The Labour MP for Hall Green and Moseley, Tahir Ali, has been criticized for focusing on campaigning for a new airport in Mirpur, Kashmir, while Birmingham is facing a crisis with piles of rubbish on the streets. Ali has been pushing for the airport since October and has joined other MPs in signing a letter to the Pakistani prime minister asking for funding. This prioritization of a parochial issue over the needs of his constituents closer to home is an example of the increasing problem of sectarianism in British politics. The rise of sectarianism is reshaping politics along religious and racial lines, and some independent candidates are campaigning on Middle Eastern geopolitics rather than local issues.