Fledgling Home Secretary finds himself on wrong side of law
AS SAJID Javid faces the customary warnings from police over cuts to their budgets in his role as Home Secretary, he may find himself facing a familiar adversary – his younger brother.
Chief Supt Bas Javid, of West Midlands Police, and one of the most senior Muslim police officers in the UK, has previously warned on Twitter of “the very thin blue line” and said that all forces “face major budget cuts”.
The new Home Secretary is the son of a Pakistani immigrant who arrived in Britain in the Sixties with just £1 in his pocket. He worked in a cotton mill in Rochdale and later as a bus driver in Bristol, before running a clothing firm.
Mr Javid and his four highly competitive brothers were raised in a two-bedroom flat above a shop on what he described as “Britain’s most dangerous street”.
He attended state school in Bristol, where a careers adviser told him he had a future as a television repairman.
In a speech to the Union of Jewish Students in 2014, Mr Javid told how he had experienced racism after being called a “Paki” to his face by a classmate. “I did what any cool, calm future Cabinet minister would do,” he said. “I hit him. And then he hit me, and I hit him back and things sort of went downhill from there.”
He chose to pursue an academic path, attending Exeter University, where he joined the Conservative Association and his interest in politics blossomed. After university he went into the world of finance and by the age of 25 was a vice-president at Chase Manhattan Bank, later moving to Singapore with Deutsche Bank.
In 2010 he became MP for Bromsgrove, giving up around £3million a year in earnings to pursue a career in politics.
He began a rapid rise, becoming a Treasury minister within two years under the stewardship of George Osborne, before going on to become culture secretary, business secretary and most recently housing secretary.
However, his rise was marred by the EU referendum campaign, which saw him flirt with backing the Leave campaign before coming out in favour of Remain. His decision infuriated Eurosceptic Tory MPS, some of whom have still not forgiven him.
He is married to Laura, a practising Christian. They have four children. Mr Javid does not practise any religion, though his parents are Muslim. He prides himself on being a family man. In 2015, Buzzfeed reported that he had laid foil strips around his home after his daughter’s hamster went missing. He stayed up all night listening for rustling. It was later found.