Birmingham Labour MP Tahir Ali has found himself at the centre of a heated political controversy after publicly supporting the construction of an airport in the Pakistani-administered Kashmir region. His endorsement of the project, intended to serve the British-Kashmiri diaspora, sparked immediate backlash—especially as his home constituency grapples with a waste management disaster, with rubbish literally “piled high” in the streets of the UK’s second-largest city.
The criticism was led by Conservative MP Robert Jenrick, who accused Ali of prioritizing international interests over urgent local issues. The debate has since erupted across political lines and social media, exposing the tension between global advocacy and local responsibility that many modern MPs face.
This article takes a deep dive into the unfolding drama: Who is Tahir Ali? What is the Mirpur airport project? Why is Birmingham facing a rubbish crisis? And can MPs really afford to split their focus between their constituencies and overseas causes?
Let’s unpack the facts behind this controversy that’s quickly become a national talking point.
Who is Tahir Ali?
Tahir Ali is a Labour Member of Parliament representing the Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley constituency. Elected in 2019, he succeeded veteran Labour MP Roger Godsiff and quickly became known for his vocal advocacy on issues affecting the British-Pakistani and Muslim communities.
Ali’s political roots trace back to Birmingham’s strong Labour base and its diverse, working-class population. His constituency includes areas with high levels of deprivation, as well as a significant South Asian demographic—many of whom have familial ties to Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
He has championed causes ranging from public sector workers’ rights to education and immigration reform. But while he has a history of community activism, critics argue that his recent actions reveal a disconnect from the pressing local issues that constituents are currently enduring.
Ali’s support for the Kashmir airport project has now placed him under a national spotlight—and not for reasons that will necessarily please voters back home.
The Kashmir Airport Campaign
At the centre of this controversy lies a long-standing demand from parts of the British-Kashmiri community: the construction of a full-scale airport in Mirpur, a city in the Pakistani-administered region of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK). The area is historically and culturally linked to thousands of British families, particularly those based in the Midlands and North England.
Currently, travelers to Mirpur must fly into Islamabad and then endure a long and often treacherous drive, sometimes lasting over four hours, through mountainous terrain. The proposed airport is seen as a solution to ease this journey and foster better ties between the diaspora and their ancestral homeland.
Tahir Ali was one of 20 mostly Labour MPs and peers who signed a letter urging Pakistan’s Prime Minister to prioritize the Mirpur Airport project. In their view, the initiative is not only practical but symbolic—a gesture of commitment to the people of Azad Kashmir and their relatives abroad.
Ali even took to social media to publicly back the campaign, praising it as a “game-changer for the diaspora.” However, his timing could not have been worse.
