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Today I find myself back in the city of London joined by our Global Indian Ambassador for International Trade and Social Development and former senior civil servant Ash Verma, as he guides me through the dramatic changes unfolding in the UK political scene with the upcoming elections.

We look at the unspoken “elephant in the room” on the Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak contest and discuss how it is impacting the national identity of Britishness.  We also plunge into the ideas of the diaspora dividend and query what the next PM may want to consider when looking to take a modern facing Britain to the global shores.

https://youtube.com/shorts/F0pXxiw0CfQ

About Ash Verma:

Ash is a former British civil servant, business consultant, mentor, facilitator, social entrepreneur, and Non-Executive Director, with fifty years of experience and expertise in many aspects of British Government policy, funding, design and delivery of public, private, and voluntary sector partnership projects, programmes, and initiatives.  These include inner cities regeneration; economic development; enterprise and entrepreneurship, education and skills, international trade and investment; community development and cohesion, race relations and equal opportunities, healthcare and wellbeing, especially for isolated and vulnerable people and those with learning disabilities.

His passion to bring business and communities together, create meaningful legacies and help to introduce responsible business practice, is longstanding.  Ash was included in the first ever publication of the Asian Power 100 in September 2005 and again in September 2007 as one of a select number of key influencers on Asian matters in the UK, as well as for his overall contribution to regeneration, economic and community development, equal opportunities, and international trade.

An Honorary Fellow of Brunel University London, Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA), a Member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (MCIPD and the Automated Customs International Trade Association (ACITA), and one of the founder members of West London Business, Ash was the co-author of the report on the former Employment Department Group’s “Policies, Practices and Procedures on Race Relations in Employment”.

Ash Verma held a wide range of leadership positions during his thirty-five-year professional career between 1973 and 2008, including:

Chief Executive, Heathrow City Partnership, a private, central, and local government regeneration initiative, where he led £50m investment in complex regeneration, economic development, enterprise support, workforce skills and transport projects, like Hayes Business Studios, Southall Business Centre, and Routes to Work. November 2000 to June 2010.

Leader of West London Task Force, a £10m inner cities regeneration and community cohesion initiative. November 2000 – June 2010.

Business Development Director, May 1996 – October 2000 for the former Government Office for London (GOL), where he managed over £150m of public funds in economic development, enterprise and entrepreneurship and economic and social regeneration programmes, delivered by various partners in West London, as well as managing the London Business Link Network.

You can find out more about Ash Verma here:

https://globalindianseries.com/ambassadors/ambassador-ash-verma/

About the Global Indian Series:

My name is Rajan Nazran Chief Explorer for the Global Indian Series, the official platform for people of Indian origin (PIO), because let’s face it, we are everywhere!

For almost 15 years we have travelled across the globe covering 60 countries to date whilst exploring the kaleidoscope of our remarkable 50 shades of brown community.

Voyaging to the edges of the Amazon, facing Ebola in West Africa, being held hostage in Eastern Europe, tapping rubber in Malaysia, drinking chai with Heads of State and sharing laughter with local fishermen – I have been there, looking for us!

Our purpose is simple, to build a living encyclopaedia of the human experience of the community and a safe mooring ground for open discussions, whether you are an NRI, Indian Diaspora, person of Indian origin (PIO) or a fan of South Asian anthropology, what we do is bring people and communities together.

We do this by plunging into the human experience of being a person of Indian origin (PIO), taking a second look at the countries we now call home and tackling the conversations we need to know more about.

Through our range of award-winning original content (print, podcasts, events and TV) and fascinating discussions, our impactful stories and platforms have spearheaded national and international conversations that have brought people together.  Our work is featured in global brands including The Indian Express through to the CNBC network.

How to get involved:

Interested in getting involved in building the world’s largest living encyclopaedia on the community? Whether you want to become a patron, buy us a chai in a new location or have your story shown, simply get in touch via our website, we would love to hear from you. www.globalindianseries.com

Social media:

You can reach Rajan via

Global Indian Series (@rajannazran) • Instagram photos and videos

(1) Rajan (Singh) Nazran | LinkedIn

Global Indian Series - YouTube

Special thank you to TAIZU for the music

Episode: 127

Presenter – Rajan Nazran

Producer –Global Indian Series/NazranRoth

Guests in order:  Ash Verma

Other content you may like:

If you liked this podcast, you may enjoy the following:

PODCAST:

https://globalindianseries.com/the-carnival-of-national-identity-made-in-trinidad-with-dr-kirk-meighoo/

https://globalindianseries.com/the-caribbean-season-st-lucia-and-identity-with-dr-stephen-king/

THE HISTORY OF INDIANNESS | THE SUGAR WAR (globalindianseries.com)

ARTICLE: “This is not India” Muzi Hlengwa and the danger of identity politics in SA (globalindianseries.com)

IS IT MY INDIANISM, MY INDIANNESS OR JUST ME BEING INDIAN THAT I AM PROUD OF? (globalindianseries.com)

Lest we forget. The Coolie Odyssey (globalindianseries.com)

https://globalindianseries.com/st-kitts-and-nevis-with-india/

We produce content that inspires purpose, passion, and community. If you like what we do, please do share, like, subscribe and comment. It helps massively with online algorithms.

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Support change: A little favour to ask-We believe true freedom is to be able to act without fear or favour and that identity is not a “brand” to be abused, politicized, or reduced for personal gain. As Global Indians, the need to work together is greater now than ever before.  If we want to see real change, we need to create a better society for all, tackle injustice and plunge into the many aspects of what the human experience truly offers.The Global Indian Series has been built to be a platform of integrity, fairness and to remain fiercely independent of political influence. We are the first in the world to connect with every echelon of society with all human voices being treated equally.  We are the first to have travelled physically to locations far and wide, often putting our own lives on the line to bring forward stories that deserve to be told.  Whether it’s through our Podcast that delves into the human experience behind identity, our articles and features that cover key events we need to know, or live based events that tackle topical discussions, we have been there to support a better community and planet.Despite the high costs and time needed to maintain our work, we continue, because we know our work has helped more people understand what is happening within the communities across our planet, why it matters, and how, together, we can demand progress.  We challenge head-on, the silent divisions that have crept into our collective consciousness and how to tackle key issues that often go neglected in mainstream media.How you can help:Please share our work: By collaborating with others who share our values, our combined voices make change, with many more becoming inspired to take meaningful action.Subscribe to the platform:Many from across our community have decided to subscribe to our platform. It helps us grow which in turns attracts like-minded supporters. If you have not already, we would appreciate you subscribing to our newsletters and following our social media accounts. It is free and supports our journey.