Why Are The Main British Political Parties Competing For The Sikh Vote?

[JagtarSinghKhalsa]

Why are the main British political parties competing for the Sikh vote?

19 September 2013

Many believe the next General Election in 2015 will be a close run thing between Labour and the Conservatives. A coalition may emerge with neither of the two main parties having an outright majority in which case the small number of Liberal Democrat MPs will once again have the opportunity to form a coalition and shape future policies.

The Sikh Federation (UK) often referred to as the first and only Sikh political party in the UK, was set up 10 years ago. When it was launched there was considerable media coverage and initially some politicians feared the Federation may put up its own Parliamentary candidates in 40 or 50 constituencies.

However, at the launch the Federation clarified it was a pressure group and its role was to encourage Sikhs to become politically more active at a local level while at the national level it would work closely with each of the main political parties. Dozens of sitting MPs still feared this move knowing if Sikhs were in large numbers to become members of a particular political party at a local level they would be able to impose some of their own candidates.

10 years later the Sikh Federation (UK) is preparing to mark its anniversary with a 3-day convention in the West Midlands that will end with a conference on Sunday in Wolverhampton that is expected to attract around 10,000 Sikhs from across the UK.

The aim 10 years ago was to give Sikhs a stronger political voice. In the last 6 months or so we have seen David Cameron the first sitting British Prime Minister visit the heart of the Sikh faith, the Golden Temple Complex in Amritsar and meetings have taken place with Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg.

Bhai Amrik Singh, the Chair of the Sikh Federation, said:

‘We are working with all three main political parties at the highest levels and they are genuinely listening to our specific concerns. We have briefed them on the issues that matter to young British Sikhs as well as the wider Sikh community.’

‘Following meetings with Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg we have already developed working alliances with Labour and the Liberal Democrats and are expecting a high level meeting with the Conservatives in the next few weeks.’

‘This will result in a series of high profile activities in the run up to the 2015 General Election that will include media interviews, visits to Gurdwaras and prominent events aimed at the Sikh community hosted by the party leaders. There will be much greater exposure to the Sikh community and issues that concern us in the run up to the General Election.’

The majority of the Sikh vote has traditionally gone to Labour, but trends are changing. In Canada Sikhs are now active in all three main parties and the Federation believe it is inevitable Sikhs in the UK will also move in this direction. Younger Sikhs in particular are increasingly more demanding and challenging before deciding which way to vote. Younger Sikhs, many born and brought up in the UK, are also influencing the older generation.

The Sikh Federation (UK) argues the Sikh vote is also more important to each of the parties as the Sikh turnout in local, national and European elections is much higher than many other communities, probably 20-25% higher than the average turnout. All the political parties know this, recognise the positive image Sikhs have and are therefore looking to secure a greater proportion of the vote of the Sikh community by trying to get closer to the community.

Gurjeet Singh
National Press Secretary
Sikh Federation (UK)

Notes:

Around 150 Gurdwaras and Sikh organisations are either affiliated or support the work of the Sikh Federation (UK). It is widely recognised and acknowledged within the Sikh community that the Sikh Federation (UK) is the leading Sikh pressure group that is able to command the support of Sikhs in large numbers on a range of campaigns.

The Sikh Federation (UK) will be marking its 10th anniversary by holding a 3-day convention at Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, Sedgley Street, Wolverhampton, WV2 2AJ.

In the last 10 years the Sikh Federation (UK) has had meetings with the party leaders of the Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrats, UKIP, Greens, Scottish National Party and Plaid Cymru. In the last 12 months alone private meetings have taken place with three of these party leaders, alliances established and joint activities agreed in the run up to the next General Election in 2015.

In the past decade the Sikh Federation (UK) has had meetings with numerous Ministers that currently attend Cabinet including the Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. David Cameron; Deputy Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. Nick Clegg; Home Secretary, Rt. Hon. Theresa May; Rt. Hon. Iain Duncan Smith; Rt. Hon. Vince Cable; Rt. Hon. Oliver Letwin; Rt. Hon. Ed Davey; Rt. Hon. Baroness Warsi and Rt. Hon. Dominic Grieve. This gives an indication of the depth of political relationships the Sikh Federation (UK) has developed over the years.

A promotional flyer summarising the activities of the Sikh Federation (UK) over the last 10 years is attached. The Sikh Federation (UK) is launching a new web site later this week on the eve of the Conference on Sunday.

sikhfederationuk@yahoo.co.uk | www.sikhfeduk.com | facebook.com/SikhFederationUK | twitter@sikhfeduk

SFUK 10yrs FINAL.pdf

[SikhKosh]

Can anyone explain why British Sikhs lag far behind when it comes to participating in politics compared to Canadian Sikhs? The recent Halal outlet debate near the Gurdwara which was approved by (mostly) Muslim councillors shows how important it is for Sikhs to be active in politics of their respective nations. One of Guru Gobind Singh's Hukams was to get knowledge of politics and being a part of it.

[Singh, Mahan]

Can anyone explain why British Sikhs lag far behind when it comes to participating in politics compared to Canadian Sikhs? The recent Halal outlet debate near the Gurdwara which was approved by (mostly) Muslim councillors shows how important it is for Sikhs to be active in politics of their respective nations. One of Guru Gobind Singh's Hukams was to get knowledge of politics and being a part of it.

My impression is that it is because most of the Sikhs in Britain think of themselves as either British or Asians (not as British Sikhs ), where as in Canada they think of themselves as ‘Sikh Canadians' or 'Punjabi Canadians’

[DailyMail]

I've never been to Canada as such, but from what I understand, canadians regard themselves as "indo-canadians", not Sikh Canadian. It is only in the UK whereby the House of Lords ruled that the Sikhs are a seperate race (1981)- that hasn't happened anywhere outside of the UK. Thereby, it follows that the average Sikh in the UK is more likely to regard themselves as British Sikh.

Certainly where I'm from in West London, the majority of the councillors are Sikh (Hounslow/Ealing). However, we haven't been able to galvanise this political support to a national level. Us Sikhs seem to hit a glass ceiling and we're stuck in local politics.

[PP02]

Sikhs are a new emerging group in U.K, hence parties want to get their vote...

Sikhs should become politically active.....This is necessary for minorities living in West...