Full name: Piara Khabra MP.
Homeland: MP for Ealing Southall, 1992-present.
Caste: Working class, urban, Left.
Religion: Multiculturalism, Euroscepticism, community spirit.

Key Jobs: Justice of the Peace, 1977-present; Councillor, London Borough of Ealing, 1978-1992.

Current Occupation: Government backbencher. Since 1997, when not serving the people of Southall, Piara has spent his time mulling over the problems of the developing world as a member of the International Development Select Committee.

The Melting Pot: Piara has always been vocal in his condemnation of racism. He cites his proudest achievement as "speaking in the House of Commons on the Stephen Lawrence inquiry report and the race relations amendment bill" (Guardian Unlimited, Ask Aristotle). He has complained about racism in football, and praised Southall's multicultural atmosphere: "People from 20 countries live side by side here" (The Times, 04/08/03). He described Prince Phillip's Indian light-fitting gaffe as "personally offensive" (The Sun, 11/08/99), and condemned scaremongering about large-scale immigration by Winston Churchill MP, the grandson of the late PM, as "stirring up the racial fire" (Daily Mail, 20/09/93). He even accused the Commission for Racial Equality of racism, claiming that "people are scared to speak out, frightened about losing their jobs" (Evening Standard, 04/08/98).

All That Glitters: Piara has resisted the avarice that consumes so many MPs. He voted against both pay rises MPs have awarded themselves in the last ten years.

Community Spirit: Piara has long been an active social campaigner in Southall. Before his political career, he was an important player in the Indian Workers Association (IWA), a secular group that offered advice and help to anyone of South Asian origin, regardless of religion. With the IWA, later as a councillor and an MP, Piara worked to try to improve the "lack of facilities and schools for local people" (Interview, AgeConcern.org). Beyond the bounds of Southall, his desire for social justice led him to back the Sunday Mirror's campaign for a £5 minimum wage, and to complain that the monarchy offers poor value for money. He describes the Windsor clan as "a drag on public resources" (Sunday Times poll, 25/05/97).

The Right To Die: Piara's belief that people should choose their own destinies has led him to be an active campaigner for euthanasia. In 1996, he organised a seminar at which Motor Neurone Disease sufferer Annie Lidsell put her case to MPs. Four years later, he introduced a Private Member's Bill to legalise voluntary euthanasia. "Just as people can choose to adopt a different lifestyle and not have society condemn it, so, at the end of life, people should have an option to choose what is best for them as individuals," he explains (Independent, 20/4/95).

The Face Of Adversity: Piara has fought hard to get where he is today. Refused an entry visa into the US, he came to London in 1959 and found himself in an almost entirely white and often racist society. Despite his teaching qualifications, he was unable to find a position in education until 1968; until that point, he did menial work. But, despite these problems, he dedicated himself to serving his community, first through the IWA, then through Ealing Council and Parliament. It may have been his own experiences of adversity that led him to ask the then Home Secretary Michael Howard to allow an Indian that clung to the wheels of a jet for ten hours to remain in Britain on compassionate grounds; the ever-huggable Howard refused.

Bloody Foreigners: Despite his multicultural views, Piara has, on occasion, been prone to a little ethnic tension himself. He said intra-Asian violence in Southall in 1997 was not because of friction over demands for a Sikh homeland (Khalistan) but because of "provocative acts from Pakistanis like waving their flags during the Sikh religious festivals" (Independent on Sunday, 04/05/97). Five years later, he defended attacks on Somali asylum seekers in Southall on the grounds that "there is perception in the community that crime is being committed by Somalis. I think the community has got every right to protect themselves" (Mail on Sunday, 08/09/02). Most strangely, during the 2001 election campaign, he harangued Independent Labour candidate Avar Lit with the words; "this is the kind of attitudes Asian people have – they should be sent back to Asia". "They like things hot and spicy, so I spiced it up a bit for them," he explained later (Daily Mail, 01/05/01).

Greyer Than Grey: Piara's record is not as clean as you might expect from one of our elected public servants. Revelations that two of his aides had paid local Labour member's subscriptions in exchange for votes marred his selection as a Labour candidate in 1991, though Piara denied all knowledge. It did not stop Piara from expressing his disgust at the caution given to Neil Hamilton over the cash for questions scandal; he called it "a complete cover-up, a disgrace" (Daily Mail, 08/06/95).

Flip Flop: Piara is not the most reliable man in Westminster. He has a reputation for unpredictably switching sides on major issues. He withdrew his support for the top-up fee rebellion earlier this year at the last minute, vehemently supported and then aggressively opposed all-black shortlists for Parliament and nominated Margaret Beckett for the Labour Party's deputy leadership before promptly voting for John Prescott. Back in 1992, he also voted to increase MP's expenses by more than the government recommended.

There Can Be Only One!: Last year, Piara – who will be 80 this November – said he does not feel comfortable about stepping aside, due to the lack of a suitable successor. Despairing of the political apathy among Southall's youth, he bemoans: "all they are interested in is a luxury life: glamour, cars and all that – they are unwilling to make a commitment to politics at a personal cost" (Interview, ageconcern.org.uk). To believe that he is irreplaceable suggests a large streak of self-importance.

East Is East: Piara formed his political views at the height of the Cold War, when Russia was Stalinist and Chairman Mao's Cultural Revolution raged through China. But he still opted for communism.

Whipped: Despite – or perhaps because of – his radical Leftist past, Piara holds strong views about the war on terror. In February 2003, he voted with the government against a cross-party amendment declaring the case for military action against Saddam Hussein "as yet unproven". In autumn 2001, he stated Britain had been too soft on terrorism, and that "we are right in using targeted force" against Afghanistan (Independent, 05/10/01). He also supported David Blunkett's efforts to strip Abu Hamza of his passport, and accused TGWU leader Bill Morris of "encouraging people like Hamza" (The Sun, 07/04/03) – yet, Morris only asked for legal processes to be observed.

Rentaquote: The shortage of Asian MPs means Piara is at the top of the list every time the tabloids want to wheel out an ethnic minority voice. A dig through the archives reveals his opinions on everything from the number of Asian actors in Eastenders (not enough) to the Princess Diana Memorial (there should be one) and the return of the Indian Crown Jewels (likely to inflame conflict between India and Pakistan, so we had better hang on to them). He has also criticised violence at an anti-Nazi protest as the work of "extremists" whose "behaviour pushes back the campaign against racism" (Daily Mirror, 18/10/93). Piara's willingness to mouth off about every issue of the day has made him a popular figure with the right-wing press. Every time they want to show that their stance on an issue like asylum seekers is not racist, a quick word with Piara quickly soothes readers' fears.

The Rain In Spain: Piara's idiosyncratic style of public speaking has been the toast of Parliamentary sketchwriters for many years. When he asked a question in 1999, one writer noted: "it may well have been a scorcher but most of the House missed it – Mr. Khabra's voice is harder to pick up than Radio Luxembourg" (Daily Telegraph, 01/07/99). Piara made a lengthy speech during the Kashmir crisis in the summer of 1998 during which Speaker Betty Boothroyd removed her shoe. "I thought she was going to throw it at him, but it was only the heat," noted Matthew Parris, with obvious disappointment (The Times, 15/05/98). Despite this, when asked to read some poetry at a Burns' night party, Piara muttered apologetically: "I can't understand a word Scottish people say" (The Times, 03/02/98).

Key Priorities: Piara has always shown an awareness of what the big issues in British politics really are. In 1994, he joined Brigitte Bardot in the campaign to save loveable pit bull terrier Dempsey, condemned to death for appearing in public without a muzzle (Daily Telegraph, 14/12/94). In 2000, he introduced a much-needed new voice to Parliament, inviting Indian guru and marathon runner Sri Chinmoy to share his vision of world peace with the House (Independent on Sunday, 29/10/00). More recently, Piara attended the opening of the North Korean embassy on London's North Circular Road in May 2003, noting acerbically: "I don't always agree with everything Mr Bush says" (The Times, 1/5/03). Incidentally, you will be pleased to hear that Dempsey got a reprieve. He died last year at the ripe old age of 17.

Assisted Suicide: Piara's voluntarily delayed his first attempt to introduce a Private Member's Bill into the Commons – as a favour to the ex-Chancellor, Norman Lamont, who wanted an opportunity to attack the government that had recently sacked him. "Three members of the Shadow Cabinet came up afterwards to thank me," he said, reportedly rubbing his hands together with glee (Evening Standard, 10/06/93). The nature of Lamont's subsequent attack seemed particularly ironic given the subject of Piara's proposed law – it was an early draft of his euthanasia bill.

Piara Khabra is a man that has dedicated his life to serving his community and helped protect the rights of the more vulnerable members of society for almost thirty years – if only he could ensure that he thinks before he speaks and could stop changing his mind. He could also improve his credibility if he was as vocal in attacking prejudice from his constituents as he was in attacking prejudice against them.

You have heard the evidence from both sides. It is now the responsibility of you, the Jury, to pass verdict on the accused. His fate is in your hands.

Piara Khabra was born in 1924 in India. A Sikh, he took his BA and BEd degrees at the University of the Punjab in 1958 but US authorities refused him permission to study in the states because of his Indian Communist party membership. He moved to London in 1959, and left the communist party in 1966, complaining that "it was a complete waste of energy, you can't contribute to politics if you're outside the mainstream." Instead, he became involved in a variety of community projects in Southall, including the Indian Workers Assocation and the Ealing Law Centre, and founded the Ealing Race Equality Council. He was appointed a Justice of the Peace in 1977, and elected as a Labour member of the borough council the following year.

He became the local party's candidate for parliament in 1991, supplanting his friend, the Marxist Syd Bidwell, who had been campaigning for more Asian MPs. Despite a selection process marred by charges of corruption, the people elected him to the Commons in 1992 at the age of 67. He was one of 50 Labour MPs that sponsored an anti-euro leaflet in March 1996, and his Eurosceptic credentials won him the honour of being the Times' favoured candidate for Ealing Southall in 1997. In 2001, Independent Labour ("Sunrise Party") candidate, millionaire businessman Avar Lir, opposed his re-election. After a heated campaign, Piara still got the seat – with more than 47 per cent of the vote.

Now aged 79, Piara Khabra is the oldest member of the House of Commons.