Mohammad Yasin (politician)

Mohammad Yasin MP (born 15 October 1971) is a Pakistan-born British Labour Party politician. He was elected at the 2017 general election as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bedford. Prior to this, he was a local councillor, and taxi driver. He was re-elected at the 2019 general election.

Mohammad Yasin

MP
Member of Parliament
for Bedford
Assumed office
8 June 2017
Preceded byRichard Fuller
Majority145 (0.3%)
Personal details
Born (1971-10-15) 15 October 1971
Mirpur, Pakistan
Political partyLabour
Children4

Early life

Yasin was born on 15 October 1971 in Mirpur, Pakistan.[1] His father was a truck driver. He obtained a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Degree College Mirpur. Yasin moved to Bedford, Bedfordshire at the age of 21. He reports that his first job on arrival was in a factory before becoming a taxi driver. While working at the factory, he became involved with trade unions, and joined the Labour Party.[2]

In 2006, he was elected as a councillor for Queen's Park ward in Bedford Borough Council. Yasin was re-elected in 2009 and 2015. Upon being elected to Parliament, he continued to serve as a Bedford Borough Councillor until the 2019 local elections where he stood down.[3][4][5] He was the Portfolio Holder on the council for Adult Services.[6]

Parliamentary career

Yasin was elected as MP for Bedford in the 2017 general election with a majority of 789 (1.6%) votes.[7] It was previously represented in parliament by Conservative Richard Fuller since 2010. In March 2018, Yasin received a suspicious package containing an anti-Islamic letter and sticky liquid. The substance was later found to be harmless. Similar packages were received by fellow Muslim Labour MPs Rushanara Ali, Afzal Khan and Rupa Huq.[8][9]

Yasin supported the UK remaining within the European Union (EU) in the 2016 UK EU membership referendum. In the indicative votes on 27 March 2019, Yasin voted for a referendum on a Brexit withdrawal agreement, for Norway plus, and for a customs union with the EU.[10]

Since May 2019, Yasin has sat on the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee.[11]

In the 2019 General election, Yasin was re-elected as MP for Bedford defeating his closest Conservative challenger by a margin of 145 votes (0.3%) making Bedford the most marginal Labour seat in the country.[12]

Personal life

Yasin is married and is the father of four children.[13]

References
  1. "Yasin, Mohammad". A & C Black. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  2. Shah, Murtaza Ali (15 November 2017). "Mohammad Yasin MP: From driving taxi to British Parliament". The News International. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  3. "Local Election Results 4 May 2006" (PDF). Bedford Borough Council. p. 4. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  4. "Local Election Results 4 June 2009" (PDF). Bedford Borough Council. p. 4. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  5. "Borough Elections 2015" (PDF). Bedford Borough Council. p. 16. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  6. "Thanks and Congratulations as Cllr Yasin Steps Down from Cabinet Role". East of England Liberal Democrats. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  7. "Bedford". parliament.uk. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  8. "Third MP gets Islamophobic letter". BBC News. 13 March 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  9. Elgot, Jessica (13 March 2018). "Four Muslim MPs receive suspicious packages at Westminster". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  10. "How MPs voted on May's withdrawal deal defeat". Financial Times. 29 March 2019. Archived from the original on 2 September 2019.
  11. "Mohammad Yasin MP". parliament.uk. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  12. "Bedford Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
  13. "Passchendaele". Hansard. 13 July 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Richard Fuller		 Member of Parliament for Bedford
2017–present		 Incumbent
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