The Speaker of the Council, Mohammed Ahbab Hossain in the Chair

With great sadness the Speaker regretted to report that Abdul Gaffar Choudhury, has sadly passed away. He was a Freeman of the Borough in Tower Hamlets and a celebrated writer, political analyst and poet. The Council’s thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.

The Council observed a minute silence to remember Gaffar Choudhury

To elect a Councillor to serve as Speaker of the Council for the municipal year 2022/23 or until a successor is appointed, whichever is the sooner.

(Note: Section 4 and Schedule 2 of the Local Government Act 1972 provide that the election of the chairman (which post the Council has resolved to title ‘Speaker’ in Tower Hamlets) shall be the first item of business transacted at the Annual Meeting of the Council and that in the case of an equality of votes, the person presiding at the meeting shall give a casting vote in addition to any vote they may have).

The Speaker of the Council, Mohammed Ahbab Hossain addressed the meeting about his time in office. 

He thanked the Council, including the former Mayor, John Biggs and Councillors, for giving him this unique opportunity to serve as the First Citizen of the Borough, since September 2020

He noted that, whilst his term began during the height of the pandemic, he had made every effort to carry out his duties in the best way he could, mostly by attending virtual events. During this period, he was particularly proud to have participated in a range of events, aimed at supporting the community at this very difficult time. These included:

·       An inter faith event to bring comfort to residents.

·       A programme of celebration events to commemorate the 50^th Anniversary of Bangladesh, which started on – line.

·       Council led events to commemorate all those who had lost their lives during the pandemic and to thank those who had worked tirelessly to support the sick and vulnerable in their communities.

Following the easing of restrictions, he had made a real point of engaging with the community in person to celebrate their achievements. He had tried his best to reach out to as many organisations as he could.

He also stated that he was very proud to have hosted only the second Freedom of the Borough ceremony in the last 20 years, and the first at the Tower of London.  The contributions of the five recipients were truly outstanding.

He had also held a very successful Charity Ball in December in Canary Wharf. He thanked all of the people and organisations who supported these events especially the sponsors for each. The final fundraising figure has yet to be confirmed. The money will be donated to the Speaker’s chosen charities: Capital Kids Cricket, Patchwork Foundation and Soytten Sen School of Performing Arts. 

He also confirmed that the Council had been finally able to hold the Civic Awards again, to thank those who had worked tirelessly for the community.

Other key highlights of his term included: his visit to Bangladesh, where he had the honour of meeting local dignitaries and attending a range of events.

He had also been very proud to Chair meetings of Full Council.

He concluded by thanking his consort and all the Council Officers that had supported him.He also wished the new Speaker the very best for the year ahead.

Following the Speaker’s address, the following Councillors addressed the meeting:

·       Councillor Kabir Ahmed

·       Councillor Sabina Akhtar

·       Councillor Peter Golds

·       Councillor Maium Talukdar

·       Councillor Ohid Ahmed

·       Councillor Sirajul Islam

·       Councillor Ayas Miah

The Councillors acknowledged that the Speaker had taken on the role at a difficult time. However, he had shown great leadership and had been an excellent role model for the community. He had also been approachable to all.

They also welcomed that he had worked so tirelessly to reach out to all sections of the community. He had shown great support to many community organisations and good causes particularly during the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 1.

To elect a Councillor to serve as Deputy Speaker of the Council for the municipal year 2022/23 or until a successor is appointed, whichever is the sooner.

The Speaker sought nominations to serve as Deputy Speaker of the Council for the forthcoming municipal year.

The following nominations were proposed:

It was moved by Councillor Maium Talukdar and seconded by Councillor Kabir Ahmed that Councillor Harun Miah be elected to serve as the Deputy Speaker of the Council for 2022/23.

It was moved by Councillor Amina Ali and seconded by Councillor Sabina Akhtar that Councillor Rebaka Sultana be elected to serve as Speaker of the Council of the Council for 2022/23.

The nomination to elect Councillor Harun Miah to serve as Speaker of the Council as the first nomination received was put to the vote and was agreed on a majority vote

RESOLVED

1.             That Councillor Harun Miah be elected to serve as Deputy Speaker of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Council until the Annual Council meeting in May 2023.

Apologies for absence were received on behalf of:

·                Councillor Faroque Ahmed

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.

There were no declarations of Disclosable Pecuniary Interests

To confirm as a correct record of the proceedings the unrestricted minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of the Council held on 16^th March 2022.

RESOLVED:

1.        That the unrestricted minutes of the ordinary Council Meeting held on 16th  March 2022 be confirmed as a correct record and the Speaker be authorised to sign them accordingly

The Chief Executive addressed the meeting.

He congratulated the Speaker on his appointment and the Mayor and Councillors on their election victories. The Council looked forward to working with them. He also advised of his plans to provide a report to the General Purposes Committee regarding the conduct of the election. His initial view was that the arrangements had worked well. He thanked everyone who had worked on the election, particularly the Elections Services Team.

Regarding staffing matters, Vicky Clark, (Director of Integrated Growth & Development) would be leaving the Council in June 2022. In addition, Judith St. John, (Director of Commissioning and Culture) was also due to leave in July 2022, after over 35 years of service. They were both thanked for their hard work and dedication, while with the Council  

Turning to awards, the Council had been nominated for a number of awards. These were: from the Municipal Journal, the Local Authority of the year award and four Local Government Chronical awards. These were in the following categories: Public Health, large team of the year (for growth and economic development), digital impact and the most improved Council. The winners would be announced in June and July 2022.

The Council considered the report of the Director of Legal and Monitoring Officer, (circulated in a supplementary agenda) setting out the Mayor’s Cabinet appointments and other arrangements in respect of Executive Decision Making.

The recommendation was agreed.

RESOLVED

1.             That the Mayor’s Executive Scheme of Delegation be noted

The Council considered the report of the Director of Legal and Monitoring Officer, proposing the establishment of the Council’s committees for 2022/23 and setting out the review of proportionality and the allocation of places on those Committees. 

The recommendations were agreed.

RESOLVED:

1.       That the review of proportionality as at section 3 of the report and the allocation of seats on Committees and Sub – Committees for the Municipal Year 2022/23 as set out at paragraph 3.12 be agreed;

2.       That the Committees set out for the municipal year 2022/23 be established and places be allocated on those Committees, as set out at paragraph 3.12 of the report.

3.       Note the update on general group arrangements.

The Council considered the report of the Director of Legal and Monitoring Officer, regarding the appointment of members to the Council’s Committees, and Chairs where appropriate, (including those established under item 8 above). The list of nominations were circulated in a supplementary agenda.

Following the receipt of competing nominations for Chairs of several Committees and for Committee places, the nominations were put to a vote. This was in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 16.8.

The following Councillors were elected to these positions:

The recommendations subject to the above appointments, were agreed.

RESOLVED

1.       The members and substitute members to the committees and sub -committees of the Council and other bodies for the municipal year 2022/23 be appointed as set out in the list of tabled nominations, published in the supplementary agenda.

2.       That the Chairs of Committees for 2022/23 be appointed from amongst the list of tabled nominations subject to the following:

3.       That in relation to any unfilled places within the seats allocated to a particular political group, the Council note that the Director of Legal, as Monitoring Officer has delegated authority subsequently to agree the appointments to those places in accordance with nominations from the relevant political group.

The Council considered the report setting out a revised calendar of meetings for the Council, Committees and other meetings for the municipal year 2022/23.

Members were also asked to note the following changes:

·                13^th July Council meeting moved to Wednesday 27 July 2022.

·               25^th July Overview and Scrutiny Committee moved to Thursday 28 July 2022.

·                27^th July Cabinet moved to Monday 1 August 2022.

The recommendations were agreed.

RESOLVED

1.       That the proposed amended calendar of meetings for the municipal year 2022/23 be approved as set out in Appendix A of the report, subject to the following changes to dates:

·                13^th July Council meeting moved to Wednesday 27 July 2022.

·               25^th July Overview and Scrutiny Committee moved to Thursday 28 July 2022.

·                27^th July Cabinet moved to Monday 1 August 2022.

2.       That the Monitoring Officer be delegated the authority to agree meeting dates for any new Committees or Panels that are set up subsequent to this report being presented to Council, subject to appropriate consultation with Members.

3.       To note that the Constitution provides for the Monitoring Officer to agree to cancel, amend a meeting or arrange new meetings where required, subject to the requirements of the Council Procedure Rules.

The Council considered the report of the Director of Legal and Monitoring Officer, regarding the appointment of political advisors.

The recommendations were agreed.

RESOLVED

1.       Agree to re-establish for the duration of the current administration, posts of political assistants (known as Political Advisors) to those political groups that qualify for such a post in accordance with section 9 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.

2.       To appoint 1 FTE to the Aspire Group and 1 FTE to the Labour Group.

3.       Agree that the relevant staffing budget be adjusted as necessary to cover the costs associated with the above posts

The Council considered the report of the General Purposes Committee, setting out the Council’s Constitution including the new Member Code of Conduct.

The recommendations were agreed.

RESOLVED

1.             Note the work of the General Purposes Committee throughout the year to support the Constitution.

2.             Agree to confirm the re-adoption of the Council’s Constitution as set out at Appendices 1-4 to the report.

To consider the report of the General Purposes Committee on the Pay Policy Statement 2022/23.

The Council considered the report of the General Purposes Committee setting out the play policy statement for 2022/23.

The recommendations were agreed.

RESOLVED

1.                    To adopt the 2022/23 pay policy statement.

2.                    To delegate to the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Director of Workforce, OD and Business Support, Chair of the GP Committee and Monitoring Officer, any minor changes to the 2022/23 pay policy statement.

The Council considered the report  of the Director of Legal and Monitoring Officer, setting out when Special Urgency provisions have been applied to Executive Key Decisions.

The recommendation was agreed.

RESOLVED:

1.             That the report on the use of special urgency provisions in relation to Executive Key Decisions  be noted