Amir Bhatia, Baron Bhatia

Amirali Alibhai Amir Bhatia, Baron Bhatia, OBE ( born March 18, 1932) is a British businessman, politician and life peer.

Life and career

Bhatia was born on 18 March 1932 in East Africa as Isma'ili Muslim, the son of Alibhai Bhatia and his wife Fatima. He has a brother. Bhatia attended schools in Tanzania and India. He attended The Scindia School in Gwalior from 1944 to 1948, where he most recently held the position of School Prefect.

Bhatia joined the family business in Tanzania and established the first manufacturing facility of razor blades in East Africa, in collaboration with the Commonwealth Development Corporation and the Tanzanian government between 1960 and 1970. Bhatia 1971 moved his residence to the UK.

He bought the British part of the Forbes Campbell Group, a merchant bank, which in the field of export and capital raising was mainly active, and the company expanded with the establishment of offices in New York City, Toronto, Singapore and Bahrain.

Later he turned more to the education and was active in the management of 55 schools in Tanzania. He operated an extensive scholarship program.

He worked from 1980 to 2001 Chairman ( Chairman ) and Managing Director of Forbes Campbell International Ltd.. From 1985 to 2001 he was Chairman and Managing Director of Casey Finance Ltd.. In 1998 he was Chairman ( Chairman ) of SITPRO Ltd, the UK Department for facilitating trade.

He is the Chairman ( Chair ) and co-founder of the Ethnic Minority Foundation and the Board of Directors ( Council) of Ethnic Minority Voluntary Sector Organisations ( CEMVO ), as well as a former member of the Trusteeship Council ( Trustee ) of various charities, including the Charities Board of the National Lottery and Oxfam are, where he was chairman ( Chairman ) Oxfam Trading. He was over 12 years as a member of the Trusteeship Council of Oxfam UK and is (as of 2002) Member of the Supervisory Board (Board) by Oxfam India.

In 2006 he was Chairman ( Chair ) of the British Edutrust Foundation; the organization was planning to sponsor the Rhodesway School. From this office he resigned in March 2009.

He chaired various charities; he was particularly responsible for grants to voluntary and non-profit organizations that help ethnic groups in their work, especially in the procurement of buildings and interiors.

Bhatia is a member of the Council of the Queen's Awards for Enterprise Advisory Committee, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, St. Christopher Hospice, Project Fullemploy, Overeseas Students hostels, Water Aid Project and other projects.

Bhatia is a Director and Chairman ( Chairman ) of the Prime Associates Services Ltd and Director of Solraye Ltd.. He is also Chairman ( Chairman ) of the Ethnic Minority Enterprise Ltd. and Equinox Travel Ltd. Bhatia is Vice Chairman ( Vice-Chairman ) of India 800 Foundation. He is also Chairman ( Chairman ) of PRISM, the Forbes Trust, the British Muslim Research Centre and Diversity East London, and a member of the Trusteeship Council ( trustee ) of the Society for Voluntary Action Revitalization and Justice ( SVARAJ ) and the Local Investment Fund, as well as International Alert. He is a member of the Supervisory Board (Board ) of the Tower Hamlets College and London East TEC.

He also supported the Labour Party financially.

Membership in the House of Lords

He was to Life Peer, at the suggestion of Tony Blair, appointed on 5 June 2001 as Baron Bhatia, of Hampton in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its official launch took place on 9 July 2001. He is one of the first People's peers. In the House of Lords he was sitting as Cross Bencher. His inaugural address was delivered on 23 July 2001.

As states are of particular interest he calls the countries of Africa, Bangladesh, India, the Middle East, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. From 2002 to 2003 he was a member of the Committee on Religious Offences.

Despite high attendance rate he participated only in about 15 % of the votes. Bhatia wrote Although regularly on the attendance list, but without actually perform significant parliamentary work. According to the Sunday Times in July 2009, he had not reported at this time for over four years in the House of Lords to speak.

In October 2010, Bhatia was suspended for eight months by the House of Lords in relation to the expenses scandal of the British Parliament. Bhatia had a flat in Reigate, Surrey, which he had originally purchased for his brother, specified as a primary residence, move on the grounds that he and his wife wanted to go to a smaller apartment. This apartment was only 15 miles away from his actual residence in Hampton in West London, but was higher than the limit for the overnight costs are able to be claimed. The investigation committee of the House of Lords found in HREM report that Bhatia had, however, never offered its principal London residence for sale. Bhatia filed a now 27,000 pounds of expenses back. He was suspended simultaneously with Pola Uddin, Baroness Uddin and Swraj Paul, Baron Paul. Since his suspension he will run as Independent (Independent ).

Awards

Bhatia 1997 Officer of the Order of the British Empire was.

He was honored with the UK Charity Award as personality of the year 2001. He was honored with the 2002 Madhav Award of The Scindia School. 2003 Bhatia received the prestigious Beacon Fellowship Prize for his leadership role in the fight against social discrimination and exclusion in and outside the United Kingdom. Of the other winners, he was elected Chairman ( Chair of the Fellowship ).

He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

Family

He is married to Nurbanu Amersi Kanji since 1954 and has three daughters.