Asian shadow selected for Tories

The OBV MP Shadowing scheme enables young people from Black Minority Ethnic backgrounds (BME) to shadow an MP for six months at the House of Parliament in Westminster and also in an MP's constituency. Sameer shadowed Tim Loughton MP for East Worthing, Shoreham. Tory Party heirachy have clearly noticed his talent and are keen to find him a winnable seat.

Sameer has been involved in a series of initiatives within the party over the last year and a half. At one event he gathered 200 senior Muslim and ethnic minority group representatives and business leaders at Central Office giving them the chance to meet various Tory frontbench MP's, and the Leader personally. The event has now become an annual fixture sponsored and organised by Sameer.

Sameer started his Insurance Brokers business from scratch in 1990. Today it has an annual turnover of £7Million.

Sameer Mirza said: I am happy to have been selected by the Conservative Party to be an approved candidate on their list. I started building inroads into the Conservative Party 18 months ago through the OBV shadowing scheme. I am extremely thankful to OBV for arranging for me to shadow Tim Loughton MP. I will now begin the search for a safe seat to stand in.

Simon Woolley, Director of Operation Black Vote(OBV) said: I am extremely pleased that Sameer has been approved for the candidates list. I hope he is able to fight a winnable seat sooner rather than later. He is young, dynamic, and leads from the front. The Conservatives are now more than ever recognising that ethnic diversity and talent has become a prerequisite for electoral success.