Shabana Mahmood: lord chancellor with political nous unafraid to shake up system

Her introduction to politics began in Birmingham as the child of a Labour councillor and as justice secretary she’s made tough decisions from day oneShabana Mahmood’s potential as a future cabinet minister was first noticed by the former deputy Labour leader Tom Watson in the 90s over tea and samosas at her family’s end-of-terrace Birmingham home.Watson, a seasoned fixer, had become a close friend of her father, Mahmood Ahmed, a Labour councillor. When political problems arose,