Anas Sarwar has been elected the new leader of Scottish Labour, replacing Richard Leonard who led the party for three years. Anas Sarwar became a member of the Scottish Labour party at the age of 16, but politics was already in his blood.
His father, Governor of Punjab province in Pakistan - Ch. Mohammad Sarwar, was the UK's first ever Muslim MP and held the Glasgow Central seat for Labour between 1997 and 2010, until his son Anas succeeded him.
Born and bred in Glasgow, MSP Anas Sarwar was the deputy Scottish Labour leader. He was elected as the Member of Parliament for Glasgow Central on 6 May 2010, increasing the majority held by the previous MP. An active member of the Labour Party since the age of 16, Anas was selected as the number one Glasgow Regional List candidate for the party at the 2007 Scottish election.
Prior to his election, Anas Sarwar worked as a Dentist in the NHS after studying at Glasgow University. A previous recipient of the Scottish Variety Award for Best New Scottish Politician, Anas Sarwar was also part of the team who campaigned to save the Govan shipyard in 2009 helping to secure over 80,000 signatures.
He also worked in partnership with others in his local community to successfully campaign for more local facilities for young people in Pollokshields and played an integral role in securing the new Muslim burial site in Glasgow which spans over 30 acres, which will last for the next 50 to 60 years.
Alongside the Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Anas was central to raising, £1M to help the recovery effort after the devastating 2010 floods in Pakistan, leading to the building of 'Glasgow village' in Gharibabad, South Punjab and 'Fife village' in Pana, Punjab.
In 2010 Anas was elected by his fellow MP's to serve on the International Development Committee. He was also the Parliamentary Private Secretary to Liam Byrne, the shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. He is a member of the Co-operative Party and the trade union Unite.
Described as being on the political right of the party, Anas Sarwar identifies as a Brownite and has been critical of both Tony Blair and Jeremy Corbyn. He says former Prime Minister Gordon Brown is one of his political heroes. As for Blair, Sarwar has been heavily critical of the Iraq War, calling it the worst foreign policy decision in my lifetime.
Anas Sarwar was opposed to leaving the European Union and insisted that the UK needed to stay in the single market in order to counter the Conservatives' austerity policies. Despite having criticised Corbyn in the past, Anas Sarwar insisted that his economic plans would be even more progressive and radical than those of Corbyn and John McDonnell.
His political priorities are shaped by his mission to ensure that the people of Scotland get a fair deal and helping to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to match their aspirations with achievement. In addition to this Anas Sarwar has a keen interest in matters of foreign policy and in the fight to end poverty both at home and abroad.
Anas Sarwar lives in Glasgow with his wife Furheen, who works as an NHS dentist. The couple have three young children. Anas Sarwar owns a quarter share of his family's cash and carry wholesale business. His share was valued in 2016 as worth between £2.7 million and £4.8 million. In September 2017, he transferred his shareholding to a discretionary trust for the benefit of his three young children, so that he could not personally access the assets or dividends.
