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 individual support for those that needed it. Portable heaters were also provided by One Housing for those residents that required them. We are also aware One Housing Riverside was communicating with the Mayor’s Office to keep them aware of changes in the scheduled completion date, and reassurance that compensation would be provided to residents once the repairs had been completed.

 

Supplementary question from Councillor Ahmodul Kabir

 

What can the council do to protect the residents and hold registered providers accountable? 

 

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

 

The effect of a service failure could mean residents are affected in a multitude of different ways. Where that happens, it is incumbent on RPs to support, and where necessary, compensate residents using their own resources. If for any reason that does not happen, we will liaise the RP concerned to help residents get the support they need. If an RP refuses to comply, we will encourage residents to raise a complaint with the RP concerned using their formal Complaints Procedure. Once this process has been exhausted residents can then refer the RP to the Housing Ombudsman Service for further investigation and enforcement action if necessary.

 

Officers are working with the Tower Hamlets Housing Forum that consists of the main RPs in the borough, (including One Housing Riverside), to have a protocol in place for communicating service failures. Where a failure is reported that is likely to have an adverse effect on residents within their housing stock RPs have agreed to notify residents as well as the Council and the Lead Member as soon as possible. The notification should include details of the nature of the problem, what they doing to resolve it, how they are supporting affected residents and when they expect the problem to be rectified.

 

 

11.4 Question from Councillor Marc Francis

 

Can the Mayor and Lead Member provide details of the number of applications that were in the queue awaiting an Occupational Therapist (OT) assessment in each month since April 2022?  It would also be helpful to know how many assessments were carried out (a) within and (b) outside the two-month target time, broken down by (i) Homelessness and (ii) Lettings in each of 2022/23 and so far in 2023/24?

 

 

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

 

Unfortunately, the team does not hold the historical data requested regarding how many housing need assessments (along with our other non-housing need assessment tasks) are received per month, when they are allocated or when advice reports are completed, however we can provide data relating to the numbers of people still on the waiting list covering the period requested:

 

Homeless waiting list – 13 total

 

Aug 23 – 4

 

Oct 23 – 2

 

Nov 23 – 6 

 

Dec 23 – 1

 

 

Lettings cases waiting list – 170 total

 

June 23 – 20

 

July 23 – 16

 

Aug 23 – 32

 

Sep 23 – 38

 

Oct 23 – 17

 

Nov 23 – 30

 

Dec 23 – 11

 

Jan 24 – 6

 

 Supplementary question from Councillor Marc Francis

 

Thank you for the figures. A considerable amount of people are still waiting for an OT assessment and have been told it will be several more months before they are assessed. What is being done to resolve this?

 

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

 

This is one of many services where we have listened to staff as well as residents. We are aware the service needs enhanced investment and as such we’ll be taking this up with the Corporate and Divisional Director for Housing, to reduce the wait times for these vulnerable people.

 

 

11.5 Question from Councillor Shafi Ahmed 

 

I thank the current administration for introducing a borough-wide Public Spaces Protection Order to curb drug related Anti-Social behaviour, particularly the use of NOX (laughing gas) on our streets. Can the Lead Member set out the impact this has had in addressing the problem to date? 

 

Response of Councillor Abu Talha Chowdhury, Cabinet Member for Cabinet Member for Safer Communities

 

In May 2021, following growing public concerns about the use of Nitrous Oxide and associated antisocial , the Council introduced a Public Space Protection Order. One of only two in London.  This allowed Council Officers to issue Fixed Penalty Notices to people using or in possessing psychoactive substances, including nitrous oxide, where they were causing or likely to cause harassment, alarm, distress, nuisance, or annoyance to members of the public.  Between May 2021 and November 2023, 220 Fixed Penalty Notices were issued to address this issue. 

 

In November 2023, the Government changed the Misuse of Drugs Act, to include Nitrous Oxide as a Class C drug.  This makes Nitrous Oxide illegal to possess and takes it outside of the scope of the current PSPO.  We will continue to support police enforcement of this drug through THEOs and CCTV. 

 

Supplementary question from Councillor Shafi Ahmed

Are there any awareness programmes for residents as well as users?

Response of Councillor Abu Talha Chowdhury, Cabinet Member for Cabinet Member for Safer Communities

 

In addition to our enforcement work, and in partnership Queen Mary’s University, Barts Health NHS Trust, the Police, and Osmani Trust, we have developed our groundbreaking “Know the Risks” project.  The project has three main aims.  

  

(1) Prevention through borough-wide educational workshops to raise awareness of the dangers of NOX abuse in diverse settings including schools, colleges, places of worship, and community hubs. These workshops are the first of their kind in the UK. These prevention workshops have already reached 2000 individuals, with plans to further embed them in schools.  

 

We are working with the police to establish crucial referral pathways to connect individuals with our prevention and diversion program. This is to steer young individuals away from the path of . All our enforcement officers have undergone training to deliver harm and interventions on the street. The Met Police are seeking to replicate our successful model in other London boroughs.  

 

(2) The second objective is to improve the NOX-treatment pathway in East London hospitals. This is to address the rising health burden associated with NOX-related harm. At the Royal London Hospital, this care pathway supported around 200 patients in the last year.  

 

(3) The 3^rdobjective on advancing research led by Professor Alastair Noyce (our partner) into the significant health effects of NOX.  

 

Our response to the dangers posed by Nitrous Oxide are holistic and collaborative, addressing challenges in our borough. Through education, diversion, and proactive healthcare measures, we strive to create a safer and more informed community. 

 

 

11.6 Question from Councillor Mufeedah Bustin

 

Following the allocation of NCIL to fund the Mayor’s Community Grants programme, when will councillors receive copies of:

1) the legal advice provided to the Mayor validating the use of NCIL in this way

2) the breakdown of NCIL allocation to grants at a project and location level

 

 

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

 

No external legal advice was obtained regarding the use of NCIL ( Community Infrastructure Levy) for the Grants process. Internal legal input and approval can be seen in the Cabinet Report from June 2023 that adopted the new NCIL approach. The external legal advice referred to at the Overview and Scrutiny meeting on the Mayor’s Community Grants was in relation to the grants process itself, not the funding source. In to a previousenquiry regarding that legal advice, the response confirmed that the advice is subject to legal professional privilege and is therefore considered to be exempt from disclosure at the present time. 

 

Supplementary question from Councillor Mufeedah Bustin

 

Why is the legal advice exempt from disclosure?

 

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

 

We don’t know the details of the member enquiry but a briefing note on the breakdown of the NCIL allocation to grants in each NCIL area is being drafted to go to Overview and Scrutiny Committee later this year.

 

Questions 11.8 to 11.27 were not put due to lack of time. The written responses are attached to at Appendix A.