Telford peer battles off 'imposter syndrome' in House of Lords to find his place and 'stand up and challenge'
A member of the House of Lords from Shropshire has spoken of feeling like an 'imposter' in the upper chamber of Parliament.
Baron Kuldip Sahota of Telford entered the House of Lords 12 months ago but told the BBC that he suffered from "imposter syndrome" because of his background.
Lord Sahota, a Sikh, had been the leader of Telford & Wrekin Council before his elevation to the Lords.
A Labour peer, Lord Sahota took part in a debate on the future of the House of Lords on BBC Politics Midlands on Sunday He believes it should be more representative of British society.
Labour has stated to the broadcaster that it would abolish the Lords and replace it with a "new, reformed upper chamber".
Lord Sahota and his father, alongside other members of his family, worked for many years at Hadley’s GKN Sankeys.
The former council leader eventually left the engineering company to get into business, before entering politics and eventually the House of Lords.
Lord Sahota told the BBC that everybody feels imposter syndrome when they don all their finery and enter the pomp of the Lords.
He said: "Everybody feels that imposter syndrome that one of these days I am going to get caught out because I'm not supposed to be here because of my background."
But he said the longer he has been on the red benches he has gained confidence that he can "stand up and challenge and ask the difficult questions as well".
