Jyotsna Islam was born in the late 1960s in Neasden, a London borough of Brent in Britain. Her father, Abdur Rahman, was a restaurateur and business entrepreneur in the United Kingdom and Bangladesh. Her ancestral home is located in Moulvibazar district of Bangladesh. Her husband Sham Islam is also a public representative in the UK.
Jyotsna Islam began her political career in 2010, despite having been a member of Britain's Labour Party since 1990. In 2018, she was elected a councillor for the London Borough of Redbridge for the first time. Later, she was elected deputy mayor with the votes of the councilor for one year. The election of councilors is held every four years. In May this year, she was reelected as councilor. She is now fulfilling her civic duties, council responsibilities, and word councilor tasks.
The Bangladeshi-British talked about opportunities of Bangladeshis, especially youths, in the UK with the Financial Express based on her experience in Britain.
State of public representation in the UK by Bangladesh-origin British nationals: Public representation of Bangladesh-origin British nationals are increasing in the United Kingdom day by day. For example, there were two elected councilors four years ago in London Borough of Redbridge who were Bangladesh-origin. But now, there are eight councilors in the borough. There are a notable number of such public representatives, including mayors, in other parts of the United Kingdom. Five Bangladeshi-British Members of Parliament (MPs) are representing UK citizens in the House of Commons.
Performance of people from Bangladesh in the UK: They are doing well. A Bangladeshi after landing in the UK thinks he or she needs to earn and send money home, and needs to build a house in Bangladesh. Once these are done, he or she tries to take the poor relatives to the UK. Thus, since there are always targets of the youths, so they do well in the foreign countries.
Bangladeshi people, specially youths, can be found in almost every sector in the country. They are working in business, education, housing, banking and other sectors.
Interestingly enough, earlier generations were busy managing their livelihood and sending money home, now the third or fourth generations of the Bangladeshi descendants living in the UK do not have to send money, so they are focusing on the education of their children.
Suggestions for people who want to go to the UK: Submission of proper documents and proper way of processing can protect the UK-bound people from difficult situations. They need to follow authentic processes instead of using middlemen. If one submits an online application directly with authentic documentation, one would get an invoice properly. For example, if a visa applicant who did not pass even a secondary level submits a certificate of post-graduation level, he/she will face problems in the UK. Sometimes, a gang of fraud puts visa applicants in trouble as they provide fake visa documents by grabbing money.
Opportunity for immigrants in the UK: Entering Britain as an immigrant requires a long and a tough journey. Brexit brings an opportunity in the UK for skilled immigrants from all countries as Britain doesn't have special treatment for European Union countries. They treat all countries in the same manner. Workers skilled in nursing, teaching, medicine have employment opportunities in the UK. Earlier, this opportunity was available in Europe. Britain introduced it two/three years ago.
Hard work key to success: Before going to make a plan to go to the UK, everyone should realise that everyone has to get success through hard work in their own country or in foreign country. One may pass some time idly in one's country, but it would not be possible after landing in another country. After spending a large amount of money to become an immigrant, one will have to be involved with a job from the very beginning. So, one needs to get prepared mentally considering overall situation before spending money and time for getting a UK visa.
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