A British politician who was accused of racism for after calling out British Pakistani men who were sexually abusing white girls has been given increased security by police, according to a report.
Sarah Champion, the parliamentary representative for Rotherham, a town in northern England that became synonymous with a child exploitation scandal, faced criticism last year for writing an article titled: “British Pakistani men ARE raping and exploiting white girls - it’s time we faced up to it.”
A report in The Times published on Wednesday said Ms Champion had been targeted by far-left activists as well as members of Rotherham's Pakistani community hoping to force her out of office.
The MP's comments were published in right-wing tabloid The Sun in August 2017 following the convictions of 17 men of Asian and Middle Eastern origin for their roles in a sex abuse ring in which more than 100 adolescent girls and young women were sexually exploited.
In a column, she wrote: "Britain has a problem with British Pakistani men raping and exploiting white girls.
"There. I said it. Does that make me a racist? Or am I just prepared to call out this horrifying problem for what it is?"
She added that in grooming cases people were “shying away” from telling the truth for fear of being labelled racist.
The backlash led to Ms Champion resigning from her position as the shadow minister for Women and Equalities on the Labour Party’s frontbench. She later apologised for her “extremely poor choice of words”.
Police upped her security after Just Yorkshire, a Rotherham-based racial justice charity, released a report in March criticising Ms Champion’s “incendiary comments”, which led the MP to receive death threats, The Times said.
The newspaper added, citing friends of Ms Champion, that activists were lining up Taiba Yasseen, a Muslim member of the Labour-run local council, to replace her if she stood down or was deselected by her party.
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Read more:
British liberals struggle with racial aspect of sex rings, says Labour MP
UK Muslims face ‘extremist threat from the right’ as Islamophobia surges
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Nadeem Murtuja, chairman and acting director of Just Yorkshire, rejected any suggestion that his charity was trying to oust Ms Champion as “completely wide of the mark”.
While Ms Yasseen, a member of the Labour Party’s far-left Momentum movement, described the former shadow cabinet minister as “one of the best things to happen to our town”.
She said: "Sarah and I are friends and colleagues. I fully support her and the important work she does."
Ms Champion’s office said the MP was aware of the report but declined to comment.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre turbo 4-cyl
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Power: 190bhp
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The specs: 2018 Volkswagen Teramont
Price, base / as tested Dh137,000 / Dh189,950
Engine 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox Eight-speed automatic
Power 280hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 360Nm @ 2,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.7L / 100km
57 Seconds
Director: Rusty Cundieff
Stars: Josh Hutcherson, Morgan Freeman, Greg Germann, Lovie Simone
Rating: 2/5
Company Profile
Company name: Cargoz
Date started: January 2022
Founders: Premlal Pullisserry and Lijo Antony
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 30
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl
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Torque: 200Nm at 4,000rpm
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COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Revibe
Started: 2022
Founders: Hamza Iraqui and Abdessamad Ben Zakour
Based: UAE
Industry: Refurbished electronics
Funds raised so far: $10m
Investors: Flat6Labs, Resonance and various others
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Director: Jay Chandrasekhar
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Company Profile
Company name: Hoopla
Date started: March 2023
Founder: Jacqueline Perrottet
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
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MATCH INFO
Manchester United 2 (Heaton (og) 42', Lindelof 64')
Aston Villa 2 (Grealish 11', Mings 66')
COMPANY PROFILE
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Started: 2022
Founders: Venkat Reddy, Mohammed Al Bulooki, Bilal Merchant, Asif Ahmed, Ovais Merchant
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Digital receipts, finance, blockchain
Funding: $4 million
Investors: Privately/self-funded
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Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)
Brighton v Arsenal (6pm)
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Sunday
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Monday
Manchester City v Burnley (11pm)
On Instagram: @WithHopeUAE
Although social media can be harmful to our mental health, paradoxically, one of the antidotes comes with the many social-media accounts devoted to normalising mental-health struggles. With Hope UAE is one of them.
The group, which has about 3,600 followers, was started three years ago by five Emirati women to address the stigma surrounding the subject. Via Instagram, the group recently began featuring personal accounts by Emiratis. The posts are written under the hashtag #mymindmatters, along with a black-and-white photo of the subject holding the group’s signature red balloon.
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In addition to With Hope UAE’s frank social-media presence, the group holds talks and workshops in Dubai. “Change takes time,” Reem Al Ali, vice chairman and a founding member of With Hope UAE, told The National earlier this year. “It won’t happen overnight, and it will take persistent and passionate people to bring about this change.”
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Countries so far: 85
Flights: 149
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Bumps on the head: 2
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Engine: 3.6-litre V6
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On sale: Q2, 2020
GOODBYE JULIA
Director: Mohamed Kordofani
Starring: Siran Riak, Eiman Yousif, Nazar Goma
Rating: 5/5
Usain Bolt's World Championships record
2007 Osaka
200m Silver
4x100m relay Silver
2009 Berlin
100m Gold
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
2011 Daegu
100m Disqualified in final for false start
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
2013 Moscow
100m Gold
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
2015 Beijing
100m Gold
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
Details
Through Her Lens: The stories behind the photography of Eva Sereny
Forewords by Jacqueline Bisset and Charlotte Rampling, ACC Art Books
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5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m, Winner SS Lamea, Saif Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer).
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,400m, Winner AF Makerah, Sean Kirrane, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m, Winner Maaly Al Reef, Brett Doyle, Abdallah Al Hammadi
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Reputation
Taylor Swift
(Big Machine Records)