warsi apologised for failing to declare rental income in the Lords' Register of Interests
A Register of Interests is a record kept, usually by a government body, of financial interests of its members. The register documents interests which may potentially unethically or unlawfully influence members' official duties.
The term is in us ...
. Declaring the fact of income, but not the amount, is necessary for rental income over £5,000.
Parliamentary expenses inquiry
On 27 May 2012, criticisms of her claims for parliamentary expenses were reported. The Labour Opposition urged a full police investigation into her expenses after it was alleged that she claimed up to £2,000 in rent despite staying rent-free in the London home of a Conservative Party donor, Dr Wafik Moustafa. Moustafa claims that he received no money from Warsi. Though he stated it was not personal, Moustafa was in a political dispute with Warsi concerning the Conservative Arab Network.
Labour MP John Mann expressed his intention to refer these claims to the Lords Commissioner for Standards, but Warsi pre-empted this by referring them herself.
Breach of the Ministerial Code
Sir Alex Allan found Warsi to have twice breached the Ministerial Code, though he concluded these were minor and noted that she had apologised. The first was in relation to a trip to Pakistan where she failed to declare that she was being accompanied by a business partner but Sir Alex found that even were Baroness Warsi to have declared the relationship it would not have prevented the trip from going ahead. The second was when she invited her business partner (Abid Hussain) to meet David Cameron at a Number 10 Downing Street Eid event.
The Conservative Party leadership was criticised in some quarters for holding Baroness Warsi to account on the Ministerial Code while apparently having a more relaxed approach to Jeremy Hunt
Jeremy Richard Streynsham Hunt (born 1 November 1966) is a British politician who has served as Chancellor of the Exchequer since 14 October 2022. He previously served in the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport ...
, who was Culture Secretary at that time. Following the publication of the report, David Cameron said Baroness Warsi would remain in her job.
European Union
On 20 June 2016, three days before the referendum on membership of the European Union, Warsi said that she could no longer support the Leave campaign because of what she claimed was its xenophobia
Xenophobia () is the fear or dislike of anything which is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression of perceived conflict between an in-group and out-group and may manifest in suspicion by the one of the other's activities, a ...
, and would vote to remain within the EU. A spokesman for 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 leav ...
said that they were not aware that Warsi had ever been a supporter.
Islamophobia
In May 2018, Warsi, who had been raising the issue 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 party for more than two years, stated that the 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 i ...
, 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 cabi ...
should publicly acknowledge that Islamophobia is a problem in the Conservative Party and that the party was in denial about the problem. In a statement she said: "Up to now, sadly, there are certain parts of the party that have been in denial about this issue." She told ''Business Insider
''Insider'', previously named ''Business Insider'' (''BI''), is an American financial and business news website founded in 2007. Since 2015, a majority stake in ''Business Insider''s parent company Insider Inc. has been owned by the German pub ...
'': "It's very widespread. It exists right from the grassroots, all the way up to the top" and claimed Conservative leaders are not taking the problem seriously because "they don't think it is going to damage them because that community doesn't vote for them in any great numbers."
In July, a week after 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 fro ...
repeated its call for an independent inquiry into Islamophobia and accused the Conservatives of turning blind eye to Islamophobia claims, Warsi called on the Conservatives to launch a "full independent inquiry" into Islamophobia in the party and warned the Conservatives were pursuing a politically damaging policy of denial about the problem in its own ranks. She accused Conservative Chair Brandon Lewis of a "woefully inept" response to recent complaints and added that MP Zac Goldsmith
Frank Zacharias Robin Goldsmith, Baron Goldsmith of Richmond Park, (born 20 January 1975) is a British politician, life peer and journalist serving as Minister of State for Overseas Territories, Commonwealth, Energy, Climate and Environment s ...
should receive "mandatory diversity training" following his unsuccessful attempt to beat Sadiq Khan
Sadiq Aman Khan (; born 8 October 1970) is a British politician serving as Mayor of London since 2016. He was previously Member of Parliament (MP) for Tooting from 2005 until 2016. A member of the Labour Party, Khan is on the party's sof ...
to become Mayor of London
The mayor of London is the chief executive of the Greater London Authority. The role was created in 2000 after the Greater London devolution referendum in 1998, and was the first directly elected mayor in the United Kingdom.
The current m ...
.
Awards and nominations
In January 2015, Warsi was nominated for the Muslim Woman 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 Consult ...
.
Honours
* She was given a Life Peerage
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages A ...
on 11 October 2007 allowing her to sit in the House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
. She sits on the Conservative Party Benches. She was introduced in the House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
on 15 October 2007. She took the title of Baroness Warsi, of Dewsbury in the County of West Yorkshire.
Commonwealth honours
; Commonwealth honours
Foreign honours
; Foreign honours
Scholastic
; University degrees
; Chancellor, visitor, governor, and fellowships
;Honorary degrees
Memberships and fellowships
Personal life
At the age of 15, when on holiday with her extended family in Pakistan, a number of boys were introduced to her, and from them she chose her cousin Naeem. They married in 1990 and had one daughter, Aamna. Naeem later denied that the marriage had been arranged
In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchest ...
. They divorced in December 2007.
Warsi describes herself as a "Northern working-class mum". She is a member of the Carlton Club, and a shareholder of ''Rupert's Recipes Limited'' and ''Shire Bed Company''. On 20 August 2009, she married Iftikhar Azam in a Nikah
In Islam, nikah is a contract between two people. Both the groom and the bride are to consent to the marriage of their own free wills. A formal, binding contract – verbal or on paper – is considered integral to a religiously valid Islam ...
ceremony at her parents' house in Dewsbury. The couple live in Wakefield
Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...
with their five children.
She set up the Baroness Warsi Foundation to fund projects that seek to improve social mobility, increase gender equality and promote religious understanding.
Television appearances
In December 2016, Warsi took a cameo role in the BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...
sitcom '' Citizen Khan''. In May 2018, October 2020 and again in May and November 2021she was a panellist on BBC's '' Have I Got News For You''.
In December 2020 Warsi was featured in the BBC series '' Winter Walks'', walking along Wharfedale
Wharfedale ( ) is the valley of the upper parts of the River Wharfe and one of the Yorkshire Dales. It is situated within the districts of Craven and Harrogate in North Yorkshire, and the cities of Leeds and Bradford in West Yorkshire. It i ...
, from Starbotton, through Kettlewell, to Conistone.
In February 2021 Warsi appeared in the Channel 4 show ''Stand Up & Deliver'', where she took on the challenge of becoming a stand-up comedian in aid of Stand Up to Cancer
Stand Up to Cancer (SU2C) is a charitable program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF). SU2C aims to raise significant funds for translational cancer research through online and televised efforts. Central to the program is a telethon tha ...
. She has also featured in an episode of Channel 4's ''Scotland: Escape to the Wilderness''.
In 2022 she appeared as one of 5 contestants in the Taskmaster New Year Treat special.
In 2022 she appeared alongside Alistair Campbell as one of the political experts on Channel 4s Make Me Prime Minister, a show in which 12 people compete against each other for a cash prize by creating a policy platform that gets them voted as Britain's alternative Prime Minister.
See also
* List of British Pakistanis
The following is a list of notable British Pakistanis, namely notable citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose ethnic origins lie in Pakistan:
Academia and education Humanities
* Sara Ahmed – professor of Race and Cultural Studies ...
Notes
References
External links
Sayeeda Warsi
Official website
Profile
at the Cabinet Office
Profile
at the Conservative Party
*
*
Profile: Sayeeda Warsi
''BBC News
BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...
'', 2 July 2007
Sayeeda Warsi: Cameron's secret weapon
''The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...
'', 3 October 2009
Britain's first Asian Cabinet Minister
'' BBC World Service'', 3 June 2010 (26 minute audio interview)
''Debrett's People of Today''
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Warsi, Sayeeda
1971 births
Living people
20th-century English lawyers
21st-century English lawyers
Alumni of the University of Leeds
Alumni of The University of Law
British special advisers
British politicians of Pakistani descent
Chairmen of the Conservative Party (UK)
Conservative Party (UK) life peers
Conservative Party (UK) parliamentary candidates
English Muslims
English people of Pakistani descent
English solicitors
Female members of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom
Life peeresses created by Elizabeth II
Government ministers of the United Kingdom
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
People from Dewsbury
Politicians from Yorkshire
Punjabi people
Punjabi women