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3 2 1 I like to make a change. Give it to Green Party this time. Come on. For some people in Britain, Muslim voters like this are a threat. I can reveal that the Gorton and Denton bi-election has been a hotbed of Islamic sectarianism. This is the beginning in my opinion of sectarian politics in this country. I find it troubling. I find it worrying. Claims of a dangerous Muslim voting block reached fever pitch during the Gorton and Denton bi-election. So I hereby declare that Hannah Catherine Spencer duly elected with a Green Party's historic victory led to some of the most divisive
political rhetoric we've seen in recent times. We won't accept this victory tonight without calling out the politicians and divisive figures who constantly scapegoat and blame our communities. Family voting, otherwise known as sectarianism. Now, we can have a conversation in this country about sectarianism and what it's doing to our democracy or we can pretend it's not happening. It's clearly happening. I was there reporting on the night and could feel the tension. Extraordinary result in Gordon and Denton. Lots of nasty rhetoric around Muslims here. It could get ugly. Our community has faced Islamophobia for
generations, but blaming us for interfering in democracy is new to modern politics. So, as the country gears up for the local elections in May, I want to find out what this so-called Muslim vote is and why it's considered a threat to our society. Hello. The glamour of a journalist. I am knackered. People are now voting along the lines of which community you belong to rather than which policies you think are best for the country. Lots of talk about sectarian voting. speaking with such certainty about the Muslim community like we're a monolith. I mean now the weather's going to be blamed on the Muslim voters in Gen and Denton Islamic.
Yeah, we're just doing a film on the Muslim vote. If the Muslim vote exists, then surely I will find it in this Manchester constituency. Follow the herd. We have found Hannah Spencer. It's here that Muslim voters are accused of handing Hannah Spencer the bi-election win. What do you make of this narrative of sectarian voting? I just think we did a campaign that tried to reach a lot of people who've been let down by politics and politicians previously. We have to acknowledge that there are cracks, but we can heal those cracks. I really, really do think that. And we can do
that, I think, by investing in our communities and bringing pride back. A lot of newspapers, politicians, including Matthew Goodwins and people like you, Muslims in this area, are practicing sectarian voting. I know there's a lot of hysteria around the Muslim vote and I just find that quote ridiculous. I know people who support Green obviously and I know people who support Tories and there's a small number that support reform as well. We're not just one group. I'm guided by my own personal values. While men like this may have voted according to their own personal views, there were claims that Muslim women were being told how to vote by their husbands. I want to hear what they think
about this. Lots of people are divided. Even the husband and wife they are divided. Some are supporting for the labor, some are supporting for the green. Not for only Gaza. But we have concern about here as well because here is lots of big issues. Now what you hearing from local people the rent is going high and high. We all are suffering. We don't know how to uh provide all the basic necessities to our children. What was your reaction to that result? I was shocked. I never expected uh reform to come second. When I speak to people here, they feel like things have got actually got worse.
There's a lot of hate crime. We've seen an increase. It has reminded me of what was going on in the ' 70s. The National Front. I fear the same is happening. I feel unsafe. An incident that took place just 2 days before the bi-election shows the real world impact of anti-Muslim rhetoric. We're just going inside a Manchester Central Mosque. This was targeted a few days ago. There was a man came in with knife, an axe, a hammer. People terrified. Let me put the lights on so you see the full glory of the mosque. Okay. Going to get very busy soon. People are coming for if there seems to be a general sense of unease around rising Islamophobia.
Yes, there are people who are out there sadly with hatred and things like that. But I think together if we can work together to improve the awareness and understanding and provide opportunities like the ifar, people can come, anybody can come sit down and eat food with us. I think that will ellay many misunderstandings in the community. Are we able to have a quick look at what the ifar preparation looks like? Of course you can. Chris, have you fasted? I haven't. You should try one. So far, I've not found any evidence of a monolithic Muslim vote block. All I've seen is the fear that this type of rhetoric creates. But as we get closer to the council elections in May, this
idea of sectarian voting is gaining traction elsewhere. We are in Birmingham where a group of independent candidates running here is sparking another discussion around sectarian voting. Let's see if we can find them. This is Ahmed Yakub, a Tik Tok lawyer and a founder of the Independent Candidates Alliance. In 2024, he came close to unseating Labour's Shabban Mammud in the general election after campaigning primarily on Gaza. Now, he's supporting around 70 prospective counselors across the city. A political earthquake took place in May of 2024 when I took 69,000 votes on a independent ticket. He's been charged with money laundering and was arrested in March on suspicion of a racially
aggravated public order offense. Allegations that he denies. Another of his independent candidates was convicted of terrorism in Yemen, but said the charges were fabricated and that he was tortured into making a confession. Amnesty International at the time recognized that this was a sham trial. right-wing media outlets have honed in on these controversial individuals to whip up fear about Muslim voters. So, I want to ask you because I've seen some of what GB News has said about people like yourself and other candidates. They've spoken about sectarian voting. People are refusing now to blindly vote for the political parties that they have been voting for years. If you mean that's sectarianism, I don't know what
that means. I mean, why does sectarianism the word only get used when a brown man gets into politics? The truth is that the Muslim voters are fed up of the Labor Party. The Muslim voters feel betrayed. And it's not only on the Gaza issue. How many issues do we have here? The NHS waiting list. We have people, we have cancer patients who are waiting for treatment. You know, we have so much homelessness. We have beggars. Just go down the road and you'll find a beggar. These people have totally been forgotten about, neglected. These two are not just anti- labor. They're also attacking the Greens over their liberal policies on legalizing drugs and trans rights.
The Green Party want to lead our children, our future generation into the path of drugs, sex, and degeneracy. It was this video of Zack Palansky dancing on stage at an anti-racist event that angered Yakub and ASA. ASA was heavily involved with protests against LGBT inclusive education in Birmingham. When you say degenerate, let me tell you, let me finish then you can come in. Don't worry. So basically, so when they are going around now and advocating for the Muslim votes, they are not specifically telling the voters about their policies. I mean, I know that I won't be happy and probably 90% of the voters here won't be happy with their selfidentifying gender laws. Everyone vote independent.
Thank you. Allah bless you. We are not saying that he shouldn't be doing what he wants in his personal life, but the fact A politician has to appeal to all communities. Absolutely. But look, it has to appeal to all communities. But you have to also remain as a politician. What you do in your public life and your private life is two completely different things. But more importantly, look, the fact that they are pushing for selfidentification is a big problem within the Muslim community. Alongside local issues, of which there are many, Yakub campaigns on being anti-ionist. He's been accused of anti-semitism for supporting the trope that a Zionist lobby controls British politics.
When you say the Zionist establishment has a lot of control over politics, what do you mean? Because there are Labour candidates, there are reform candidates, there are conservative candidates. They get elected and they have their own values. I've seen interviews I've seen interviews of Labor Party candidates, even reform candidates, Tory candidates, and when they are asked about putting Israel first or United Kingdom first, they come and answer that question properly. Why? Because of the Zionist influence. Why are they good to criticize, you know, the resistance in Palestine, but they can't criticize the Israeli government?
Anti-semitism and Islamophobia are having a corrosive impact on our politics. People across all communities are fearful of rising hate, but many Muslims are voting green or independent because of the decline they are seeing around them. Birmingham Council. Nah, not really tickling the fancies. I'll be honest with you. The potholes and all that. Look at the road markings. Stay the camera one second, Governor. No one's going to know that's a roundabout. That's going to be a bloody accident. It's a maza. It's not a maza. It's crazy. This has been Labor 14 years. And so if you see decline around you, you're going to blame the people in charge. And if it's Labor, a vote against Labor is a vote for change. I guess
nothing speaks to that decline more than over a year of bin strikes. So we have council elections in May in Birmingham. Are you planning to vote? Uh no not for Labor. Did you used to vote Labor? I used to fight Labor. And why would you not vote Labor? You know they don't listen to anything cuz of what you're seeing around here. The rubbish. Yeah. What do you think of these guys? Oh no. This is brilliant. Like seriously man. Keep it up man. Trust me cuz it's needed man. There's not a lot of people that will do this. Seriously. Abdi Malik is a young volunteer who's tired of
waiting for politicians to fix things and is posting about you on social media. When everything started popping off on the social media side, very racist comments on X. I just get deported and stuff. How does that make you feel? It makes me sad sometimes, but it's online words. I just carry on do what I'm doing and hopefully over time it just becomes positive. He's part of a new generation of young Muslims who are trying to do things differently here. So, we've just been told about Mansour, who's an 18year-old, I believe, running as an independent. He's been utilizing Tik Tok. And he's around here somewhere.
Let's see if we can find him. We need cleaner streets, not rats in our streets. Is it possible for an 18-year-old to become the youngest counselor in UK history? A lot of people don't believe in me. They say, "Oh, you're 18. You have no experience. You're too young." You're from a Muslim background. There's lots of Muslim voters here. But what's been the response of white workingclass voters? They talking about the same problems. Sure. So I'm trying to tackle those problems for everyone. Can I speak to you for a minute?
It's 1 minute. 30 seconds. No. You're putting my voters off. Just a lot of people fed up with politics at some point. Yeah. Politics itself. Yeah. They don't see the change happening. They say I don't want to get involved at all. They just want the change to be honest. Hi. Sorry to disturb your day. My name is Vans Ahmed. I'm running as a independent. Stuff is not easy. Knocking on doors, especially in the area where everyone feels neglected. It's a humbling experience. All young people here campaigning, doing Tik Tok videos, getting involved in the process. The narrative we hear is that this is very, very dangerous for democracy. I think it's actually good for democracy.
The obsession with Muslim voters is hiding something much bigger happening in our politics. People are deserting the main parties in droves. And for workingclass people of all backgrounds, their concerns are the same. What's the biggest issues in Gon and Denton? The rise in petrol prices, general cost of living, because everything's going to go up now, isn't it? I'm back in Manchester to see Hannah Spencer. Her first few weeks in a job have not been easy. You want to let him dirty? Disgrace.
You are a traitor. Here we go. Can you talk to us a bit about what kind of abuse you're getting and how it makes you feel? The abuse is unbelievable. And a lot of it that's directed at me is anti-Muslim. Like because I've been really clear and proud about standing with my Muslim neighbors, friends, and communities. The anti-Muslim hatred. It has increased so much in the last couple of years because of the divisive stuff that politicians are saying. Even though reform didn't win, they still won 10,000 votes. Have you met any reform voters since you've been elected?
Yeah, I met one this morning. Um, yeah, we had a lovely chat like and we'd of course we would. He thought that the um that they were like the anti-establishment vote and so I can see why people voted for them of course because I think the struggles that people are facing are really clear. Muslim voters are so often spoken about but not spoken to. If politicians and pundits did more of the latter, they'd realize we're no different from any other group. We're fed up same as everyone else. Hatters. It seems like this is also a former hatmaking town. Hello, mate. He's from Luton. He's not happy about the Hatters thing.
You're not happy? Where? Where the Hatters? Yeah, I used to be a big Hatter Mill down the mountain. Um MP, what's your thoughts? What they say and what they do? I ain't getting myself whipped up over ballotics basically. What about reform or the Greens or anyone else? Yeah, reforms would have been give them a chance. Greens probably a chance. Yeah. Greens or a reform? Yeah. Really? Yeah.
How divided would you say communities like this are? Cuz big in what sense? Yeah. Well, I go on Facebook. Friends I grown up with are just blasting all this about the boats and you know, I've grown up with them and humanity's gone out of it if you know what I mean. I mean, I know I don't want them over here, but I don't want getting lynched either. It's pretty sad really. I guess we just need more spaces where people can talk to each other. Yeah. Get talking to each other. Yeah.
