Anum Qaisar | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2021 | |
| SNP Spokesperson for Levelling Up in theHouse of Commons | |
| In office 4 September 2023 – 5 July 2024 | |
| Leader | Stephen Flynn |
| Preceded by | Chris Stephens |
| Member of Parliament forAirdrie and Shotts | |
| In office 13 May 2021 – 30 May 2024[1] | |
| Preceded by | Neil Gray |
| Succeeded by | Kenneth Stevenson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1992-09-11)11 September 1992 (age 33)[2] Motherwell, Scotland |
| Political party | Scottish National Party |
| Other political affiliations | Labour (until 2014) |
| Alma mater | University of Stirling (BA) |
Anum Qaisar,[1] previouslyAnum Qaisar-Javed[3] (born 11 September 1992) is aScottish National Party (SNP) politician who served as theMember of Parliament (MP) forAirdrie and Shotts from2021 to2024, when she lost the seat toKenneth Stevenson of theLabour Party.[4] She was also the SNP Spokesperson for Levelling Up from 2023 to 2024.
Qaisar was born and raised inMotherwell to aScottish Pakistani family,[5] where her parents were shopkeepers.[2] Her grandfather had emigrated fromPakistan toManchester in the 1950s.[6]
She described her first experience of racism aged nine, when she was waiting at a bus stop after school on the day after the11 September attacks in New York, her ninth birthday, and was asked, "Why is your skin colour the same colour as mud, as poo? Is your dad a terrorist?"[5][2]
She studied politics at theUniversity of Stirling.[2]
Born in Scotland[2] and brought up in aLabour-supporting family, Qaisar was once an active member ofScottish Labour and became general secretary of Muslim Friends of Labour.[7] However, she campaigned for a "Yes" vote at the2014 Scottish independence referendum, and after the result produced a victory for the "Better Together" campaign, she left Labour and joined the SNP.[7]
Qaisar later worked a parliamentary researcher forCarol Monaghan MP, and as a case-worker for then-Scottish Justice SecretaryHumza Yousaf.[2]
In 2015, Qaisar unsuccessfully stood to be selected as the SNP candidate for Edinburgh Eastern at the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, finishing second toAsh Denham.[8]
Prior to entering the Commons, she was aModern Studies teacher atBoroughmuir High School andGeorge Watson's College in Edinburgh, the latter where pupils' parents pay fees of up to £13,551 a year.[9][2][4][5] She taught her students about why people from minority backgrounds are under-represented in politics; citing a lack of role models.[10]
In April 2021, Qaisar was selected as the SNP candidate for the2021 Airdrie and Shotts by-election. The election was triggered by the resignation of the sitting SNP MPNeil Gray to stand at theMay 2021 Scottish Parliament election.
On 14 May 2021, Qaisar won the election, becoming Scotland's second femaleMuslim MP[11][4] afterTasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, also of the SNP, and just like Qaisar a former member of the Labour Party.[12] Turnout was an unusually low 34.3%, and while Qaisar increased the SNP's share of the vote, her majority of 1,757 votes (8.0%) was lower than Neil Gray had won at the2019 UK general election.[11] After her victory, Qaisar pledged to be a role model for other minorities[10] and to "fight for independence".[13]
Qaisar took her seat in theHouse of Commons on 17 May 2021.[14]
She made hermaiden speech in the Commons on 19 May. She complained that theHouse of Commons was more 'rowdy' than her former school pupils, and reported being told by staff that the best way to navigate the building was to 'get lost'.[15] She ended on a serious note that in the currentCOVID-19 crisis theNHS had relied on migrant staff, criticising the UK's point-basedimmigration policy, which she said would even have excluded her own father (if it had been in place at the time) and deprived the country of an MP, a doctor and a medical student (herself and her siblings).[15] In a question session withDominic Cummings on 26 May 2021, she asked if her former Modern Studies students were more aware ofCOVID-19 border control benefits than the Government.[16]
Followingracist abuse of Black English footballers, after theUEFA Euro 2020 Final,[17] during Business Questions to theLeader of the House, Qaisar shared some of the racist abuse she had endured on social media in asking for an urgent debate on 'real action' to end racism in this country, so that "MPs of colour" can speak.[18]Jacob Rees-Mogg, then-Leader of the House of Commons, said 'the House' sympathised but did not confirm a debate, directing his criticism at the social media.[19] In November 2021, she questioned the value of the House of Lords, describing it as 'an unelected crony-stuffed second chamber'.[20] In December 2021, she was given a frontbench role in trade.[21]
Qaisar was one of many SNP MPs who lost their seat toLabour at the2024 general election.[22]
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forAirdrie and Shotts 2021–2024 | Succeeded by |
