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Faiza Shaheen (born 1982) is a British academic and economist in the field of economic inequality. In 2018, she was selected to be the prospective parliamentary candidate for Labour for Chingford and Woodford Green, coming second in the 2019 general election to the incumbent, Iain Duncan Smith. In 2023, her first book, Know Your Place, was published.

Shaheen was again selected by her local party in 2022 to stand for the constituency but was not endorsed by Labour after the July 2024 election was announced. Shaheen stood as an independent but was not elected.

Early life and education

Shaheen was born in 1982 in Whipps Cross University Hospital, Leytonstone, in East London and grew up in Chingford, also in East London. Her father was a car mechanic from Fiji and her mother was a laboratory technician from Karachi, Pakistan, where they met. She has a brother and a sister.

She attended Chingford Church of England Primary School, Chingford Foundation School and Sir George Monoux College in Walthamstow. Her first job at the age of 16 was at Greggs the bakers in Chingford Mount. After reading philosophy, politics and economics at St John's College, Oxford University, Shaheen studied at the University of Manchester, being awarded an MSc in Research Methods & Statistics and a PhD. Her doctoral thesis (2008) was Identifying 'at-risk' neighbourhoods: Exploring the scope for an Index of Area Vulnerability.

Career

Shaheen first worked at the Centre for Urban Policy Studies, University of Manchester. In 2007, she joined the urban policy research charity, Centre for Cities. In 2009, she became senior researcher on economic inequality at the New Economics Foundation.

In 2014, she was appointed Head of Inequality and Sustainable Development at the charity Save the Children UK. In 2016, Shaheen had a cameo role in the British anthology television series Black Mirror. From 2016 to 2020, she was the director of the Centre for Labour and Social Studies (CLASS), a policy think tank originating from the trade union movement.

Between 2021 and 2023, Shaheen was the Inequality and Exclusion Program Director at the Center on International Cooperation, New York University. In this role, she led the team authoring From Rhetoric to Action: Delivering Equality and Inclusion, launched in September 2021 by seven Heads of State, comprising those from Spain, Sierra Leone, Sweden, Costa Rica, Ireland, New Zealand, and Senegal, as well as Nobel Prize laureate, Joseph Stiglitz and Oscar winner and SDG Advocate, Forest Whitaker, among others. She is a visiting professor in practice at the International Inequalities Institute of the London School of Economics, where she teaches the Masters course on inequality.

Shaheen is a regular contributor to debates on television news programmes, including Newsnight and Channel 4 News, has worked with the likes of Channel 4 and the BBC to develop documentaries on inequality, and has contributed to festival debates, such as the Glastonbury Festival and The World Transformed.

In 2023, Shaheen's first book, Know Your Place, on social inequality in the UK, was published by Simon and Schuster. Shaheen wrote the book during evenings and weekends while working full-time at the LSE.

Parliamentary candidacies

Shaheen is a longtime Labour voter and says she has been politicised from an early age. She joined the Labour Party after Jeremy Corbyn became leader in 2015. In 2017, The Guardian identified her as a "rising star" and she was nominated for Woman of the Year at the Asian Achievers Awards and named one of the Top 100 Influencers on the Left by LBC broadcaster, Iain Dale.

Shaheen was selected to be the prospective parliamentary candidate for the Labour Party for Chingford and Woodford Green in July 2018. She has stated that her motivation for standing was the stress her own and other families had suffered as a result of welfare reforms instituted by the constituency’s longstanding Conservative incumbent, Iain Duncan Smith, during his time as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. In the 2019 general election, Shaheen was endorsed by Alastair Campbell, Hugh Grant, Ayesha Hazarika, Ewan Pearson and David Schneider. She increased Labour’s vote share, contrary to the national trend, and garnered the party’s largest ever vote share in the constituency, coming second by just over one thousand votes.

In July 2022, Shaheen was selected again by her constituency party to contest the seat at the next general election. However, following the announcement of the 2024 general election, the parliamentary Labour Party declined to endorse her candidacy, citing ‘recent social media activity’ which it viewed as supportive of Palestinians. Shaheen then resigned from the Labour Party and stood as an independent candidate for the constituency. The Labour Party replaced her with Shama Tatler, a candidate with no ties to the constituency selected by the 'Jewish Labour Movement', a zionist lobby group. Shaheen's independent candidacy was endorsed by Ronnie O'Sullivan, the professional snooker player, who lives in the constituency and by 50 members of the local Labour Party. At the election on 4 July, Iain Duncan Smith retained the seat with just over one third of the votes, while Shaheen finished third with 12,445 votes, 79 votes behind the Labour candidate, and nearly 5,000 votes behind the winner. The combined vote for Labour and Shaheen accounted for over half of the total votes. Shaheen blamed the result on the Labour Party for not endorsing her candidacy. In turn, Labour blamed Shaheen for standing as an independent.

Political positions

Shaheen supports investment in public services: in particular, the NHS, schools and the justice system. She supports electoral reform, an end to arms sales to countries involved in civilian killings and rapid action on the climate crisis. She has also urged the reform of party political funding and the curtailing of the influence of large corporations on public policy.

Shaheen has stressed the urgency of rebuilding Whipps Cross Hospital in Leytonstone and repairing the Broadmead Road bridge in Woodford Green, closed due to safety concerns by Redbridge Council. She advocates for urban renewal of the Chingford Mount area and opposes development without the requisite investment in infrastructure, including reversing the closure of essential local resources.

Personal life

Shaheen married actor Akin Gazi in 2013. They have one child, a son named Zayan, born in 2024. They live in Woodford Green, Woodford, East London. She enjoys cooking and travel.

Publications

• Shaheen, Faiza; Fieldhouse, Ed; Deas, Iain (2008). Identifying 'at risk' neighbourhoods: exploring the scope for and Index of Area Vulnerability. University of Manchester. OCLC 643496958.
• Shaheen, Faiza (2008). The challenge of increasing employment in London (Report). Centre for Cities.
• Shaheen, Faiza (2010). Why the cap won't fit (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Shaheen, Faiza (2010). Filling the jobs gap (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Shaheen, Faiza (2011). Why the rich are getting richer (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Shaheen, Faiza (2011). Ten reasons to care about economic inequality (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Shaheen, Faiza (2011). Degrees of value (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Shaheen, Faiza; Kersley, Helen (2011). Improving services for young people (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Shaheen, Faiza; Kersley, Helen (2012). The economic impact of local and regional pay in the public sector (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Seaford, Charles; Shaheen, Faiza (2012). Good jobs for non-graduates (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Shaheen, Faiza; Penny, Joe; Lyall, Sarah (2013). Distant neighbours (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Shaheen, Faiza (2014). Reducing economic inequality as a sustainable development goal (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• Shaheen, Faiza; Kersley, Helen (2014). Addressing economic inequality at root (Report). New Economics Foundation.
• McDonnell, John, ed. (2018). Economics for the Many. Verso Books.
• Shaheen, Faiza, ed. (2021). From Rhetoric to Action:Delivering Equality & Inclusion (Report). Pathfinders.
• Shaheen, Faiza (2023). Know Your Place. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9781398505377. OCLC 1264212038.

Filmography

• Black Mirror (2016)
• Capital in the 21st Century (2019)

References

1. Shaheen, Faiza. "Why Faiza Shaheen?". Faiza for Chingford and Woodford Green. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
2. ^ Williams, Zoe. "'How can they treat people like this?' Faiza Shaheen on Labour – and why she's running as an independent". Guardian. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
3. ^ Shaheen, Faiza. "Home". Faiza for Chingford and Woodford Green. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
4. Berrill, Lewis (26 November 2019). "Candidates clash at Chingford and Woodford Green election hustings". East London and West Essex Guardian Series. East London. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
5. ^ Roberts, Yvonne (1 January 2017). "Rising stars of 2017: campaigner Faiza Shaheen". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
6. ^ "Faiza Shaheen: 'I Feel A Duty To My Country To Take Iain Duncan Smith Out'". HuffPost UK. 7 August 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
7. ^ Eaton, George (8 August 2018). "The Chingford Corbynite: Faiza Shaheen on her mission to oust Iain Duncan Smith". New Statesman.
8. Shaheen, Faiza (20 February 2017). "Faiza Shaheen on Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
9. Langton, Kaisha (2 February 2019). "Labour candidate for the Chingford and Woodford Green MP speaks out about why she thinks she is right for the job". East London and West Essex Guardian Series. East London. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
10. Shaheen, Faiza (2023). Know Your Place. London: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1398505377.
11. ^ "Dr Faiza Shaheen". Shelter. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
12. "[Catalogue record for "Identifying ..."]". University of Manchester Libray. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
13. "Faiza Shaheen". Centre for Cities. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
14. Shaheen, Faiza (18 April 2016). "faizashaheen". Instagram. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
15. "About". Centre for Labour and Social Studies. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
16. "POLITICO London Influence: A tweak is a long time — Labour in comms — Wedding hells". Politico. 25 February 2021.
17. ^ Faiza Shaheen on LinkedIn
18. ^ "Why Faiza Shaheen". faiza.co.uk. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
19. "Inequality and exclusion are not destiny. Change is possible". Pathfinders. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
20. "Faiza Shaheen". New York University. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
21. "Dr Faiza Shaheen". London School of Economics. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
22. "Economic Research Council". Economic Research Council England. 16 August 2022.
23. "Series 1, Episode 19: Faiza Shaheen". Channel 4 News. 27 July 2018.
24. "Glastonbury Festival line-up 2019". Glastonbury Festival. Glastonbury Festival. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
25. Rodgers, Sienna (8 August 2018). "The World Transformed reveals full line-up ahead of Labour conference". LabourList. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
26. Eaton, George (30 May 2024). "Faiza Shaheen: "I get annoyed by the 'left candidate' badge"". newstatesman.com. New Statesman. Archived from the original on 3 June 2024. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
27. Ramaswamy, Chitra (29 May 2023). "'Social mobility is a fairytale': Faiza Shaheen on fighting for Labour and hating Oxford". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
28. The paperback version of my book, Know your place, is out! I wrote it while working full time, so it was definitely a labour of love and weekends! Born... | By Dr Faiza ShaheenFacebook. Retrieved 4 April 2024 – via www.facebook.com.
29. Baddhan, Raj (4 September 2017). "Women dominate Asian Achievers Awards 2017".
30. "Revealed: The left's top 100 power list". Labour List. 25 September 2017. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
31. "Series 1, Episode 19: Faiza Shaheen". Channel 4 News. 27 July 2018.
32. Rodgers, Sienna (16 July 2018). "Faiza Shaheen selected to fight Iain Duncan Smith's seat". Labour List. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
33. "Chingford Labour Selects Faiza Shaheen as Next Prospective Parliamentary Candidate – CWGLabour". 7 August 2018.
34. "It feels unbearable to lose to Iain Duncan Smith, so my campaign will continue". inews.co.uk. 13 December 2019.
35. Campbell, Alastair (8 December 2019). "Tactical voting now the only way to stop the horror of a Johnson landslide". AlastairCampbell.org. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
36. Read, Jonathon. "Hugh Grant joins Luciana Berger on doorsteps as he campaigns for anti-Brexit result". The New European. Archived from the original on 2 December 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
37. Hazarika, Ayesha (6 December 2019). "@DaveRowntree @LibDems @UKLabour @peoplesvote_uk It depends... for example in Esher, people should vote Lib Dem to get Dominic Raab out. And Lib Dems should vote Labour to get IDS out in Chingford. People need to vote tactically to keep the local Tory out" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 7 December 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2021 – via Twitter.
38. Schneider, David (7 December 2019). "It's clear that the only way to stop the Tories is to vote tactically. Vote Not Tory on December 12th. (with thanks to @Monicabeharding & @faizashaheen) https://t.co/6gOMqJpgmI" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 20 May 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2021 – via Twitter.
39. "UK general election 2019: full results". ig.ft.com. 13 December 2019.
40. "Your prospective parliamentary candidate Dr Faiza Shaheen – CWGLabour". 26 June 2023.
41. Shaheen, Faiza (25 June 2024). "Faiza Shaheen on X". X. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
42. ^ https://www.newarab.com/news/uk-labour-replaces-faiza-shaheen-member-pro-israel-jlm
43. "Faiza Shaheen resigns from Labour Party". BBC News. 4 June 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024.
44. Shaheen, Faiza (5 June 2024). "Faiza Shaheen on X". X. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
45. Cowburn, Ashley (17 June 2024). "Snooker legend Ronnie O'Sullivan on who he's voting for in General Election". The Mirror. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
46. Penna, Dominic (17 June 2024). "Ronnie O'Sullivan backs Left-wing candidate against Labour". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
47. "50 Chingford and Woodford Green Labour Party members resign over Faiza Shaheen". Waltham Forest Echo. 11 June 2024. Retrieved 11 June 2024.
48. "Chingford and Woodford Green results". The Telegraph. 5 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
49. "Sir Iain Duncan Smith holds on to Chingford and Woodford Green seat after Labour vote split". The Standard. 5 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
50. Carswell, Simon (11 December 2019). "Rising Labour star threatens to unseat Tory grandee Iain Duncan Smith". Irish Times. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
51. Shaheen, Faiza (20 May 2021). "Faiza Shaheen". Twitter. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
52. Shaheen, Faiza (22 February 2024). "Faiza Shaheen on X". X. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
53. Shaheen, Faiza (29 January 2024). "Faiza Shaheen on Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
54. Murray, Andrew (17 June 2024). "Faiza Shaheen won't back down". Morning Star. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
55. Marcelline, Marco (27 April 2024). "Faiza Shaheen: 'I can unseat Iain Duncan Smith this time'". Waltham Forest Echo. East London. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
56. Shaheen, Faiza. "Faiza Shaheen on Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
57. Rashbrooke, Max (18 July 2019). "Capital in the 21st Century". Retrieved 8 July 2024.

External links

• Official website

• 1982 births
• Living people
• English people of Fijian descent
• English people of Indo-Fijian descent
• English people of Pakistani descent
• People from Chingford
• People educated at Sir George Monoux College
• Alumni of St John's College, Oxford
• Alumni of the University of Manchester
• Center on International Cooperation
• Academics of the London School of Economics
• British women economists
• 21st-century British economists
• Social justice scholars
• 21st-century English women writers
• 21st-century English non-fiction writers
• 21st-century British women politicians
• Politicians from the London Borough of Waltham Forest
• Labour Party (UK) parliamentary candidates
• Independent British political candidates