Rushanara Ali marked the 46th anniversary of the independence of Bangladesh by attending an event in Kensington Town Hall hosted by the Bangladeshi High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Md. Nazmul Quaunine.

Marking the 45th anniversary of Bangladesh’s independence on December 16th, Bethnal Green and Bow MP, Rushanara Ali paid her respects to those who sacrificed their lives to secure the freedom and independence of Bangladesh.

Rushanara Ali MP has been appointed as UK’s Trade Envoy to Bangladesh. This is a cross-party programme established in 2012 to build business and bilateral trade relationships and help drive economic growth in developing countries. Rushanara Ali will also focus her work as Trade Envoy to address climate change concerns and share the UK’s expertise on labour standards to support Bangladesh’s garment industry.

Rushanara Ali MP campaigned for Labour to renew its commitment to the future of Bengali teaching in schools, in response to Government plans to cut Bengali language qualifications from the school curriculum alongside other foreign languages including Guajarati, Punjabi, Turkish and Polish.

Rushanara Ali MP has spoken out on the 1st anniversary of the Rana Plaza factory disaster which claimed the lives of 1100 people and injured thousands.

Bethnal Green and Bow MP, Rushanara Ali met with delegates from the Sylhet Chamber of Commerce & Industry. The delegates were on a visit to the UK to promote foreign investment in Sylhet and Bangladesh’s first ever Special Economic Zone.

Rushanara Ali MP, Shadow Minister for International Development, today called on companies such as Primark to take urgent action to address workers’ conditions and take responsibility for safety standards following the collapse of an eight storey building on the outskirts of Dakha, Bangladesh, in which over 200 hundred garment workers employed in factories that supplied high street shops to the West have been killed.

Significantly, 85% of women in Bangladesh work in the garment industry and 78% of export in Bangladesh is from the garment industry.  This is a huge contribution to economic growth and it is vital that women have access to support so that they can empower themselves and educate others around them.

Rushanara Ali, Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green and Bow and Shadow Minister for International Development will be visiting Bangladesh to highlight the impact of climate change on communities there.