London:

Indian-born former Conservative MP Alok Sharma, who chose not to stand for re-election in this week’s general election, will now take his seat in the House of Lords after being awarded a peerage by King Charles III.

The 56-year-old Agra-born MP, who was named Sir Alok in the King’s New Year’s Honors list last year for his contribution to tackling climate change through his leadership as president of the COP26 climate summit two years ago Knighted in name, now they are. Lord Sharma

Sharma was among seven nominations made by outgoing Prime Minister Rishi Shankar for his traditional “Dissolution Peerages”, which also includes former Prime Minister Theresa May as a peer in the upper house of the UK Parliament. But was seen.

“Humbled to be appointed to the House of Lords but very sad to see so many Conservative candidates lose, including Reading West and Mid Berkshire,” Sharma said in a post on X on Friday, as his party’s devastation The results of the general elections became clear. .

His previous constituency was won by Labour’s Olivia Bailey, whom Sharma described as “a decent person who I think will serve the area diligently.” Sharma’s Reading West constituency, like many others across the UK, underwent a boundary change to become Reading West and Mid Berkshire.

“This was not an easy decision for me. It has been the honor of my life to serve as the MP for the constituency in the town where I grew up and to serve in government and represent Britain internationally. It’s an honor to represent,” Sharma said, when he announced his decision in September last year not to contest the next general election.

“I will continue to support my Conservative colleagues and diligently serve my constituents for the remainder of my time as an MP, as well as champion the causes in Parliament,” he added. which I am deeply concerned about, especially climate action,” he added.

Sharma was elected as a parliamentary candidate in 2006 and has served as a Tory MP since 2010. Since then in his role as a Cabinet Minister, he has been appointed Secretary for Trade, Energy and Industrial Strategy and International Development until he was awarded the Hon. Cabinet-level role as President of COP26 by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson in January 2021.

As Prime Minister Rishi Singh, he was on the backbenches of the House of Commons to express his concerns about the government’s delay in meeting some of the country’s climate action net zero commitments by 2050. They used to talk often.

“Chopping and changing policies creates uncertainty for businesses and the public. Ultimately it makes it more difficult to attract investment and increases costs for consumers,” he said.

Sharma was among a series of high-profile Tory peers, including former defense secretary Ben Wallace, who have decided not to stand for re-election at the 2024 election.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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