On Wednesday 9 July 2014 Dr Altaf Hussain, Chairman of CMF Wales, attended the inaugural Remembering Srebrenica memorial event in Cardiff at the National Museum of Wales.

The event was hosted by Mr Saleem Kidwai and the keynote speaker was David Melding AM, Deputy Presiding Officer of the National Assembly.

The event remembered the massacre of more than 8,000 innocent men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995, those who were left behind to grieve their loss, and the women and girls who were brutally raped as a weapon of ethnic cleansing.

Those present pledged to speak out against the language of hate, which if allowed to go unchecked, can lead to the dehumanisation of others, and pledged to work with others to establish a community that works for the common good of all, and is free from hatred and discrimination.

The picture shows Dr Hussain with Mr Melding.

Lord Sheikh has sent the letter at this link to all CMF members and supporters by email. For convenience the text of the letter is also reproduced below.

The Lord Sheikh
Conservative Muslim Forum
The Conservative Party
CCHQ
4 Matthew Parker Street
London, SE1 7TY

7th July 2014

Dear CMF Members & Supporters,

It is with a great deal of reluctance and regret I write to advise you all that I have decided to relinquish the position of the Chairmanship of the Conservative Muslim Forum.

The reason I am doing this is because I wish to spend more time on writing and undertaking community and charity work. I have just completed my first book which will be published shortly and I would like to commence writing my second book which will need a great deal of research. As regard charity and community work I am heading three major projects which will require a great deal of my time.

I was unanimously proposed and elected as the Chairman of the Forum for three years in May 2014. I was honoured by the confidence you have shown towards me.

Conservative Muslim Forum is now a robust body and has undertaken and continues to undertake multifarious activities. The activities have been included in the Annual Report which was prepared for the year 2013/2014. The Report was sent to everyone and is on our website.

During the last two weeks I have twice referred to the work undertaken by the Conservative Muslim Forum in my speeches in the House of Lords.

I would like to express my thanks to everyone for the enormous help and support which has been voluntarily rendered to me and the Conservative Muslim Forum. We have been a strong team and I am sure that this spirit will be continued under the new Chairman.

The Executive Committee of the Conservative Muslim Forum has now met and unanimously elected Mr Mohammed Amin as the new Chairman to succeed me. Mr Ash Zaman has also been unanimously elected as the Deputy Chairman.

At the meeting Members of the Executive Committee also proposed and unanimously elected me as the President. I am not disappearing from the Conservative Muslim Forum and will be happy to serve as the President. I will also continue to campaign and canvass for the Party to secure our victory in the General Election next year.

Kindest Regards to you all and thank you for your support.

The Lord Sheikh

On 18 June 2014 the CMF held an event, “Be a Local Councillor”,  in the House of Lords. It was organised in association with Local Government Association Conservative Group.

Talented people who are passionate about their local communities – who represent the views of diverse populations within their communities – are the lifeblood of strong and effective councils. We held this event because the Conservative Party is keen to seek out men and women from a range of backgrounds to stand as councillors, giving constituents real choice when it comes to electing people they believe to have their best interests at heart. It was open to people who were not paid-up members of the Party provided they were Party supporters.

The speakers were:

• Cllr Peter Fleming – Council Leader Seven Oaks Council,
• Alok Sharma MP – Conservative Vice-Chair for BME Communities,
• Brandon Lewis MP – Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Communities and Local Government,
• Lord Sheikh – Chairman of CMF,
• Faruk Miah MBE – Host/MC,
• Cllr Jean-Marie Douglas – Melton Borough Council

They presented information on the skills, knowledge and attributes required to become a councillor and what the job entails. It was followed by a Q&A session.

The picture below shows the speakers in the same order as named above.

The group photo below shows some of the attendees.

A historic by-election was held in Newark on 5 June 2014 after the resignation of the previous MP Patrick Mercer. Although Mr Mercer’s majority in 2010 was 16,152 the by-election was expected to be hard fought. Many members of the Conservative Muslim Forum helped to support the Conservative candidate Robert Jenrick, by canvassing in person and by telephone.

Although she was standing for a local council seat herself, CMF Executive memeber Ajantha Tennakoon was one of those who gave time to canvass in Newark in person, joining a Road Trip 2015  battle bus organised by Syed Kamall MEP. The group photo below shows the team together.

Syed Kamall MEP is standing on the left of the picture in a shirt behind the young girl. Ajantha Tennakoon is on the front row between the woman in a yellow coat (Marina Yannakoudakis, MEP for London 2009-2014)  and the woman in a white and blue coat holding a clipboard.

The hard work was rewarded when Robert Jenrick was elected. As David Cameron said, this was the first time a sitting Conservative government had won a by-election in 25 years!

On 2 June 2014 the Association of Muslim Schools held an all-day conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London, with the subject “Educating Muslim Pupils: Nurturing Excellence, Inspiring Futures.” CMF Chairman Lord Sheikh gave the opening speech.

Lord Sheikh reminded the audience about the emphasis Islam places on education and the importance of school giving children an opportunity to create and develop bonds and friendships across different racial and religious groups.

The full text of Lord Sheikh’s speech is reproduced below.

I would like to commend the Association of Muslim Schools for organising this International Conference which aims to address the needs of Muslim students and educationist in the broadest sphere.

The Association aims to provide high quality services and support for the development of excellence in Muslim Schools in all spheres of life for learners and educators.

I agree with these objectives and hence I am here today to welcome to the Conference.

The Conference has a busy programme and I hope ideas will emerge which can be put in practise for the benefit of Muslim education.

This Conference will also be an excellent venue for networking and I hope that the people attending can exchange ideas and learn from each other’s successes.

This is truly an International Conference and mashallah we have a very large attendance here today.

I want to talk about the importance of education, in particular that with values and faith at its heart.

Education is extremely important to me. My personal coat of arms reflects this. It contains the motto “iqra”, which means “read”. It also shows a peacock holding two quill pens with a row of books.

These all signify the importance of my educational background and the fact that I am very keen to promote education.

I used to be a lecturer but I soon had to decide whether to go into full-time lecturing or to go into business. But I worked out a compromise and I became a visiting lecturer as well as going into business.

Tony Blair was not the first person to say “Education, Education, Education”. It was Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, founder of the Aligarh University in India, who first coined the phrase and it was actually his motto.

In Islam, education is seen as vital. There is a verse in the Holy Quran which reads as follows:

“Read in the name of your Lord who created. Created man from a clot of blood. Read! And your Lord is the most generous. Who has taught by the pen. Taught man what he did not know”

This verse shows that Muslims believe Allah created humanity and that he commanded us to seek knowledge in order to become stronger in our faith.

The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) has also said the following:

“Seek knowledge even unto China”

“Acquire knowledge for he who acquires it performs an act of piety, he who speaks of knowledge praises God”

“The ink of the scholar is more precious than the blood of the martyr”

The importance of education for the betterment of society is also something that is highlighted by both the Qur’an and the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), who asserted that for a Muslim to fulfil their role to serve humanity, they must acquire knowledge for the common good.

Everyone should be given an equal opportunity to succeed, regardless of religion or socio-economic group. For me, this is one of the key pillars of values-based education.

Education provides individuals with the knowledge and skills needed to increase their incomes boost their employment opportunities and fight social inequalities.

One of the aims of this conference is to build bridges of understanding between Islamic faith education and mainstream education.

It is therefore important to note the importance of education as a tool in assisting with integration and social cohesion, especially in the diverse multi-cultural and multi-faith society that we live in today.

The school establishment is the earliest social institution with which children come into regular contact with others, and the lessons they learn while at school help prepare them for adulthood and for living working lives.

Going to school gives children an opportunity to create and develop bonds and friendships across different racial and religious groups, which will help them to flourish in the future and be a valuable part of British society.

When I was at school in Uganda, I had several friends of different religions and I learnt to speak six different languages.

Learning about other religions enabled me to develop an understanding of the various groups that lived in and around my community. It will enable other children to do the same.

Faith-based education is in fact instrumental in promoting some of these values. Indeed, the concept of building bridges across communities in the wider sense can be nurtured by education with faith at its heart.

Religion can promote a neighbourly society that too often seems to have been eroded. I believe that learning to appreciate cultural harmony and developing an awareness for others can be all the more effective if it is taught within the context of the true meaning of Islam.

We can only benefit from our religious diversity if we sustain the freedom for religions to reflect their differences.

It is through reinforcing such ideas that strong community links will be forged. This will also ensure that our children are taught the importance of cultural and community values.

In this respect, schools should not just be an academic institution but should also promote civic values. As well as high grades and good qualifications, our children should come out of school as good Muslims and well-rounded human beings that are also a benefit to society as a whole.

In short, faith schools are an important part of the education system, offering diversity and choice to parents, as well as helping improve standards.

I would in fact like to see greater participation by Muslims in all aspects of the education system, as governors and teachers in mainstream schools in addition to Muslim faith schools.

Local Muslim community organisations and parents need to play an important role for this to happen.

It is imperative that parents take an interest in the education of children and the parental involvement does have a positive impact on the outcomes of pupils and students.

I would like to state that the standard of education amongst children of Bangladeshi extraction has improved considerably over the last ten years.

Their performance is fact better than the results the British white communities.

One of the reasons is that there is a greater parental involvement in the educational wellbeing of the children.

Ladies and gentlemen, faith, values and community cohesion can go hand-in-hand with education. I believe that the shared objectives of so many people here today are proof of that.

In recent months there has been references relating to extremist practises in some schools, there are also been reference to the alleged Trojan horse plot which has received a great deal of publicity.

I would not like to comment and do not know fully whether these comments are justified. I would however like to say that our educational practises should follow moderate lines.

We must prepare our children for successful careers which will benefit them, their communities and the country at large.

In Urdu we say Deen and Dunnia which means religion and the world.

I would however like to say that in my business and professional life I have met young Muslims, males as well as females who have done well in every walk of life.

Let us have more of these bright and successful young people and I am sure we can achieve this.

Finally I would like to thank the Association of Muslim Schools for asking me to address the Conference.

Please enjoy the Conference and I hope that you find it interesting and fruitful.

Thank you.

The Chairman of the CMF, Lord Sheikh, has prepared the report below summarising the CMF’s activities over the last year. It is published here to share it more widely.

Conservative Muslim Forum Report 2013-14

Conservative Muslim Forum (CMF) is now a potent organisation and the number of our members and supporters exceed 2,500. The secretariat of the Forum is based at CCHQ and the executive secretary is Shaheen Mahmood. Our members and supporters include Muslims and non-Muslims in different parts of the country and the profile of members of our executive committee is also on this basis. Shaheen Mahmood receives considerable support from members of the executive committee and there is constant communication between Shaheen Mahmood and members and supporters of the Forum. Our executive committee meets regularly on a monthly basis and all the proceedings are appropriately minuted.

We do have a website which is updated regularly detailing the various activities and also contains other relevant information. Our web address is www.conservativemuslimforum.com

CMF is on Facebook and Twitter which allows our readers to post their comments. Our Deputy Chairman, Mohammed Amin, has the responsibility of updating our website and dealing with our Facebook and Twitter accounts.

We have a constitution which is strictly followed. The constitution of the Forum lists nine objectives which include the following:

1. Engage with Muslims of all persuasions and encourage them to participate in political life at all levels, from grassroots to Parliament.
2. Engage with Muslims and all other communities and encourage them to support and vote for the Conservative Party.
3. Undertake campaigning for the Conservative Party at elections and other times.
4. Encourage Muslims to make effective and positive contributions to the development of an inclusive and cohesive society in the United Kingdom.
5. Work to maintain and build bridges with all communities and religions within the United Kingdom.

According to our constitution we hold our general elections every three years and the AGM relating to this took place on the 6th May 2014. The office bearers who were elected are as follows:-

• Chairman – Lord Sheikh,
• Deputy Chairman – Mohammed Amin,
• Treasurer – Nash Jaffer,
• Secretary – Faruk Miah.

In addition nine members of the Executive were elected. The elections were overseen by an independent scrutiniser and he was Mr Iqbal Asaria CBE.

Campaigning by CMF

1. We are actively involved in promoting and canvassing for the Party. This includes attending meetings and functions organised by various constituencies, leafleting, door to door canvassing, and telephone canvassing at CCHQ
2. Our Deputy Chairman, Mohammed Amin and the executive secretary, Shaheen Mahmood maintain contact with the various departments at CCHQ to facilitate the campaigning. These also include meetings with Alok Sharma MP and Michelle Bannister to co-ordinate and discuss ideas for the continuous campaign work. Our Deputy Chairman and our executive secretary or a member of the executive will make it a point to attend the meetings whenever these are called. The ideas which are discussed would then be implemented relating to what CMF can undertake.
3. I recently had a meeting with Lynton Crosby regarding campaign work undertaken by CMF.
4. The campaign work is concentrating on 40/40 seats but we would like to point out that we receive requests for other PPCs and we do render support if this is possible. This support includes providing them with the necessary material, telephone canvassing and attendance at meetings.
5. With the primary objective of concentrating on the 40/40 seats in the London area we have taken responsibility of undertaking campaigning in the following constituencies, Enfield North, Harrow West, Brentford & Isleworth. I have myself actively participated in canvassing in these constituencies.
6. In order to assist in canvassing, CMF has produced the following documents:- (1)“Why should Muslims vote Conservative”. (2) “Why non-Muslim Party members should join the CMF”. (3) “Winning Muslim Votes”. (4) “Does Islam allow British Muslims to vote?” These documents have been circulated widely.
7. Some members of our executive committee are actively involved in assisting the party at local level and they have been prominent in rendering support in the local council elections. These areas include Chipping Barnet, Croydon, Finchley Central and Newham. We have two members of the executive committee who are local Councillors.
8. CMF members also rendered support to the candidates for the European elections and provided help particularly to Syed Kamal MEP and Sajjad Karim MEP.
9. With regard to the impending election at Newark, our executive secretary and several members of the Forum are rendering support and in fact have been leafleting, campaigning door to door and telephone canvassing.

Establishment of CMF Branches and Campaign work undertaken by the CMF branches

Over the last year we have established the following branches

i Yorkshire and Humber.

A branch has been established in Bradford for the region and Mrs Itrat Ali is the Chairman. I along with Mohammed Amin (Deputy Chairman), Shaheen Mahmood (executive secretary), Lady Sheikh, Raja Najabat Hussain and other members of the executive were present at the launch of the branch.

Mrs Itrat Ali and members of CMF have undertaken the following activities:

1. Launch meeting for Timothy Kirkhope MEP at a lunch followed by a day of canvassing.
2. Huddersfield meeting held with Jason McCartney MP in support of local council candidates.
3. Support of Dewsbury Conservatives, at Annual Ball and fundraiser in aid of Simon Reevell MP and canvassing for local council candidates.
4. Meeting with prominent members of the business community in Bradford attended by Shailesh Vara MP (Justice Minister).
5. Canvassing for local council candidates for Pudsey.
6. Canvassing at Newark by-election.

In early December 2013, I, with Lady Sheikh, Shaheen Mahmood, Mohammed Amin, Mrs Tahara Amin and Asif Ayub travelled to Yorkshire and addressed four meetings which were very well attended, in Bradford, Dewsbury and Keighley. We were also involved in networking and meeting business people in the area.

ii CMF East Midlands

We launched a branch in Nottingham in the presence of Anna Soubry MP and Neville Baxter, local Association Chairman. The Chairman of East Midlands is Cllr Halimah Khaled. The branch will undertake canvassing in the Broxtowe Constituency where Anna Soubry MP has a small majority. They will also undertake canvassing in surrounding Constituencies. I also attended and spoke at a dinner organised by Cllr Halimah Khaled in Nottingham and Anna Soubry MP was present.

iii CMF Wales

At the Welsh Conservative Party Conference which was held in Llangollen Pavilion on 11th and 12th April 2014, CMF branch in Wales was launched. The Chairman of CMF Wales is Dr Altaf Hussain. The Secretary of State for Wales, The Rt. Hon David Jones MP together with Chairman of Welsh Conservatives Cllr. Jeffery James were present. Both of them expressed strong support for CMF and it was felt necessary that the party should reach out to the Muslims in areas such as Cardiff, Swansea and Newport. CMF also had a stand at the Conference and we were pleased to meet the Prime Minister when he visited the Welsh Conference.

Activities of various groups of CMF

1. CMF Health

CMF has a health group chaired by Dr Alam Ara Khan and a meeting was organised for the members and other guests which was address by the Rt. Hon Jeremy Hunt MP. It was an interactive session and the event was very well attended. The group also arranged a meeting and the subject was “First Cousin Marriage – the Science and the implications”. The speakers included Dr Peter Corry, Dr Ghulam Abbas and Mohammed Amin.

2. CMF Women

CMF Women’s group which is headed by Sana Kahloon, arranged a meeting with Saira Khan who spoke on the subject of “Integrate or Disintegrate”. It was indeed an inspirational speech and Saira Khan was able to explain how she has achieved success in the United Kingdom and overcome difficulties. Saira Khan is a well know figure and she shot to fame when she came second in the BBC programme “The Apprentice” in 2005.

3. CMF Youth

The CMF Youth headed by Raza Anjum arranged a meeting which was addressed by Rory Stewart MP, the subject was entitled – “The endgame in Afghanistan: Opportunities and Challenges”

4. CMF Councillors

CMF in association with Conservative Local Government Association is holding a seminar on Wednesday 18th June on the subject of “Be a Local Councillor”. Members of the Conservative Party are invited and the speakers will include, myself, Alok Sharma MP, senior party members and councillors.

Empowerment of Women

I with members of the executive committee of the Forum are strongly of the belief that women should be empowered which entails education and equality with regard to jobs. I have in my speeches at various places as well as in my networking have promoted the matter of empowerment. We arranged a meeting which was addressed by Dr Sibel Siber, Speaker of the Parliament of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Dr Siber was also the first female Prime Minister of the country. The meeting was very well attended and she spoke on “The Empowerment of Women” and also referred to her own experiences and how she achieved success.

Conservative Party Conference

CMF had a stand at the Conservative Party Conference held in Manchester and which was manned by Shaheen Mahmood and other members of the Committee. The stand was busy and we were able to talk to a number of parliamentarians and existing members. We were also able to enrol new members.

I as the Co-Chairman of the All Party Group on Islamic Finance and Mohammed Amin who is a specialist on Islamic Finance spoke at a meeting held at the Conference on the subject of “Islamic Finance”.

CMF also held a dinner which was very well attended and the speakers included the Rt. Hon Andrew Lansley MP and Kris Hopkins MP.

I also spoke at a dinner organised by Conservative Association of Manchester on the subject of “British Economy and Overseas Trade”.

Conservative Party Spring Conference

Mohammed Amin, Dr Altaf Hussain (Chairman of CMF Wales) and Faruk Miah (CMF Secretary) attended the Conservative Party Spring Conference which was held in London. The Conference was a marvellous occasion which gave our representatives opportunities for networking with other attendees and Conservative Parliamentarians.

Conservative Policy Forum Winter Conference held in Leeds

Mohammed Amin, Faruk Miah, Raja Najabat Hussain and Dr. Ghulam Abbas, attended the Conference, met senior politicians and discussed with them our views to improve the performance of the Party.

CMF event at CCHQ for Conservative Local and PPC candidates.

A meeting was held by the Candidates Department which was attended by parliamentary and local council candidates. The Candidates Department wanted input from the CMF relating to canvassing for the ethnic minorities. There was a team from CMF making contributions on the subject and the team was made up of the following Committee Members, Mohammed Amin, Cllr Jeanne-Maria Douglas, Cllr Asif Ayub, Fuad Hamzeh, Ajantha Tennakoon and Shaheen Mahmood.

CMF delegation visits European Parliament

A visit to the European Parliament was arranged for members of the Forum. As the European elections were taking place in 2014 and David Cameron’s pledge for referendum is scheduled for 2017, CMF members took the opportunity to meet with Syed Kamall MEP to better explore the UK’s role in Europe. This enabled the delegation to have a better understanding of the European Parliament and its various activities. CMF members were of course involved in undertaking campaign work for the party in the recent European elections

CMF Eid ul-Adha event

CMF held a reception and dinner to celebrate the festival of Eid ul-Adha. The festival has relevance in all three Abrahamic faiths of Islam, Judaism and Christianity. Members of the various communities were invited to the event. Speakers were the Rt. Hon Eric Pickles MP, Kris Hopkins MP, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, Lord Popat, Lord Singh, Dr Rami Ranger, Baroness Nicholson and myself. At the dinner we promoted the Conservative Party.

Dinner at Bundu Khan

We arranged a dinner at Bundu Khan Restaurant which was in fact oversubscribed and the object was to promote the Party. Members of the different communities attended and the speakers were myself, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, Lord Popat, Bob Neill MP and Syed Kamall MEP.

Improving relations between the Muslim Community, The Armed Forces and The Police

It was felt by the CMF committee members that we should take positive steps to improve relations between the Armed Forces and the Muslim Community which have deteriorated following the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby. With this view in mind we held two meetings with senior officers from The Army and The Navy and it was agreed that ideas which were discussed should be implemented. The ideas included items to appear on CMF website, arranging visits by senior officers of the Armed Forces to mosques, arranging meetings with the officers and the Islamic Media. It is an ongoing process and liaison is maintained between CMF and the Armed Forces.

In regard to the relationship with the Police it was agreed that monthly meetings would be held between me and a senior member of the Police to discuss issues relating to the Muslim community.

I together with my committee members encourage Muslims to join the Armed Forces and the Police.

Religious Slaughter

The matter of Halal meat has received a great deal of publicity and I was approached by the members of the Forum as well as other Muslim leaders to deal with this issue. I have spoken and written on the subject and did get assurance from the Rt. Hon David Cameron, the Prime Minister as well as from Lord de Mauley, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for DEFRA that the current practice of religious slaughter would be maintained.

Poetry recital

It was felt that the Forum should hold a cultural evening and Dr Alam Ara Khan who is a member of the executive committee organised a poetry recital to celebrate the works of famous Urdu poets. In addition she had organised for 8 poets in the UK who presented their original works. This event was greatly appreciated and it has been decided to make this an annual event.

Private viewing of the British Library’s Mogul India exhibition

To enable members of the Forum to have a better understanding of the Mughal Emperors and the British connection with India, I arranged a private viewing of a major exhibition which was held at The British Library. In my brief talk I made the point that in Parliament there is a large painting of Sir Thomas Rowe visiting for the first time the court of Mughal Emperor Jahangir.

Outreach programme of CMF

In view of the principles of the Big Society it was decided by CMF Executive that we should undertake outreach activities and speakers are provided to address meetings held at schools and other venues.

Charitable work in Bangladesh by CMF Executive members.

Following the collapse of the building in Savar, Bangladesh the CMF Executive decided to get involved in humanitarian work and travel to Dhaka. Attic Rahman, Cllr. Asif Ayub, Faruk Miah and Ash Zaman collected a substantial amount which was effectively used for helping the victims and their families.

Brightest 100 British Bangladeshi

Three members of CMF Executive committee have been included in the brightest 100 British Bangladeshis. These are Faruk Miah, Hasina Momtaz and Attic Rahman. Their contributions to CMF and the Conservative Party are indeed valuable.

Thanks

Finally I would like to thank Shaheen Mahmood, Mohammed Amin, the office bearers and members of the executive committee for all their valuable support and input which has enabled us to undertake our multifarious activities. Our motto is “Team Spirit at all times”

The Lord Sheikh

2nd June 2014

The CMF was strongly represented at the Welsh Conservative Party Spring Conference which was held at the Llangollen Pavilion on Friday 11th and Saturday 12th April.

Dr Altaf Hussain, Chairman of CMF Wales, Area Chairman, South Wales West Conservative Council, organised and chaired a CMF fringe meeting held at lunchtime on the Saturday. The goal was to outline the need for the Conservative Party to win more votes from Welsh Muslims, and to explain how the CMF can help.

The speakers were:

1. Event Chair: Dr Altaf Hussain;
2. Mohammed Amin; CMF Deputy Chairman – Talking with Muslim voters; language that attracts or repels. Mr Amin’s speech can be found in his Conservative Home article “Why won’t they vote for us?”
3. Lord Sheikh; CMF Chairman – What the CMF is and what it has done.
4. Mohammad Asghar AM – A Perspective from the Welsh Assembly.
5. Rt.Hon. David Jones MP; Secretary of State for Wales – Broadening the Party’s appeal.

The formal speeches were followed by questions and answers, and the event was preceded by a buffet lunch which Dr Hussain had organised. In the group photo below, from left to right, are: Ash Zaman, CMF Executive Member; Shaheen Mahmood, CMF Executive Secretary; Mohammed Amin; Lord Sheikh; Rt Hon David Jones; Mohammad Asghar and Dr Hussain.

As well as the fringe meeting, the CMF also had a stand throughout the two day conference. Pictured below at the stand from left to right are: Shaheen Mahmood; Lady Sheikh, CMF Executive Member; Mrs Tahara Amin; Mohammed Amin and Lord Sheikh.

The keynote address at the conference was given by the Prime Minister. Afterwards he attended a reception for Party members only, and spoke with Dr Hussain, Lord Sheikh and Mohammed Amin. He is shown below with Dr Hussain.

On 13 May 2014 the Conservative Muslim Forum held an event on the relationship between first cousin marriage and birth defects, and the policy implications.

As is our policy with CMF events, we began with a Quran recitation which was given by Imam Shakeel.

The event was then introduced by Lord Sheikh and chaired by Dr Alam Ara Khan who is a member of the CMF Executive and Chair of CMF Health.  There were three speakers.

Orthopaedic surgeon Dr Ghulam Abbas summarised the scientific knowledge regarding the health risks. He has kindly consented to make his slides available, and they are at this link.

He was followed by CMF Deputy Chairman Mohammed Amin who gave his personal views on the policy implications. His slides are also available, at this link.

We were fortunate to have a third speaker who was added a few days prior to the meeting. Dr Peter Corry who, until he retired recently was a Consultant Paediatrician in Neurodisabliity, working in Bradford’s Child Development Centre for 25 years. He was one of the authors of the “Born in Bradford” study which Dr Abbas mentioned in his presentation.  Dr Corry spoke without slides. He mentioned in particular some resources that are available about autosomal recessive genetic disorders at the Genetic Alliance website. The website also has leaflets available in foreign languages at this link.

After the presentations, there was a question and answer session.

There were many people in the audience from a medical and genetic background who strongly supported greater awareness and discussion of the risks covered in this event, and who thanked the CMF for helping to raise awareness.

In the group photo below, from left to right: Shaheen Mahood, CMF Executive Secretary; Imam Shakeel; Lord Sheikh, Cllr Halima Khaled, Chair CMF East Midlands; Dr Alam Ara Khan; Mohammed Amin; Dr Peter Corry; Dr Ghulam Abbas; Mike Mogul, CMF Executive Member.

As part of their outreach activities, on 14 May 2014 the Armed Forces hosted a meeting at the offices of the Ministry of Defence on Whitehall.

The meeting was organised by Imam Asim Hafiz, Islamic Religious Advisor to the Chief of the Defence Staff and Service Chiefs, and the Master of Ceremonies was Captain Naveed Muhammad. Both of them are pictured on the page Muslims in the armed forces. The forces were represented by the most senior member of HM Armed Forces, General Sir Nicholas Houghton GCB CBE ADC Gen who is Chief of the Defence Staff. The Government was represented by Lord Astor of Hever DL who is Parliamentary Under Secretary of State and the Lords Spokesman on Defence.

Many leading British Muslims attended. The Conservative Muslim Forum was represented by Deputy Chairman Mohammed Amin. Many ideas were shared regarding how the links between Britain’s Muslims and the Armed Forces can be strengthened. Mr Amin mentioned how the CMF is encouraging Britons to consider the Armed Forces as a career with a recruitment page on our website.

Canvassing, both in person and by telephone, is vital in politics to ascertain which voters may support our party. Telephone cavassing can be done by people from home and also in London from Conservative Campaign Headquarters. The CMF holds regular telephone canvassing sessions, and CMF members also attend on other dates to assist with canvassing.

On 30 April 2014 CMF Executive members Ash Zaman and Hashim Bhatti attended Conservative Campaign Headquarters to help with the canvassing. Senior members of the Party also do the same, so after the session was over they had their picture taken with the Rt Hon Iain Duncan Smith, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

Ash Zaman is on the left of the picture, Hashim Bhatti on the right.