Streatham MP Ribeiro-Addy bags Newcomer of the Year award in the House of Commons

Streatham’s Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP has been announced as the 2021 Newcomer MP of the Year at the prestigious MP of the Year Awards.

Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP was recognised for her efforts to combat digital exclusion amongst children and to help them to continue their education through the pandemic, as well as her championing of refugee rights and inclusion in her constituency.

The Patchwork Foundation’s annual MP of the Year Awards celebrate the MPs who have actively worked with underrepresented and disadvantaged communities across the UK over the previous 12 months.

The MPs are nominated by the public, with winners being selected by an independent panel of judges.

The event is hosted and presented by Patchwork Patron, Mr Speaker, Rt Hon Sir Lindsay Hoyle MP, in Speaker’s House.

The Newcomer MP of the Year Award focuses on MPs who joined the House of Commons in or since the 2019 General Election.

Bell said: “It’s an honour to receive the Newcomer MP of the Year Award. Having the chance to represent my home constituency in Parliament has been the privilege of a lifetime.

“It’s not been an easy time to come into the job, so I’d like to thank everyone in my team for their hard work and support, not to mention the wider Streatham community: from local charities to youth services, faith groups, local Labour members and frontline workers in our schools, care homes, NHS, and emergency services.

“It’s been an honour working with everyone in our community to stand up for Streatham.

“I’m so proud of what we have achieved together already; whether it’s delivering laptops to schools in need, giving newly arrived refugees a warm welcome or pushing the Government on scandalously high citizenship fees. If we can do all this under the challenging conditions of the pandemic, I’m really excited to see what we can achieve next.”

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer MP said: ‘Congratulations to all the winners and nominees of the MP of the Year Awards. Your work to empower young people from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds to engage with politics is crucial.

Encouraging the next generation to participate in the political system and affect positive change in society is vital for a healthy democracy. Patchwork Foundation is creating a space to make politics more accessible, and I credit you for the exemplary impact you are having.”

Sir Lindsay said: “It is fantastic to see the 9th annual MP of the Year Awards return to Speaker’s House, to celebrate the hard work of MPs throughout 2021 – to support, champion, and engage under-represented communities.

“These awards are a great way to celebrate and shout about the work so many of our MPs do on behalf of their constituents across the country.”

Imran Sanaullah MBE, CEO, Patchwork Foundation said “It’s been a pleasure to be back in Speaker’s House for the first in-person MP of the Year Awards since 2018. After such a challenging few years, celebrating all the amazing work MPs have been doing across the country to champion, engage, and represent underrepresented communities has been enormously uplifting.

“It also demonstrates how important this work is, as we seek to address the divisions in our society and lack of trust in our politics. All of us at the Patchwork Foundation would like to congratulate and thank the winning MPs for their service and for helping us to create a democracy that is as representative and inclusive as possible.”

The ceremony was attended by MPs, corporate partners, young people from across the country and members of the public.

Participants and graduates of the Patchwork Foundation’s programmes were also in attendance, several of whom took part in a panel discussion about why diversity in politics is so important and how politics can be made more accessible to young people.

Winners included Ian Byrne MP (Overall MP of the Year), Zarah Sultana MP (Young People’s MP of the Year), Alan Mak MP (Conservative MP of the Year), Abena Oppong-Asare MP (Labour MP of the Year), and Dr Lisa Cameron (Other Party MP of the Year).

The Judge’s Special Recognition Award was also given in memory of the late Sir David Amess.