Inside Blackburn, where Muslim voters’ trust in politics is at an all time low

Standing outside his terraced home in Blackburn, taxi driver Ismail Patel practically swells with pride as he reveals his family’s long-standing support for the Labour Party.

“We have been voting Labour for about 30 years,” he says. “We supported Jack Straw and so many who came after him. We have always supported Labour.”

But in the next breath, the 58-year-old sums up the feeling of many British Muslims since the outbreak of the war in Gaza. “I won’t be voting Labour this time,” Mr Patel says.

A rift has opened up between the party and its previously loyal Muslim supporters. In the 2019 general election, more than 80 per cent of Muslims voted for Labour. But in the months since 7 October, support for the party among Muslims has deteriorated.

Many on the doorstep in the Lancashire town of Blackburn cite an October LBC interview in which Labour leader Keir Starmer appeared to suggest Israel had “the right” to withhold power and water from Palestinians in Gaza.

Labour claimed its position had been misinterpreted in the interview and its stance on an immediate ceasefire in Gaza did eventually move.

But a delay in calling for it – which eventually came in February, three months after several frontbenchers resigned or were sacked for defying the party to vote for an explicit “immediate” end to fighting – has contributed to a sense of distrust among pro-Palestinian Muslim voters.

The local and mayoral elections saw many traditional Labour-voting Muslims abandon the party they had supported for decades.

Starmer risks the same happening at the general election on 4 July, and according to voters in Blackburn – where 35 per cent of people identify as Muslim – he hasn’t managed to bridge the rift.

“Now in Blackburn, particularly in our Asian community, we have changed our view that we are not supporting Labour because their policies are not in our favour,” Mr Patel explains. “They didn’t do anything about the issue of Palestine – that is the main issue. Every day, people are killing each other. But Labour don’t do anything about this and they don’t want to talk about this issue.”

After the LBC gaffe prompted fury, Starmer clarified what he meant to say: “I was saying Israel had the right to self-defence. I was not saying Israel had the right to cut off water, food, fuel or medicines.”

But for many, the damage had already been done.

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In Blackburn, where Labour’s Kate Hollern is defending, having been first been elected MP in the town in May 2015, there are three pro-Gaza candidates vying for the seat. Independents Adnan Hussain and Natasha Shah, and Craig Murray of the Workers Party.

Another independent candidate, Altaf “Tiger” Patel, stood aside from the contest this week and told his supporters to vote for Mr Murray amid reports that competing was splitting the Muslim vote. There are several other candidates also in the running, for the Tories, Greens, Reform, and Lib Dems.

Ms Hollern is expected to keep the seat, according to YouGov polling data.

But with scuffles in the street among canvassers and arguments over misinformation during the campaign, the battle lines are drawn and Muslims in Blackburn say they are disillusioned with Labour.

“I will be voting for an independent as they are raising the voice for Palestine,” Mr Patel says. “At least if they came into power, we know they would speak up.”

There are 3.9 million Muslims in the UK, according to the 2021 census, and they make up 6.5 per cent of the population, an increase of 1.2 million compared to the previous census in 2011.

The population of Muslims in Blackburn with Darwen is up from 27 per cent in 2011.

The former mill town experienced an influx of Pakistani and Indian immigrants in the 1960s, many of whom worked in the textile industry.

In the Whalley Range area of the town, 95 per cent of the residents are said to be Asian, most of them Muslim. Its bustling high street sports an array of Asian supermarkets, fashion stores, confectioners and eateries.

It is here where Max Chand, owner of Lancashire Dry Cleaners who has lived in Blackburn since 1976, says he believes it isn’t just Muslims, but all sectors of the community, who have lost faith in politicians.

“Politicians say one thing and then do something else and are literally lying to you and people have had enough,” he says. “The only time we can do something about it is at a general election when we can vote them in or vote them out.

“I don’t have any faith in the Conservatives – I never did. I have always been a Labour voter and so have most of my family as they stand for working people.

“But this time, I am 50/50 whether I’m going to vote for Labour, mostly because of their stand on Gaza and many people in Blackburn feel the same.

“At the moment, I am undecided and will decide on election day. I do want the Tories out, but I’m sure even without my vote, they’ll get out.

“I will probably vote for an independent, because they are saying the things we want to hear them say. But I know they won’t have any power in doing anything for this country, so it will be more of a protest vote to say I’m unhappy with the other parties.”

Student Adam Kamboli, 19, will vote in his first election on 4 July. His family always voted for Labour in the past, but he isn’t conviced by either of the main party leaders.

“Proper unity needs to happen,” he says. “Politicians, if they are in power, need to use that power correctly. Sometimes I feel when they come into power, they don’t give as much as they should for the community. Especially in the Muslim community, we are all very united.”

Zarqa Ahmed, 50, who has been a nurse for 24 years, says people are so disenchanted with politicians, many feel total apathy.

“[The Government] are wasting money on the wrong causes and really they should be focusing on this country. I don’t think I’ve ever had any faith in the Conservatives,” she said, adding: “But a big thing for me is this Gaza situation. It is a moral thing and people not standing up and saying it is wrong needs to stop.

“It’s a shame really because if you look back in history, the suffragettes suffered to get the vote. And what I’m hearing is that people can’t be bothered – they don’t want to vote for any of [the main parties].”

Before the election was called, Rishi Sunak and the Conservative Government said the UK continues to stand by Israel’s right to defend its security.

The Government had made repeated calls for a “humanitarian pause” to allow more aid into Gaza during the conflict.

But the Prime Minister had faced pressure from Tory MPs and peers to stop arming Israel after seven humanitarian workers, including three British nationals, were killed by an air strike in the Gaza Strip in April.

Labour, which has called for an immediate ceasefire, is attempting to win back its Muslim supporters. Pat McFadden, the party’s national election co-ordinator, told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg last month that the situation in the Middle East was a “high foreign policy priority”.

“The better lives that people want for the Palestinian people is something the Labour leadership shares,” he said.

Usama Javed, 28, who works for Nafees Bakers and Sweets in Blackburn, says he won’t be voting for anyone.

“The opposition as well as the [Conservatives], both parties are supporting the Israeli government,” he said. “Only the independent candidates are supporting Palestine.

“Labour say they are with Palestine but the current Government and the opposition are both the same – with two different faces.

“I am not going to vote for anybody. As a Muslim, there is no benefit of voting for Labour or the independent party as I can’t see any benefit.”

Not all Muslims in Blackburn are abandoning Labour.

Imtiaz Patel, 57, who has lived in the town for more than 35 years and works as an interpreter, was a Labour Party member in the 1980s and 90s, but left the party just before the Iraq War – turning his support to the Liberal Democrats.

He returned to the party under Jeremy Corbyn, who was suspended from being a Labour MP last year following a row over antisemitism. He is now running as an independent candidate for London’s Islington North seat against seven other candidates.

“I would say that part of the Muslim community feels that the main parties they have been supporting – like Labour in Blackburn – have to some extent taken them for granted, so hence there is a level of mistrust,” he says.

“But I believe rather than abandoning the mainstream political system, Muslims should remain in their respective political parties and try to increase their lobbying so their voices can be heard from local to regional; regional to national and national to international [level].

“We are living in a time where politics has gone beyond local, regional and national reach and international development influences a lot of sectors of lives compared to previous times.

“My thought is that leaders come and go, but the Labour Party manifesto, their values and the party, has always been very supportive, particularly to the black and minority ethnic community.

“The party is good, the manifesto is good – but sometimes the leaders need to be more sensitive about the faith community which has been very faithful to them.

“When it comes to making certain decisions and statements, they should be more sensitive.”

An uphill battle for trust

Kate Hollern, Labour

Labour’s Kate Hollern won 64.9 per cent of the vote in 2019 and has been representing Blackburn for almost 30 years – 20 as a councillor and just over nine as an MP.

She admitted to i: “The LBC interview with Keir Starmer was a disaster. Very quickly, he clarified his statements, but unfortunately, I don’t think that message got through.

“As a party nationally, we do need to rebuild that trust. There is a lot of work to do and we need to listen and engage and it is important that people from all communities’ voices are heard.”

Ms Hollern says she brought her children up in a very diverse community in Blackburn and has a long standing record of working on any issues where she feels human rights are being violated.

“I am a strong voice for Palestine in eparliament and my very first early day motion when I went into parliament in May 2015 was my concern about Palestinian children locked up in Israeli prisons.

“I have called for a ceasefire and I have had numerous conversations with Keir Starmer since that time. I really hope that the Muslim community has a lot of faith in me.

“There is a long-standing Labour history in Blackburn from Barbara Castle to Jack Straw to myself.

“It is important that people remember that 7 October was not the start of this conflict. It has been many years. Everybody is focusing on the election right now, but this has been my life for 30-odd years.”

Jamie McGowan, Conservative

Jamie McGowan, the Conservative candidate in Blackburn, told i that he believes trust has been breaking down in Labour for a long time and people’s votes have been taken for granted.

He says the recent division with the Israel-Gaza conflict is the end point and that trust hasn’t eroded overnight.

“I think Labour has taken Blackburn for granted for years and years and I don’t actually see a representative that stands up for people and gives them a voice on everyday issues,” he said.

“In politics, you are there to represent the people who put their trust in you and vote you in. If I was elected, I would be a completely different MP to what Blackburn has had over the last few years.

“I would be visible and accessible and I would genuinely make an effort to speak up for all communities within Blackburn.

“The problem we have got at the moment is Blackburn politics has become very polarised. We have two sides pitting against each other and it’s just not good for anybody.

“I would try to bring people together.”

Ms Hollern and Mr McGowan are among nine candidates vying for votes in Blackburn, alongside independent candidate Adnan Hussain, Green Party candidate Denise Morgan, Workers Party candidate Craig Murray, independent Natasha Shah, Reform UK’s Tommy Temperley and Adam Waller-Slack for the Liberal Democrats.

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