Priti Patel
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The Times of India; May 12 2015
Cabinet minister in new UK govt
Kounteya Sinha
Indian-origin Tory MP Priti Patel has been appointed minister of state for employment in British Prime Minister David Cameron's new cabinet. Patel, who called her new posting at the department for work and pensions “a real privilege“, won the recent elections by securing 58% of the votes from Witham. She was the exchequer secretary to the treasury from July 2014 to May 2015. The 43-year-old was first elected the MP for Witham in May 2010.
During his trip to India in November 2013, Cameron had said: “I've made a personal commitment to strengthening UK-India relations because I believe we can be one of the great partnerships of the 21st century. And I firmly believe that British Indians -who already bring so much to our country -can play a vital role forging this strong relationship. To date, I don't think we've made the most of all they have to offer so I've appointed Priti Patel as our diaspora champion.“
The cabinet has got another minister of South Asian origin: Sajid Javid, the son of a bus driver and former banker, has been made the new business secretary, replacing Vince Cable. He recently oversaw the installation of Mahatma Gandhi's statue at Parliament Square.
London mayor Boris Johnson has not been made a minister but will attend “po litical cabinet“ meetings. He will be the first to simultaneously serve in the cabinet and as the mayor of London since the local government position was created in 2000.
“Boris Johnson will be attending my Political Cabinet,“ Cameron tweeted. “As promised, he will devote his attention to his final year as Mayor of London.“
David Miliband blames brother Ed for Labour's loss
David Miliband, former foreign secretary of Britain and known best in India for spending a night at the home of a Dalit family in Semra village of Uttar Pradesh along with Rahul Gandhi, has criticized his brother Ed's leadership of the Labour Party. Putting to rest speculation that he would return from New York to take up the vacant post of leader of the Labour Party, Miliband said his brother Ed lost the elections because voters “did not want what was being offered“. -Kounteya Sinha
