Saqib Bhatti

Bhatti was born and raised in Walsall, West Midlands, England in a Pakistani immigrant family from Punjab.^[8] His father, Younis Bhatti, is from Gujar Khan, while his mother is from Murree. Younis is UK secretary general of the Al-Shifa Eye Trust, a Pakistan-based eyecare hospital that provides treatment to individuals who cannot afford it.

Bhatti was privately educated at King Edwards VI School in Edgbaston,^[9][10] before studying law at the London School of Economics (LSE), from where he graduated with an LLB (Hons) degree.^[8] Whilst at university, he served as president of the LSE Pakistan Society.^[11]

Bhatti is an accountant by profession.^[12] In 2018, he became the President of the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, becoming the youngest person and first Muslim to hold the post.^[13]

Bhatti founded the group Muslims for Britain which campaigned for the UK to leave the EU during the Brexit referendum.^[14] He argued that EU policy prevented immigration from South Asia and that leaving the EU would make it easier.^[6][7] As of 2018^[update] he was a senior policy adviser with the Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe.^[13]

After Caroline Spelman announced she was standing down as an MP, Bhatti was selected to represent the Conservative seat of Meriden at the 2019 general election, beating the political adviser Nick Timothy in the ballot of party members.^[15][16]

Saqib was appointed Private Parliamentary Secretary Liz Truss, the then Secretary of State to the Department for International Trade in 2020.^[17] He then moved to the Department for Health and Social Care where he served as Private Parliamentary Secretary to the Secretary of State, the Rt Hon. Sajid Javid MP, whom he followed in resigning on 5 July 2022 in the aftermath of the Chris Pincher scandal.^[18][19]

On 30 September 2022, Bhatti became the Conservative Party's Vice Chair for Business.^[20] Saqib was then appointed as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Tech and the Digital Economy - a position he held until the 2024 general election.^[21]

In the 2024 UK general election, Bhatti's constituency of Meriden was renamed to Meriden and Solihull East after the reshaping of constituency boundaries.^[22] Saqib won 16,792 votes, seeing him retain his position as the elected Member of Parliament for his constituency.^[23]

Following the election, Bhatti was instated as Shadow Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology, in addition to Shadow Minister for Health and Social Care.^[24]

After the 2024 Conservative Leadership Election, newly elected Conservative Party Leader Kemi Badenoch reshuffled her Shadow Government, resulting in Bhatti's move to Shadow Minister for Culture, Media and Sport.^[25] The most recent shadow government reshuffle saw Saqib assume the role of Shadow Minister for Education, which he has held since 23 July 2025.^[26]

In the July–September 2022 Conservative leadership election, Bhatti endorsed Liz Truss, stating that Truss "understands that for businesses to thrive, the government needs to get out of the way."^[27]

Bhatti was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2020 New Year Honours "for services to diversity and inclusion in the business community", while he was President of the Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce.^[28]

Bhatti also holds an honorary doctorate from Aston University in Business Administration.^[29]