WINNER: Labour’s Sadiq Khan (PA)

SOUTH LONDON politician Sadiq Khan has been given the inaugural award for MP of the year for work with deprived and minority communities.

The Labour MP for Tooting, who was born and grew up there, said he was “very humbled to win” the new award.

Khan said: “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.”

He added: “There are so many MPs who work extremely hard for their constituents and I am therefore very humbled to win this award.”

His party leader Ed Miliband praised him and the Patchwork Foundation which initiated the award to recognise MPs’ work in diverse communities.

The Labour leader 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.”

Miliband added: “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.”

The awards accepted nominations for each party and Chris Grayling won the Conservative category, and John Leech was voted the best for the Liberal Democrats.