The Speaker of the Council, Councillor Jahed Choudhury in the Chair

The Speaker of the Council provided his update to the Council. He noted that he had attended several events, including events to celebrate new businesses, educational and sporting achievements as well as welcoming new citizens to the borough. Other highlights included:

·       Attending the 52^nd anniversary of Victory Day of Bangladesh;

·       Attending the London in Bloom ceremony last year and seeing the success of the Borough’s Parks and Gardens;

·       Joining civic colleagues at the London Government Dinner in January and

·       Holding a successful Speakers event for the charities he is fundraising for – St Joseph’s Hospice and Eden Care UK.

Finally, the Speaker reminded members Holocaust Memorial Day was to take place on Saturday 27^th January 2024 and said it was a day for everyone to remember the millions of Jewish people murdered in the Holocaust along with many minority groups, under Nazi persecution and the other genocides around the world which followed.

Apologies for absence were received on behalf of:

· Councillor Maisha Begum

· Stephen Halsey – Chief Executive LBTH for whom Denise Radley, Deputy Chief Executive and Corporate Director, Health and Adults Social Care was deputising

Councillor Sabina Khan was unable to join the meeting in person but joined remotely. It was noted that she would be unable to vote as she was not formally in attendance.

Members are reminded to consider the categories of interest, identified in the Code of Conduct for Members to determine; whether they have an interest in any agenda item and any action they should take. For further details, see the attached note from the Monitoring Officer.

Members are also reminded to declare the nature of the interest at the earliest opportunity and the agenda item it relates to. Please note that ultimately it is the Members’ responsibility to identify any interests and also update their register of interests form as required by the Code.

If in doubt as to the nature of an interest, you are advised to seek advice prior to the meeting by contacting the Monitoring Officer or Democratic Services.

Councillor Musthak Ahmed declared an Non-Registerable Other Interest in Agenda Item 5.1 Petition on Saving THCAN as he was a Council appointee to the East End Citizen Advice Bureau who had links with THCAN. He remained in the meeting for discussion on that item.

To confirm as a correct record of the proceedings the unrestricted minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of the Council held on 15^th November 2023.

The Council RESOLVED to:

1.    Agreed that the minutes of the ordinary Council meeting of 15^th November 2023 be approved as a correct record of the proceedings and the Speaker was authorised to sign them accordingly.

Announcements from the Chief Executive.

Denise Radley, Deputy Chief Executive and Corporate Director, Health and Adults Social Care provided an update to the Council meeting, highlighting the following issues:

·       She informed Council Saturday 27^th January was Holocaust Memorial Day, a day to remember the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust, alongside the millions of people murdered under Nazi persecution of other groups and during more recent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur.  To mark the day, the Council was working with faith and community groups in the borough to hold a series of free events during the week.

·       In relation to Free School Meals, Tower Hamlets featured as a case study in an ITV piece about a new study into the benefits of free school meals.  The piece was on ITV national news and all regions outside of London.  In addition, Tower Hamlets had been named a finalist for the APPG Group Excellence in School Food Awards which was being held on Thursday, 25^th January 2024.

·       Lastly, Ms Radley said she was delighted to announce that the Town Hall had won a Civic Trust Award with the ceremony in March.

The Council Procedure Rules provide for a maximum of four petitions to be discussed at an Ordinary Meeting of the Council.

The attached report presents the received petitions to be discussed. Should any additional petitions be received they will be listed to be noted but not discussed.

5.1 Petition requesting Save THCAN

Sarah Sauvat, Vicky Scott and Shuhel Alom presented their petition requesting the saving of THCAN. Ms Sauvat stated the network had been instrumental in supporting advice services in Tower Hamlets for many years. She said that without funding THCAN could not support organisations and individuals like it had done in the past - through workshops, signposting, information and advice, training plus upskilling of staff in various disciplines such as bid and contract writing.

Ms Sauvat and her colleagues requested Members to continue to support THCAN as a vital network organisation.

Members asked questions of the petitioner before Councillor Saied Ahmed Cabinet Member for Resources and the Cost-of-Living responded to matters raised in the petition. Councillor Ahmed stated that the importance of the voluntary sector in delivering critical support to residents is recognised. The Mayor’s Community Grants Programme is one source of funding for advice provision and funding was based on applications meeting the required criteria. He said it was unfortunate the THCAN applications were unsuccessful because on one project they did not meet the minimum scoring threshold required as set out in the prospectus. On the second project it was not recommended for funding as there were other higher scoring projects that were more relevant to the theme priorities.  

The Council RESOLVED:

1. That the petition be referred to the Corporate Director for Communities for a written response within 28 days.

5.2 Petition regarding restricting events in Victoria Park

Lauma Kalns-Timans and Anwar Miah presented their petition regarding the restriction of events held in Victoria Park. They called upon the Mayor to reverse the decision to increase the number of events held in Victoria Park. They stated local residents and the ‘Friends of Victoria Park’ group had not been consulted about the changes in policy. Ms Kalns-Timans said the extra events would increase the number of people who would attend each event from 5,000 to 20,000 and would ruin the park’s environment and reduce accessibility to local residents, children and families especially during the summer holidays. Ms Kalns-Timans and Mr Miah asked the Mayor to reverse his decision.

Members asked questions of the petitioner before Councillor Iqbal Hossain, Cabinet Member for Culture and Recreation responded to matters raised in the petition. He said an additional two major event days per annum can be considered through the Major Events Policy for Victoria Park, subject to event obtaining a Premises  

The council assesses applications on a case-by-case basis. All major events and events with a capacity over 499 that include regulated entertainment and /or sale of alcohol require a Premises License. He said the Council had a strongtrack record of responsibly managing events and activities across its parks and open spaces with major events going through an enhanced planning process.

The Council RESOLVED:

1. That the petition be referred to the Corporate Director for Communities for a written response within 28 days.

The Council’s Constitution provides for the Elected Mayor to give a report at each Ordinary Council Meeting.

A maximum of six minutes is allowed for the Elected Mayor’s report, following which the Speaker of the Council will invite the leaders of the opposition groups to respond for up to two minutes each should they so wish. Following those contributions, the Mayor may reply for up to two minutes.

Mayor Lutfur Rahman presented his report to the Council.

The Opposition Group Leader, Councillor Sirajul Islam then responded briefly to the Mayor’s report.

Mayor Rahman provided concluding remarks.

To debate a Motion submitted by the Administration in accordance with Rules 11 and 13 of the Council’s Constitution. The debate will last for a maximum of 30 minutes.

MOTION ON COUNCIL’S PTS AND CFZ SCHEME

Council considered a motion as printed in the agenda on the Permit Transfer Scheme and Car Free Zone that had been moved by Councillor Kabir Hussain and seconded by Councillor Kabir Ahmed.

Council also considered the amendment proposed by Councillor Asma Islam and seconded by Councillor Rebeka Sultana as set out in the supplementary agenda.

ADDITIONS BOLD

DELETIONS STRUCKTHROUGH

This council notes:

·       The high levels of overcrowding in the borough, with over 23,000 residents currently on the housing waiting list, and 14,000 in acute overcrowding.

·       The detrimental impact that such levels of overcrowding have on residents, affecting health; educational attainment; employment opportunities; and quality of life.

·       That some residents rely on their cars and vehicles for business and familial duties of care.

·       That despite this, Tower Hamlets has one of the lowest car ownership rates in the country, and the third lowest in London.

·       That many residents refuse the chance to move to larger properties that could relieve some of these pressures associated with overcrowding, due to these properties’ lack of a parking space.

·       That this has contributed to the growing list of residents waiting for suitably-sized homes.

•         That the Car Free Zone policy was brought in nearly twenty years ago in an effort both to mitigate the impact of new development on the environment in Tower Hamlets and ensure existing car owners were not disadvantaged by significant numbers of new residents obtaining parking permits;

•         That there were many complaints from social housing tenants who were forced to give up their resident parking permit when they moved into a larger property within a scheme covered by a Car Free Zone restriction;

•         That Some tenants moved into properties which were not advertised as being in a Car Free Zone, and some only belatedly became aware when LBTH began enforcing the restriction two or three years later;

•         Residents living within a Car Free Zone development were not even entitled to Visitors Parking Scratch-cards;

•         That on 29th November 2023 Mayor Lutfur Rahman and his administration agreed to change and amend the council’s policy on PTS criteria however this change is not applied retrospectively to those who already are affected by this policy dating back over a decade.

This council believes:

·       That the existing Permit Transfer Scheme (PTS) was unsuitable and incompatible with the needs of residents in Tower Hamlets.

·       That the criteria to qualify for the Permit Transfer Scheme was too restrictive, and dissuaded residents from moving into new properties due to their fear of losing their car parking space.

·       That a newer, bespoke approach to the scheme was required, and that this has been captured in the new PTS strategy adopted on 30^th November.

·       That the following principles will contribute to a reduction in overcrowding in Tower Hamlets:

o   Families will now qualify if they live in overcrowded properties and are moving into larger properties with two or more bedrooms, instead of three or more bedrooms. 

o   A resident  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To debate a Motion submitted by the Opposition Group in accordance with Rules 11 and 13 of the Council’s Constitution. The debate will last for a maximum of 30 minutes.

LGA Peer Review

Council considered a motion as printed in the agenda on the LGA Peer Review that had been moved by Councillor Marc Francis and seconded by Councillor Amina Ali.

Council also considered the amendment proposed by Councillor Maium Talukdar and seconded by Councillor Kabir Ahmed as set out in the supplementary agenda.

Councillor Sabina Akhtar raised a point of order under the Council’s Constitution Part B – Responsibility and Functions and decision-making procedures and   referred to paragraph 13.6 and said the Labour group strongly objected to the re-writing of their motion. The Monitoring Officer accepted significant changes had been proposed but said the changes did not completely rewrite the original motion.

ADDITIONS BOLD

DELETIONS STRUCKTHROUGH

This council notes:  

• An LGA Peer Review is designed to provide a rigorous critical-friend review. external support, rather than an independent audit or inspection of the quality and performance of local authority services.  

• The LGA Corporate Peer Review is entirely independent of the Council and examines the performance of the Council holistically examining all of the Council’s key performance metrics and their performance against them as well as addressing structure, the political interface, governance, leadership of place and organisation culture. The peer review is conducted by senior figures in the world of local government that in our case included Labour’s Steve Bullock (ex-directly elected mayor of Lewisham) and Carolyn Downs who spent many years as Chief Executive of Brent, has previously been Chief executive of the LGA, Chief Executive of the Legal Services Commssion and Deputy Permanent Secretary and Director General for Ministry of Justice. The Comment also ignores the fact that subsequent to the LGA review the Council underwent a further independent inspection and improved its performance for Investors In People confirming that the organisation had a robust and healthy approach to its staff and staff management. 

• As you would expectHowever, this did not inhibit the LGA peer group from provideding some stark wording in the useful narrative in of the report itself and offer valuable serious recommendations to address concerning issues regarding the political and executive management of the council. 

·       In fact it was a well-considered balanced report that compares well with recent LGA reports into other local authorities given the unique social and economic profile of the Borough.

·       The report concluded that the new administration: 

·       had provided a fresh impetus to the Council, 

·       Members and Officers had done well to delivery of election promises to date including free school meals and implementation of the educational maintenance allowance, 

·       had a sound financial base. 

·       had an ambitious set of priorities that were widely understood by Members, Officers and Partners, 

·       Praised the Councils Communications team, 

·       Had a highly skilled, dedicated workforce evidently committed to delivering the best outcomes for the Borough, 

Their report also: 

Councillor Maium Talukdar, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Education, Youth and Lifelong Learning, presented the annual report. He outlined the achievements of the Youth Justice Board before members added their comments.

RESOLVED:

Council AGREED:

1)    the Youth Justice Plan set out in Appendix 1 to the Youth Justice Board report attached to the cover sheet.

Councillor Saied Ahmed, Cabinet Member for Resources and Cost-of-living introduced the report. He stated the report set out the proposed Council Tax Discounts and Premiums for Empty Properties and Second Homes. He said this formed part of the Budget and Policy framework which required approval by Council. Members of the Council commented on the report.

RESOLVED:

Council AGREED to:

The Council is recommended to:

1.    Reduce the current 100% discount awarded to unoccupied and unfurnished and uninhabitable dwellings to zero (0%) for the financial year 2024/25 onwards.

2.    From 1 April 2024, amend the application of the levy of 100% premium for long-term empty properties to 1 year reducing this from the current 2 years.

3.    From 1 April 2024 levy an additional premium on long-term empty property vacant for over 5 years at the maximum permitted level of 200%. The resulting charge will be 300% of the standard Council Tax.

4.    From 1 April 2024 levy an additional premium on long-term empty property vacant for over 10 years at the maximum permitted level of 300%. The resulting charge will be 400% of the standard Council Tax.

5.    Council be given the discretion, delegated to the Head of Revenues and Benefits to reduce or waive the long-term empty premium charge in exceptional circumstances.

6.    Give 12 months’ notice that the Council will introduce a second home premium of 100% from 1 April 2025.

Councillor Maium Talukdar, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Education, Youth and Lifelong Learning introduced the report. He stated that due to a change in the political composition of the Council, with a member of the Labour Group becoming an independent (ungrouped) Member, the Council had to review the allocation of places on Committees and other bodies covered by the proportionality requirements as set out in the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.

Members of the Council commented on the report.

RESOLVED:

Council AGREED to:

1.    Consider the review of proportionality as at Section 3 of this report and the allocation of seats on Committees and Sub-Committees for the remainder of the Municipal Year 2023/24 as set out at paragraph 3.6.

2.    Note the Committees set out for the municipal year 2023/24 listed in paragraph 3.6 as agreed at the Annual Council meeting held on Wednesday 17 May 2023.

3.    Agree any changes to the memberships (and substitutes) of those Committees as tabled at this Council meeting for approval.

4.    To note that the Monitoring Officer is authorised to approve the appointment of Councillors required to fill positions that fall vacant during the municipal year in line with the proportionality arrangements set out in this report from nominations received from the political groups.

5.    Agree that the Monitoring Officer be authorised to approve the appointment of ungrouped Councillors to any committee places not allocated by the Council to a political group, after consultation with those Councillors and the Speaker of the Council where there is only one application for the position (where there is more than one application these will be presented to Council for decision).

6.    AGREED and APPROVED the appointment of Councillor Peter Golds to the General Purposes Committee and Councillor Nathalie Bienfait to the Strategic Development Committee from nominations tabled at the meeting.

The questions which have been received from Councillors to be put at this Council meeting are set out in the attached report.  A maximum period of 30 minutes is allocated to this agenda item.

The following questions and in each case supplementary questions were put (except where indicated) and were responded to by the Mayor or relevant Executive Member.

11.1 Question from Councillor Amin Rahman 

Could the Lead member provide an update on the council’s outstanding accounts requiring sign off? These accounts were left unsigned for 6 years under the previous administration. 

Response of Councillor Saied Ahmed, Cabinet Member for Resources and the Cost-of-living

The council has signed off audited accounts for financial years 2016/17, 2017/18, 2018/19 and 2019/20. The council has published draft accounts for 2020/21 and 2021/22 – these accounts are subject to audit.

Supplementary question from Councillor Amin Rahman

Can you give us an update on the Accounts for 2023?

Response of Councillor Saied Ahmed, Cabinet Member for Resources and the Cost-of-living

The 2022/23 draft accounts are expected to be published by the end of January 2024 – which will also be subject to audit.

11.2 Question from Councillor Mohammad Chowdhury

Can the Cabinet Member follow up on suggestions at the recent Health and Wellbeing Board that housing officers be part of the consultation in combatting drugs work?

Response of Councillor Gulam Kibria Choudhury, Cabinet Member for Health, Wellbeing and Social Care

As part of the Combatting Drugs Partnership strategy, Housing Officers have been engaged as part of the strategy development.  The Housing Senior Management Team considered the priority areas on the 6^th of November 2023 and the fuller draft document was circulated for them to comment. Housing officers were also present at the initial workshop on the 27^th of July 2023. The Hostels Forum was consulted on the 19th of October 2023.?A further discussion is planned for Tower Hamlets Homes officers to comment on the draft strategy.?

The strategy should be completed in February and each area will have an action plan and group that oversees the delivery of actions sitting beneath the strategy. One of the priorities identified is to provide settings that sustain recovery - housing colleagues across all service areas will be invited to help develop actions within that area, providing future opportunities to shape the direction of services and our approach as a partnership. 

11.3 Question from Councillor Ahmodul Kabir 

Residents in Wharton House in Bethnal Green East recently went without heating and hot water for weeks, and in some cases over a month. In an emergency such as this can the Lead Member tell us what the council doing to a) ensure that the registered provider, in this case One Housing is supporting residents and b) deploy its own resources to assist those most vulnerable. 

Response of Councillor Kabir Ahmed, Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Inclusive Development and Housebuilding

The outage at Wharton House was caused by a defective boiler that unfortunately took several weeks to repair. One Housing Riverside was in regular contact with residents to provide updates on the progress of the work as well supporting them with a Resident Liaison Officer who was on hand to provide information and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

Motions 12.1 and 12.2 were not considered due to lack of time.