Author: Rhys Blakely
Publication: Times Online
Date: September 1, 2005
URL: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,16614-1759787,00.html
The British Asian community generates around 10 per cent of the country's GDP despite making up only 2.5 per cent of the population, according to research published today.
British Asians contribute some £103 billion a year to the economy despite many having arrived in this country "penniless, homeless and unable to speak the language", the Institute Of Asian Professionals (IAP) said.
The figures coincide with the publication of the first Asian Power 100 List, which recognises the most influential and successful members of the British Asian community, many of whom will attend a ceremony at the the Hilton Hotel in London this evening to mark 50 years since the migration of British Asians from the sub-continent began.
Among the prominent business figures included in the Power 100 is Lakshmi Mittal, the founder of Mittal Steel, the world's largest steelmaker, who was named the third richest person in the world with an estimated personal fortune of $25 billion (£13.8bn) by Fortune Magazine earlier this year.
Also included is Lord Tom Singh, who founded New Look, the retailer, in 1969 with the help of a £5,000 loan from his parents. The group is now valued at around £700 million. Arun Sarin, the chief executive of Vodafone, the telecoms giant, is also recognised on the list, which includes no less than seven Lords, three Baronesses, a Nobel Laureate, and numerous MBEs, CBEs and OBEs.
According to the IAP, the announcement comes at a time "when many Asians could feel that their lives, motives, and methods are under intense scrutiny".
Included on the list are two people in the frontline in the fight against terrorism: Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur, CBE, of the Metropolitan police and Raj Joshi, Assistant Director, Policy, International Affairs, at The Crown Prosecution Service.
Khalid Darr, the chairman of the IAP, said: "The figures are quite staggering. Many on the list arrived on these shores without a penny to their name - and they have built multi-million pound business empires.
"Entrepreneurship, coupled with a wonderful work ethic - fuelled with a desire to better oneself - is a potent force driving the British Asian business community.
"I believe that other sectors of the community could do worse than study our methods and resolve - and follow in our footsteps."
"As a snapshot of contemporary Britain, Asian Power 100 shows that Asian men and women have been taking their rightful place among the most powerful people in our country.
"It is my wish that one day British society will be so representative - that the Asian Power 100 will be redundant. Until that time we will celebrate in style."