News from Southampton Labour

Itchen MP shares experiences of Bangladesh

John Denham MP meets with British-Bangladeshis In Southampton following Government visit.

John Denham held a meeting with British-Bangladeshis in Southampton to share his experiences of visiting Bangladesh earlier this year.

Mr Denham visited Bangladesh in January in his role as Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. During the visit Mr Denham met with Bangladeshi Government Ministers, visited Dhaka (Bangladesh’s capital city) and Sylhet (where many British-Bangladeshis have roots) and talked to community groups. He also launched a British Government aid package. Topics discussed during the visit included reducing poverty, tackling climate change and questions of identities.

The meeting in Southampton was arranged with the help of the Shah Jalal Mosque and Kuti’s restaurant.

Mr Denham said: “Visiting Bangladesh was a great experience. It’s so important to understand links between Bangladeshi Communities in Britain and their roots in Bangladesh. That’s why I thought it was important to hold a meeting with British-Bangladeshis in my own constituency.”

Shabuddin Tarafdar, who helped organise the meeting said: “We’re glad to have had the opportunity to talk to John Denham about Bangladesh. It’s good to have a close relationship with our MP so that we can be sure our views are listened to. It’s very important that we’re able to share knowledge and experiences about the community and government. We look forward to working together in future.”