Can Labour can actually count on the ethnic minority votes going forward?
Conventional wisdom says that Labour import foreigners who then vote for vote for Labour as a client class. In September of 2024, a new political party was formed in Britain the Independent Alliance launched by Akmed Yakub, Jeremy Corbyn and three other Muslims. All of whom ran in the 2024 general election as part of the wave of independent candidates that ran against Labour in high Muslim population areas after the party was perceived to be weak on Gaza.
The party's mission is dedicated to fighting for Birmingham's "neglected inner city communities" which have suffered from years of underinvestment and political inaction. Yakub stated that the intention was to drive the Labour party out of power in Birmingham. The party will therefore focus on unseating sitting Labour councillors in areas which again have a large Muslim population.
Suddenly the client group is looking like an enemy of Labour.
The launch of this new party is a similar Downstream effect of Britain's immigration policy and the increasing influence of clannishness on our politics in this case the largely Pakistani Biraderi system.
**Familial relationships play a crucial role in daily life, and the vast majority of Pakistanis live in multi-generational households where three four or even five generations reside together.
Pakistanis also tend to rely on their relatives more than anyone else for financial assistance social support and job opportunities.**
Family ties are therefore central to the Pakistani community's economy, employment opportunities and social mobility, so they form - and rely upon these biraderi networks for support rather than external institutions. This system fosters a deep sense of loyalty and mutual obligation where individuals prioritise their own interests of their kin over outsiders. This kinship forms the foundation of tribal political organisation with extended families tracing their ancestry back eight to ten generations.
The role or behaviour of member towards political institutions is influenced and determined by nature of his clan people have less to say and care about National politics their main priority is their Clans affiliations and interests.
Clan, tribe, caste networks not only play a crucial role in influence voting behaviour but also serve to legitimise a family's political control over resources enabling them to pass wealth and power down through generations as a form of political inheritance.
The UK's first past the post electoral system benefits parties with geographically concentrated support particularly at the local level where turnout is low and communities are more easily accessed in areas with significant South Asian communities.
And in the UK we have seen our local politicians form ever closer ties with biraderi Elders or Community representatives. Politicians sought to cultivate those relationships seeing biraderi Elders as gatekeepers to a political block vote.
This dynamic created a system where politicians became patrons and biraderi leaders acted as clients delivering votes in exchange for political favour - manipulated clan politics.
The patronage driven political landscape in constituencies with large Pakistani populations has evolved significantly since the arrivals of large communities via immigration in the 1970s. Biraderi networks proved particularly useful during election campaigns especially where resources were limited and campaigners were scarce.
This change is largely down to increased immigration from Pakistan into these areas which created opportunities to influence candidate selection through sheer numbers of paid up party members. The citizens Commission on Islam participation and public life shared by then conservative MP Dominic Grieve QC described the role of biraderi networks as playing a fundamental role in the politics of South Asian communities.
Labour is particularly reliant on biraderi networks primarily due to the fact that many constituencies with large South Asian populations were safe Labour seats in the early 1990s
Jeff Rooker then Labour MP for Birmingham Perry bar highlighted concerns over the potential misuse of urban renewal grants within patronage networks. He alleged that assistance with Grant applications was being offered in exchange for Labour party membership and votes for Labour candidates.
On February the 9th 1995 he raised the issue in Parliament warning that such practices with fuelling ethnic tensions and contributing to social fragmentation. Dame Jill Knight argued that taxpayer money was effectively being used to buy political allegiance and votes for the Labour party.
Out of 841 grants to voluntary bodies The Lion Share goes to those parts of Birmingham that elect Labour councillors and members of parliament. As a direct result of those charges no fewer than four Labour constituency parties have been suspended.
The relationship of the Labour Party to the Pakistani Community had for some time been over-dependent on links to one particular Clan the suggestion was that in return for delivering a sizeable Labour vote for Council seats would be chosen from the clan and the community leaders would be the Principal source of council influence within the Pakistani parts of town.
Until recently the biraderi system primarily influenced candidate election at the local level where contests were easier to sway due to lower Stakes. Biraderi leaders held significant power within Wards whereas parliamentary constituencies being more 'ethnically diverse' required candidates who could appeal beyond a single community.
Over the past 10 to 15 years it has become standard practice to select South Asian candidates in parliamentary constituencies with significant South Asian populations. Research using data from the 2010 ethnic minority British election study highlights the effectiveness of this strategy showing that Pakistani voters tend to favour Pakistani candidates and are more likely to turn out when such candidates run especially under the Labour party banner.
This increased influence was partly thanks to Blair's introduction of Postal Voting parliamentary selection contests which no longer required voters to justify why they couldn't attend in person.
This reform allowed biraderi leaders to effectively deliver block votes to favoured candidates and in safe seats where the party selection process all but determines the election outcome and this gave biraderi networks huge clout.
The huge amount of influence wielded by biraderi Elders however and their use to reinforce existing power networks has generated resentment from those who don't receive preferment.
Politics in large parts of South Asian communities is overwhelmingly a male preserve from candidates to campaigners. This grip is reinforced by the way in which members of tight family and clan networks are encouraged to vote as a block in this way the male head of the household can often control dozens sometimes hundreds of votes which was used to exercise political leverage.
This ultimately has quite a corrupting influence on politics because the determining factor in exercising such influence becomes less about political conviction and more about which candidate will be indebted to you.
The Respect Party's success stem from its dual critique of postal voting and beair dominated politics tapping into widespread frustration over the political dominance of certain clans. Their strong anti-war stance will resonated deeply with Muslim voters making it a key vote winner to break the hold of the biraderi network.
The Gaza issue has simply forced a clear separation what we are now seeing may simply be true clannish politics at play of different biraderi networks against each other all out in the open - but clothed in the language of British politics.