Rupa Asha Huq (; born 2 April 1972) is a British Labour MP, columnist and academic. Elected as the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Ealing Central and Acton at the 2015 general election, she was formerly a senior lecturer in sociology at Kingston University.
Early life
Huq was born in Queen Charlotte's Hospital, Hammersmith, London, England, and grew up on Brunswick Road, Ealing. Huq's father, Muhammad Huq (also known as Abedul), and mother, Rowshan Ara Huq (also known as Dulali Biswas), moved to Britain in 1962 from East Pakistan (since 1971 Bangladesh). Huq's father came from Maksedpur in Pabna city and her mother from Kuthipara in Pabna city. Huq's father was training to become an actuary for Prudential, but gave that up to open an Indian restaurant in Soho, London. After the recession of the early 1990s, the council did not renew the restaurant's lease so the business folded. He opened another restaurant in Harrow and later retired.
She attended Montpelier Primary School in Ealing. In 1980, at the age of eight, Huq was featured in the BBC Schools programme Look and Read when the programme visited the school. For her secondary education she attended the independent girls' school Notting Hill and Ealing High School.
In 1993, she graduated with an upper second in Political and Social Sciences and Law from Newnham College, Cambridge, for a BA. In 1999, she completed a PhD in cultural studies with a thesis on youth culture at the University of East London, comparing young people in East London and the Alsace region of France. This included being a post-graduate at Strasbourg II University in France, during which time she also worked at the European Parliament for the Labour Party, shadowing Labour MEP Carole Tongue. In October 2017, Huq told Sky News that she had been sexually harassed by a male MEP at this time.
Teaching career
In 1998, Huq moved to Manchester. From 1998 to 2004, she was a lecturer at the University of Manchester, during which time she held a Leverhulme Trust Fellowship.
From September 2004 until 2015, Huq was a senior lecturer in Sociology and Criminology at Kingston University in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. She has also taught Media and Cultural Studies.
Writing and media career
Huq has contributed to Tribune, The Guardian, New Statesman, Progress magazine and The Times Higher Education Supplement. Huq's research specialism has chiefly been youth culture and pop music. She has a particular interest in David Bowie.
In 2006, her book Beyond Subculture: youth, pop and identity in a post-colonial world on these themes was published. It was subsequently one of five titles shortlisted for the 2007 British Sociological Association Philip Abrams Memorial Prize. Huq was a contributor to the 2011 book What Next for Labour? Ideas for a new generation, published by Queensferry Publishing. In June 2013, her second book Making Sense of Suburbia through Popular Culture was published. Also in 2013, her third book On the Edge: The Contested Cultures of English Suburbia After 7/7 was published.
Huq has appeared on Channel S and Bangla TV as well as Channel 4 News and BBC News 24. On radio, she has been on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Asian Network.
Huq says that she has been a part-time DJ, saying in 2004, "I first started DJing for a hospital radio station when I was about 17 and now I DJ in clubs and bars in Manchester".
Early political career
Huq was a researcher for Tony Banks and Patricia Hewitt. In 2004, she stood as a candidate for Labour in the European Parliament election in North West England.
In 2005, she stood as the Labour parliamentary candidate in Chesham and Amersham at the 2005 general election.
In 2008, she served on a UK government Foreign and Commonwealth "Understanding Islam" delegation to Bangladesh.
In 2010, Huq was one of three Labour candidates standing for a council seat in Walpole in the constituency of Ealing.
In November 2013, Huq was chosen by Labour as their prospective parliamentary candidate for Ealing Central and Acton constituency to challenge Conservative MP Angie Bray at the 2015 general election. In January 2015, she was one of 15 Labour candidates each given financial support of £10,000 by Lord Matthew Oakeshott, the former Liberal Democrat. During the election campaign, Huq was manhandled by the former vice-chairman of the local Conservative branch, Karim Sacoor, who was caught on video repeatedly attempting to drag her away from Boris Johnson, who was campaigning with her Conservative rival Angie Bray.