Murder of Henry Nowak

Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi Excerpts

Tuesday 2nd June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Shabana Mahmood]

I have made it very clear from this Dispatch Box and over the course of my tenure as Home Secretary that all are equal before the law, and the police must always act without fear and without favour towards any one group. I do not think it is helpful for us to start pitting either majority or different minority communities against one another; that is not what this moment requires.

The right hon. Gentleman is right that there is always a balance to be struck—there must not be underreaction or, indeed, overreaction. I believe that in the vast majority of cases, the police get that balance right, and as I say, our police officers run towards danger every single day to keep us safe. I will always scrutinise all these actions to make sure that our police service is functioning as it should, so that every single citizen in our country, regardless of the colour of their skin or the faith that they have or may not have, can be absolutely certain that they will always be treated equally, and that whatever complaint they have will always be investigated in the way we would all expect.

[Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Slough) (Lab)]

I am deeply saddened by the murder of Henry Nowak, and my heartfelt condolences go out to his family, whose pain was made all the worse by the police wrongly handcuffing Henry, believing the lies of the violent murderer. That stripped Henry of his dignity in his agonising final moments, and is something that should never happen again. It is very galling that the likes of Reform, Restore and the far right decided to politicise people’s pain, attacking the Sikh community for wearing the kirpan and wanting it banned, even though the kirpan was not used in this violent attack. [Interruption.] They have decided to scapegoat and throw under the bus an entire community based on the actions of one violent murderer. [Interruption.] Let me also give them a history—

[Mr Speaker]

Order. You are meant to be speaking through the Chair, not across the Chamber.

[Mr Dhesi]

My apologies, Mr Speaker. Let it be said that we see those people, and we will stand up to them. [Interruption.] Let me also give a short history lesson, Mr Speaker.

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I started this Session by calling for tolerance and respect. I do not expect Members to be pointing at each other and attacking each other. Members speak through the Chair. We want an orderly Chamber that is respectful. This does nobody any good.

[Mr Dhesi]

Thank you, Mr Speaker.

Hundreds of thousands of Sikh soldiers bravely fought alongside British soldiers in both world wars. Tens of thousands made the ultimate sacrifice, proudly wearing their turban and their kirpan. What reassurances can my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary give to the Sikh community, who are horrified and ashamed by this brutal murder and fearful about their right to freely and peacefully practise their faith?

[Shabana Mahmood]

I reiterate for my hon. Friend that religious freedom is an important principle that this Government respect. It has been respected by different Governments of different party political persuasions, and I am sure that that will continue to be the case. As I said in my statement, we are not a country that collectively punishes an entire group of people for the actions of individuals. The responsibility for this murder rests with the murderer, and he has now faced justice and been sentenced. That is the right way for these matters to proceed.

I will also say something about the tone of this debate. It is right for the whole House to remember that Henry Nowak’s family and friends are watching. The way that we conduct ourselves in this place can be passionate, but it must not result in name calling and in just shouting different political views. I do not think we should stand for the politicisation of this murder. There are lessons to be learned and further issues to be drawn out from what has happened, once the IOPC has concluded its investigation. I am sure that we will debate that here in the future. The way that we conduct the debate matters just as much as what is said.