• Friday, March 29, 2024

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All Party Parliamentary Group for British Gujaratis formally launched; to address economic, welfare issues

Attendees at the formal launch of the All Party Parliamentary Group for British Gujaratis on April 25, 2023.

By: Shubham Ghosh

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for British Gujaratis, formed recently by Gareth Thomas, MP for Harrow West, was formally launched on Tuesday (25).

The event was attended by more than 110 people from various sections of the community, including grassroots Gujarati organisations, business and spiritual leaders, people from the world of show businesses and politicians.

There were also representatives from an array of faith and community organisations, including the Lohana, Bohra and the Gujarati-Muslim communities.

The APPG for British Gujaratis will seek to address issues that are faced by the British Gujarati community, including among others, support for community languages and elderly care.

A major issue which has been raised is the decision to shift direct flights between London to Gujarat from Heathrow to Gatwick, apparently without any consultation. A huge community campaign that had kicked off more than two decades ago led to direct to and fro flights between Heathrow to Ahmedabad in the western Indian city, slashing time and costs for families looking to unite with their loved ones or those pursuing shared business goals.

The event was addressed by the co-chairs of the new APPG, Thomas MP and Bob Blackman MP.

The latter, who recently returned from a trip to India, noted support for the group from the chief minister of Gujarat, Bhupendra Patel. Other parliamentarians who spoke at the event to offer support for the group included Sam Tarry MP, Munira Wilson MP and Lord Sahota.

The group, which includes officials such as Lord Dholakia, Munira Wilson MP, Shailesh Vara MP, Navendu Mishra MP and Virendra Sharma MP, will not campaign on issues to do with India or on a faith basis as there are already all-party groups that work on these issues.

Speaking on the occasion, Thomas MP said, “The launch was a great success with attendees from right across the British Gujarati community. I look forward to now using the APPG with the other MPs and peers to highlight economic and welfare issues facing the community.

Over time I hope to explore issues around more support for the teaching of Gujarati and what more can be done to tackle the health issues that are a little more prevalent among the British Gujarati community, as well as a range of other economic and welfare issues.”

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