Agenda item
ELECTION OF SPEAKER
To elect a Councillor to serve as Speaker of the Council for the municipal year 2016/17 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 time 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 s/he may have).
Minutes:
Before commencing his address, the Speaker welcomed to the Council meeting, Unmesh Desai, the newly elected Greater London Authority Member for the City and East London Constituency as well as the Boroughs two Members of Parliament,Rushanara Ali and Jim Fitzpatrick and his wife. He also congratulated the newly elected Mayor of London Sadiq Khan on his election.
The Speaker then reported that he had been overwhelmed by level of support he had received over the last two years. He wished to thank the Mayor, Councillors and Council staff for their support. In particularly, he praised the local community for their generous support and willingness to get involved in community life – as demonstrated at the recent Civic Awards ceremony celebrating the achievements of those who had given outstanding contributions to the community.
He thanked the many volunteers and organisations who had helped him raise so much money for his charities, MIND and the Surjamuki Project, and for enabling him to hold two additional events this year, (in additional to his annual events). These were the Consort’s Charity event celebrating International Women’s Day and a Charity Dinner. In particular, he paid tribute to the fundraising Sub-Committees who had helped arrange these events. He also thanked the Canary Wharf Group and London Tea Exchange and the Boroughs two MPs for their contributions to his fund raising efforts.
As a result of this support, he had exceeded his fund raising target for his chosen charities of £50,000, raising £51,000.
Turning to other events, he reported that he had the honour of welcoming many guests to the Town Hall from all over the world as well as school children to learn about democracy. He thanked Mayor John Biggs for supporting this and providing facilities to enable this. He also paid tribute to Councillor Peter Golds for his tireless work for the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal and for supporting the Tour of the Borough that promoted the Borough to visiting Civic Mayors. He had enjoyed being the Speaker of Council very much.
Finally, he thanked his wife and daughter who had accompanied him as his consorts at events for their support. He also thanked his PA Patricia Attawia in Members Support for her hard work and dedication and his drivers for their invaluable help.
The respective political leaders in turn each responded to the Speakers address recording their thanks for his dedicated service, reflected by his election to the position of Speaker for two consecutive years. They welcomed his honesty, fairness, fund raising achievements and the dignified manner in which he had carried out his duties and had represented the Borough.
The Speaker then called for nominations to serve as Speaker of the Tower Hamlets Council for the coming year.
It was moved by Mayor John Biggs, seconded by Councillor Sirajul Islam, and:
RESOLVED
1. That Councillor Khales Uddin Ahmed be elected to serve as Speaker of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Council until the Annual Council Meeting in May 2017.
Mayor John Biggs and Councillor Sirajul Islam then came forward to witness the Speaker of the Council signing the statutory declaration of acceptance of office.
The Speaker of the Council, Khales Uddin Ahmed in the Chair
The incoming speaker, Councillor Khales Uddin Ahmed thanked all those who had elected him to this important role. He stated that he would endeavour to perform his duties as Speaker as best as he could. In particularly, he would work hard to encourage and acknowledge achievements across the community and to promote the Council, its aims and values. His wife and daughters would be his consorts for the year.
He stated that he had lived in the Borough and had served as a local Councillor for many years, working hard to serve and represent everyone in this diverse community. The Borough had a proud history and tradition and this had very much influenced his decision to select as his main charity, the Friends of Mile End Cemetery Park which was an important public park and nature reserve. He would also be working to raise funds for APASEN which supported the needs of people with disabilities; SOUL, the Social Organisation for Unity and Leisure, a resource for young people in the Borough, and the BBPI Foundation, that provided support to British Bangladeshi young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.
He hoped that the Council would join him in supporting these causes and in fulfilling his duties as a speaker.