Mr Speaker, Rt Hon John Bercow announced the inaugural MPs of the Year, for those MPs who have represented and work well with deprived and minority communities across the country.

Announcing the winners from the State Rooms, in the Speaker’s House, The Rt Hon John Bercow MP said:

“I wish to congratulate the Patchwork Foundation for all their excellent work over the past year in encouraging the positive integration of deprived and minority communities into British political society. I also congratulate all the Members of Parliament on their nominations as MP of the Year and especially Rt Hon Sadiq Khan MP for winning the MP of the Year Award.”

Martyn Lewis CBE, Chairman of the NCVO Trustee Board, Founder of YouthNet, former BBC/ITV television journalist and a Patron of the Patchwork Foundation who compered the award’s ceremony said:

“I am delighted to be involved in a ceremony that acknowledges and honours the great work that many MPs are doing to help minority and deprived communities across the country. It was particularly good to see so many being nominated, and highlighting those who have done most in this important area of national life will hopefully encourage others to follow suit.”

The MP of the Year and Labour MP of the Year Rt Hon Sadiq Khan MP said:

“I was born in Tooting, went to school here and now I am raising my family here – I wouldn’t want to be MP anywhere else. I have been Tooting’s Member of Parliament for over eight years now, and I have always taken great pride in having the opportunity to represent all of the people of Tooting, my home, in Parliament.  In Tooting we are blessed with an incredibly diverse and harmonious community and being a Muslim and the son of Pakistani migrants, it has always been my priority to work hard to make sure I engage with, and represent, all of the religious and ethnic groups in my constituency.  There are so many MPs who work extremely hard for their constituents and I am therefore very humbled to win this award. I would like to thank all of my constituents who nominated me.  The Patchwork Foundation does a brilliant job encouraging both deprived and minority communities to participate in mainstream political life and I look forward to continuing to support their work in the future.”

Rt Hon Ed Miliband, Leader of the Labour Party said:

“I want to congratulate Patchwork Foundation for all the excellent work they have done over the last 12 months to help encourage the positive integration of deprived and minority communities into British politics. I’m particularly happy to see so many Labour Members of Parliament nominated for these awards, and particular congratulations to my friend and colleague Sadiq for winning MP of the Year Award.  I know how hard Sadiq works, not just in his own constituency of Tooting, but across the country to ensure that the views of all different communities are heard here in Westminster and he certainly deserves this award.”

Conservative MP of the Year Rt Hon Chris Grayling MP said:

“It is a real pleasure to be given this award.  I believe we have to do as much as possible to involve young people from minority backgrounds in the political process and other parts of public life.”

Liberal Democrat MP of the Year John Leech MP said:

“I just want to do the best I can to represent my constituents in South Manchester. I appreciate this honour because it comes from Independent judges and the Patchwork foundation, that campaigns for a more equal and integrated society.”

Rt Hon Nick Clegg MP, Deputy Prime Minister and Leader of the Liberal Democrats said:

“I want to congratulate Patchwork Foundation for all the excellent work they have done over the last 12 months to help encourage the positive integration of deprived and minority communities into British political society and for establishing the ground breaking awards.  I also congratulate all the Liberal Democrat Members of Parliament on their nominations as MP of the Year and especially John Leech for winning the Liberal Democrat MP of the Year Award.   John has been a tireless champion for his constituents for over 8 years and has ensured that he has represented all the views of those communities traditional excluded by the political process.  John is a fantastic example of how Liberal Democrat Members of Parliament believe it is important we work with all our deprived and minority communities to help build a stronger economy and fairer society.”

Newcomer MP of the Year Caroline Lucas said:

“I am truly honoured and delighted to have been chosen to receive this prestigious award from the Patchwork Foundation. For many people, Parliament still feels old fashioned and inaccessible, and there is a long way to go in terms of addressing the huge underrepresentation of minority and deprived communities. As MP, I am committed to doing all I can to support and engage with those communities – whether it’s fighting for an extradition system that respects human rights, an end to cruel welfare cuts like the so-called ‘bedroom tax’, or campaigning for same sex marriage – and to prevent people from being excluded from the political process.”

Notes:

Patchwork Foundation’s Patrons: Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson DBE, Martyn Lewis CBE & John O’Brien.

Patchwork Foundation’s National Advisory Board: Shabir Randeree CBE (Chair, Mosaic Associates), Simon Woolley (Founder, Operation Black Vote), Andrea Cooper (Director, UpRising), Daniella Shaw-Gabay (Policy and Public Affairs Manager, Three Faiths Forum), Jonathan Freeman (National Director, HRH Prince of Wales’ Mosaic) and Sophie Stephens (Senior Organiser, Citizens UK).

Through the MP of the Year Awards, The Patchwork Foundation highlights and acknowledges those MPs – nominated by individuals and grassroots community organisations, and subsequently picked by an independent panel of judges – that have excelled in representing such communities.  From our understanding, this is the first time an MP of the Year Award has been created to acknowledge the great work done by MPs in working with deprived and minority communities.

There have been over 30 MPs nominated from across the country including MPs from different faith groups and ethnic backgrounds.  The MPs are judged by 5 key criteria:

The Patchwork Foundation launched the MP of the Year Awards in association with Mosaic Associates, the Three Faiths Forum and UpRising earlier this year.  Hosted by the Patchwork Foundation’s Patron, Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, the launch included contributions from key leaders from organisations working with deprived and minority communities including Shabir Randeree CBE (Chair, Mosaic Associates), Simon Woolley (Founder, Operation Black Vote), Andrea Cooper (Director, UpRising), Daniella Shaw-Gabay (Policy and Public Affairs Manager, Three Faiths Forum) and Neil Jameson (Executive Director, Citizens UK), as well as key political figures including Rt Hon Keith Vaz MP (Chair, Home Affairs Committee, Labour), Alok Sharma MP (Vice-chair, BME Communities, Conservative), Rt Hon Alistair Carmichael MP (Chief Whip, Liberal Democrats).

Judges: John O’Brien (Patron, Patchwork Foundation), Shabir Randeree CBE (Chair, Mosaic Associates), Simon Woolley (Founder, Operation Black Vote), Andrea Cooper (Director, UpRising), Daniella Shaw-Gabay (Policy and Public Affairs Manager, Three Faiths Forum), Jonathan Freeman (National Director, HRH Prince of Wales’ Mosaic) and Sophie Stephens (Senior Organiser, Citizens UK).

Category: MP of the Year

Winner: Rt Hon Sadiq Khan MP

Nominations: Winner of Conservative MP of the Year, Labour MP of the Year, Liberal Democrat MP of the Year & Newcomer MP of the Year

Category: Conservative MP of the Year

Winner: Rt Hon Chris Grayling MP

Runner Up: Sir Tony Baldry MP

Nominations: Rt Hon Andrew Mitchell MP, Rt Hon Chris Grayling MP, Rt Hon David Davis MP, Rt Hon David Jones MP, Rt Hon Dominic Grieve MP, Richard Ottaway MP & Sir Tony Baldry MP

Category: Labour MP of the Year

Winner: Rt Hon Sadiq Khan MP

Runner Up: Rt Hon Keith Vaz MP

Nominations: Fabian Hamilton MP, Fiona Mactaggart MP, Rt Hon Keith Vaz MP, Lyn Brown MP, Rt Hon Sadiq Khan MP, Rt Hon Stephen Timms MP & Stephen Twigg MP

Category: Liberal Democrat MP of the Year

Winner: John Leech MP

Runner Up: Tim Farron MP

Nominations: Rt Hon Alistair Carmichael MP, Rt Hon Don Foster MP, Rt Hon Ed Davey MP, Greg Mulholland MP, Jenny Willott MP, Jo Swinson MP, John Hemming MP, John Leech MP, Norman Lamb MP, Sarah Teather MP, Rt Hon Simon Hughes MP & Tim Farron MP

Category: Newcomer MP of the Year

Winner: Caroline Lucas MP

Runner Up: Jonathan Reynolds MP

Nominations: Alok Sharma MP, Anas Sarwar MP, Angie Bray MP, Caroline Lucas MP, Chuka Umunna MP, Jon Ashworth MP, Jonathan Reynolds MP, Lilian Greenwood MP, Rushanara Ali MP, Stella Creasy MP, Steve Reed MP & Zac Goldsmith MP