Agenda item
TO RECEIVE ANNOUNCEMENTS (IF ANY) FROM THE MAYOR, LEADER OF THE COUNCIL, MEMBERS OF THE CABINET OR THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE
(a) Tower Hamlets Young Mayor 2010
Decision:
Please see minutes.
Minutes:
(1) Haiti earthquake
The Mayor referred to the catastrophic earthquake that had taken place in Haiti on 12th January. Estimates suggested that up to three million people had been affected by this terrible event and the death toll may exceed 150,000. He asked Members to join him in expressing shock and sadness at the suffering caused to so many people and behalf of the Council he sent his deepest sympathy to those affected and to residents of the borough who may have family or other connections with the stricken area.
(2) Excellent rating by the Equalities Commission
The Leader of the Council, Councillor Lutfur Rahman, was pleased to inform Members that the Council had been rated as “excellent” by the Equalities Commission. The Council had also been ranked 7th best in the country in relation to promoting equality of opportunity for LGBT staff and work was on track to meet the workforce to reflect the community targets. He congratulated all the staff and Members that had been involved in this work.
(3) Extreme weather conditions
The Leader of the Council, Councillor Lutfur Rahman, said that even during the coldest winter for 40 years, the Council had kept schools open and roads gritted despite pressures on the supplies. Tower Hamlets had performed better than its neighbouring boroughs. He thanked staff and the Lead Member for their hard work.
(4) Knife crime
The Leader of the Council, Councillor Lutfur Rahman, said that over the last few weeks the borough had seen a spate of knife crime and sadly an 18 year old youth had died. Although levels of such crime were lower in Tower Hamlets that in some other parts of London, the Council was determined to do everything possible to combat knife crime and the growing issues around it. A scrutiny session on knife crime was to commence shortly.
(5) Holocaust Memorial Day
The Leader of the Council, Councillor Lutfur Rahman, informed the Council that the meeting was taking place on Holocaust Memorial Day. It had been 65 years since 12 million people were slaughtered by the Nazi regime in Germany. Many Jewish people had sought refuge in the borough and it was important both to commemorate those who died and to ensure that the terrible events could never be repeated. With the permission of the Mayor the Leader asked that the Council stand in a minutes silence in memory of the millions of victims of the holocaust as well as those who had lost their lives in the Haiti earthquake.
Members, officers and the public rose from their seats and observed a minute’s silence.
(6) Young Mayor elections
The Mayor introduced the new Young Mayor of Tower Hamlets, Landry Adelard, and his team of Deputy Mayors who had been elected the previous week. He invited the outgoing Young Mayor, Uma Akther, to address the Council about her year in office. Ms. Akther gave a presentation about her time as the Young Mayor and the opportunities it had given her and her colleagues. The Mayor thanked Ms. Akther and her deputies on undertaking their roles with great success and presented certificates to each of them marking the end of their term of office.
Councillor Peter Golds then addressed the meeting. He echoed the Leader of the Council’s comments regarding staff efforts during the extreme weather, and joined the Mayor in paying tribute to the outgoing Young Mayor and deputies.
Councillor Golds also informed the Council about the holocaust memorial ceremony that he had attended the previous day at City Hall. He endorsed the Leader’s remarks on this subject and also referred to more recent events in other parts of the world that illustrated the importance of everyone involved in public life remaining vigilant and determined in their opposition to extreme ideologies that sought to divide communities.