Tariq Mahmood Ahmad, Baron Ahmad of Wimbledon (born 3 April 1968), is a British-Pakistani businessman and a Conservative

life peer 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 ...

. He was appointed Minister of State for the Commonwealth and United Nations, and later for South Asia; then Central Asia, and then for North Africa, at the

Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ministries of fore ...

on 13 June 2017.

Early years

Born in

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...

, to

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

-speaking immigrant parents from Pakistan, Tariq Ahmad was educated at Rutlish School,

Merton Park Merton Park is a suburb in the London Borough of Merton. It is situated between Colliers Wood, Morden, South Wimbledon and Raynes Park. It is 11 miles (11.7 km) southwest of Charing Cross. The area is part of the historic parish of Merton i ...

, southwest London.

Career

In 1991, he entered

NatWest National Westminster Bank, commonly known as NatWest, is a major retail and commercial bank in the United Kingdom based in London, England. It was established in 1968 by the merger of National Provincial Bank and Westminster Bank. In 2000, it ...

's Graduate Management programme, eventually working as Head of Marketing, Sponsorship and Branding and in 2000 went to work for AllianceBernstein.Official website, About
Official website, Professional
In 2004, he joined

Sucden Financial Sucden (Sucres et Denrées) is a French-based commodity broker of soft commodities and other financial products headquartered in Paris. The firm started as a sugar broker and is now amongst the world leaders with a market share of around 15% i ...

, where he served on the Executive Committee and as Director of Marketing, Strategy and Research. He is an Associate of the Institute of Financial Services and a member of the Institute of Directors. From 1999 to 2008 he served as vice-president of AMYA, a British Muslim youth organisation.Official website, Community
From 2001 to 2006, he served as a governor of Wimbledon Park Primary school. He joined 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 ...

in 1994.Tariq introduced to House of Lords
In 2002, he was elected a Councillor in

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

. He contested Croydon North for the Conservatives in 2005. From 2008 to 2010, he served as Vice-Chairman of the Conservative Party. He is a part of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, and was a national vice-president of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Association's youth organisation from 2003.

Parliamentary career

On 13 January 2011, he was made a

, and was created Baron Ahmad of Wimbledon, of

in the London Borough of Merton. He formally joined the House of Lords on 17 January. In 2014, Ahmad was promoted to Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at DCLG. After the 2015 general election, he was appointed jointly as Minister for Skills and Aviation Security at the

Department for Transport The Department for Transport (DfT) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have not been devolved. The d ...

and Minister for Countering Extremism at the Home Office. In 2016, he was appointed Minister for Aviation, International Trade and Europe at the

in the first May ministry. After the

2017 general election This national electoral calendar for 2017 lists the national/federal elections held in 2017 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *5 November ...

, Ahmad was appointed Minister of State at the

with responsibilities to the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

, the United Nations, and the Prime Minister's Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict and later South Asia, and then South and Central Asia. He also gained ministerial responsibilities for North Africa from

James Cleverly James Spencer Cleverly (born 4 September 1969) is a British politician and Army Reserve officer who has served as Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs since 2022. A member of the Conservative Party, he has been ...

in February 2022.

Arms

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmad, Tariq 1968 births British Ahmadis British politicians of Pakistani descent Conservative Party (UK) life peers English people of Pakistani descent Living people People educated at Rutlish School Life peers created by Elizabeth II