TMP Online

Congratulations to Yasmin Qureshi, who was selected as Labour’s prospective parliamentary candidate (PPC) in Bolton South East last night. Yasmin beat off strong local competition from the CLP Chair and others, including Bolton Cllr Akhtar Zaman. Her selection is significant as she is the first ethnic minority PPC to be selected in a safe Labour seat - the constituency has a notional Labour majority of 12,652.  If elected she will become Britain’s first female, Pakistani MP.

Qureshi is a Barrister at 2 King’s Bench Walk chambers and human rights advisor to London Mayor, Ken Livingstone. She has worked for the Government Legal Services and the Crown Prosecution Service and was the Head of the Criminal Legal Section of the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) for some time. She contested Brent East in 2005.

All eyes will now switch to Cllr Alison Lowe in Leeds West, who is standing to become Labour’s PPC there and was shortlisted last week.  Lowe has represented Armley, part of the constituency, for 17 years, having taken the seat from the Liberal Democrats in 1990. She is Chief Executive of a medium-sized Leeds based charity called Touchstone.  Labour has a 12,810 majority in Leeds West.  The hustings is on 14 September 2007. 

Labour officials will be watching the selection closely, not least because - if selected - Lowe will become the first ethnic minority woman to have successfully stood where there is an all women shortlist.