Minister issues warning to Tower Hamlets council

Minister Jim McMahon has said he still might make decisions at Tower Hamlets council

A government minister has said he could send in his own appointees to take over decision-making at an east London council.

Local government minister Jim McMahon said he welcomed “early progress” at Tower Hamlets Council after he sent in a group of overseers in to drive improvements.

But he said if more improvements aren’t made, he could still choose to “escalate intervention” and send in commissioners with the power to make decisions on behalf of the council.

A council spokesperson said it welcomed the minister’s comments about “the progress we have made to date” but admitted there was “more to do”.

‘Inner circle’

An inspection report last year found that a lack of trust and a lack of respect between political parties meant the executive at Tower Hamlets remained unchallenged.

It concluded the council’s decision-making was “dominated by an inner circle” around the mayor, Lutfur Rahman, who leads the Aspire party.

Rahman was banned from public office in 2015 when it was found he had won the previous year’s election in the borough with the help of “corrupt and illegal practices”.

Rahman was re-elected mayor in 2022 after the ban expired.

The government envoys, who have been working with the council since January, have praised some staff – but said “poor behaviour” by councillors is distracting from making improvements, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

They said councillors’ behaviour in public meetings “goes beyond the usual political theatre” and that while all sides “say they are trying to change their ways, this is not yet evidenced in a range of public meetings”.

Tower Hamlets councillors were criticised in the report

In their first report, written in May and published by the government last week, they said Rahman has a “clear political mandate”.

However, they said political changes, including some councillors switching parties, have “undoubtedly increased political tensions” in the council.

The envoys did, however, praise council staff as “passionate about their work and proud to work for the borough”.

They also said that there were “no significant financial concerns” at the council.

McMahon said he welcomed this early progress but remained concerned “wholesale political and staff buy-in and involvement in the council’s improvement journey” is not yet in place.

A council spokesperson said they would “keep working together to remove obstacles and make the most of the government’s support”.