A minutes silence for David Amess MP

Picture from start of Newham London Full Council meeting in Old Town Hall Stratford. Next we had a minutes silence in memory of murdered MP, David Amess. Then Cllr Griffiths, who knew David gave an emotional tribute followed by fellow St Bons "old boy" Cllr Terry Paul.

"This monstrous glowing orb makes a mockery of east London’s Olympic legacy" Lyn Brown MP

 

When London bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games, we were driven not just by sporting desire, but by a vision for a regenerated east London after decades of deindustrialisation and deprivation. We were promised not just new infrastructure and economic growth, but the opportunity to genuinely improve the lives of local residents, including those who suffered dislocation and disruption to create the new Olympic venues. Most local people passionately supported the bid and the Games on this premise. Yet, while the Games did bring significant investment into Newham, there have been clear failures to benefit local people in the years since the closing ceremonies.

Delivering a lasting, positive legacy for the Olympic site was a job entrusted to the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), established by Boris Johnson, then mayor of London, with the promise that local people really would benefit from the impact of the Games. For the most part, the opportunities created have remained out of reach for most local people. Rents and living costs have risen rapidly in the area but these have not been matched by sufficient wage increases or enough accessible new jobs, let alone enough affordable and social housing.

As the local MP, I have always made the case that new developments must meet local needs. Almost a decade on from 2012, I don’t think the LLDC has lived up to that promise. And, while the corporation has failed to deliver the positive changes that local residents need, I believe it is also removing the ability of local residents and their elected councils to have an effective say about what gets built in their communities.

A case in point is the MSG Sphere in Stratford. The LLDC’s planning committee meets soon to decide the fate of the planning application for this giant orb-shaped music venue from the Madison Square Garden company. The site was originally public land that was sold to developers with the idea of creating new workspaces and homes, a fitting vision for the positive legacy of the Games. Instead, what we now face is a massive live entertainment venue, almost as tall as Big Ben, covered with nearly a million garish LEDs, programmed to display videos and adverts. The company behind the concept owns Madison Square Garden in New York, and clearly has little connection to Newham’s communities.

I have had serious concerns for some time about the value of this proposed development, the degree of community consent it has involved and the harm it may do to people in Stratford and neighbouring areas. Newham doesn’t want this venue, yet it’s the LLDC, not Newham council, that gets to recommend to Sadiq Khan whether it is built. I don’t believe that’s fair or right.

Many local residents have clear and serious objections to the light and noise pollution this development would cause, as well as the potential for increased antisocial behaviour and traffic. The giant venue will beam bright lights into the surrounding area until 11pm on some days; beginning again at 6am or 7am, depending on the time of year. One constituent has predicted that it will be like living next to the surface of the sun. Many residents feel that living next to the site will be a nightmare.

The planning application has proposed that the MSG Sphere would host 300 events a year, a number far higher than the venues that already exist nearby, such as the London Stadium. It will undoubtedly be noisy and disruptive. Yet there is no qualified professional assessment of the effects that noise, light, moving images and distracting advertising will have on the environment and local people, including vulnerable groups and children.

Does London really need a gigantic glowing orb the height of Big Ben?

Read more

Crowd management issues could be equally serious. The planning application includes a vague operational manual for how the venue might function, rather than a transparent, detailed and binding plan for impacts on the local area and transport system. And there’s currently no commitment to cooperate with other big venues, such as the London Stadium and the O2, to avoid overwhelming the Jubilee tube line and other local transport.

MSG’s planning application was submitted more than two years ago, in March 2019. The public consultation that has taken place since then has certainly been lengthy, but for many people, that doesn’t make it adequate. There has been a drip-feed of extremely complex, technical submissions with more than 2,000 separate documents and representations available online. The enormous scale of the submission has created huge barriers for residents, many of whom have had difficulty accessing the relevant information, properly understanding the implications or making an informed, democratic decision.

Newham’s residents have little power over the final outcome; Newham council only gets two representatives on the LLDC’s planning committee out of a total of 12 members, including seven unelected committee members. I’m calling on the LLDC to refuse the application and protect Newham’s residents from yet another inappropriate development. I would hope they would listen to and act on what elected representatives say. Securing some of the promised benefits of the Olympic legacy depends upon it.

• Lyn Brown is the Labour member of parliament for West Ham  (hat tip Guardian & Cllr Terry Paul).

The legacy of subjugation corrupts American society – and shows us why we need to put out own house in order too

My Newham Council Cabinet colleagues telling it as it is.

"As night turns to day, another black man is killed by the police in the United States of America – and his death is ‘televised’.

The response from the Minneapolis Democratic Mayor, Jacob Frey, to denounce the killing and sack the four policemen involved in the brutal death of George Floyd, was swift. But this has not been enough to quell anger. We know this is yet another example of police brutality which has led again to the loss of a black man’s life. 

The circumstances leading to the brutal murder of an unarmed man at the hands of the police are not new and perpetuate the dangerous trend in policing of black communities across America. The question before us is whether George Floyd’s death disrupts this trend and becomes, as Keir Starmer said on May 30th, a catalyst for meaningful change in the lives of African Americans – or whether his death merely perpetuates and reinforces ‘the cycle’:   

Step 1. Black individual stopped by the police;  

Step 2. Police brutality and then death;  

Step 3. Outrage/ protest/ twitter storm/ virtue signalling;  

Step 4. Silence and the media circus move on; and,  

Step 5. Go to ‘Step 1’ and repeat.  

If we are ever to break this cycle and change the structural inequalities that continue to define and disfigure life in the USA, we believe that a peaceful, national civic revolution is required. A commitment to social mobilisation and an effort, unparalleled in peacetime, is needed to reboot the USA so that its ethnic minorities can fully access and participate in American society. Life chances should never be defined by skin colour.   

When the Founding Fathers declared the unalienable rights of ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’, people of colour were not at the forefront of their thoughts – quite the opposite. The USA was founded on the subjugation of Native Americans and enslaved Africans. It is this legacy of subjugation that corrupts contemporary American society. The acceptance that black lives matter has to become central to the American way of life if it is to have any moral purpose going forwards.

There are criticisms made of the Thirteenth Amendment in the American Constitution, which abolished slavery and involuntary servitude except as criminal punishment. There is anger in the USA today that this was only a partial abolition and another injustice— one that concretely exists today. People still forced into grinding and unremunerated work, but as prisoners. In a number of states, the prison population is disproportionately made up of people of colour.

Incarceration rates for ethnic minorities are significantly higher than for non-ethnic minorities, African Americans are imprisoned at 5 times the rate of white Americans, and although African Americans and Hispanic Americans (those of Spanish speaking ancestry) make up 32% of the U.S. population, they make up 56% of the American prison population. 

Black men in America are also 2.5 times more likely to be killed by the police than their white counterparts. Black women are also 1.4 times more likely to killed by the police than white women. So common is death at the hands of the police it has been recognised as a leading cause of death for black men. These are systemic problems which must not only be challenged but fundamentally changed.

When it comes to the experiences of black communities, those in the US share similarities with those in UK. Yet there are particular differences in the legacy of slavery and the lived experience.

Modern British society was founded on the back of the wealth accumulated by the creation and expansion of the British Empire.

Have you ever wondered why black colleagues and friends have ‘English/Scottish/Welsh/French surnames? From where do you think some of our ancient UK businesses and cultural institutions acquired their wealth? Have you stopped to ponder the issues influencing the environment, and determining the life chances, of the young black man standing on the street corner?

Have you considered the motives of both government and parliament in removing the rights and citizenship of black British citizens? 

The challenge for the British Labour movement, in the wake of the current wave of protests, is to define and develop the changes we think are necessary if we are to bring any kind of meaning to George Floyd’s death— not to mention all the others who suffered before him.   

We need to harness the pain and the anger of the moment, honing our transformational zeal, and reaffirming that the Labour party is the home for the aspirations and desires of black communities across the UK, especially among the working class.  

Change begins with the individual, not the institution, so the first question is about what we’re doing individually within the confines of the Labour movement: how can members create lasting change rather than simply speaking about the need for it?   

The protests taking place in London and across the UK demonstrate solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the USA and bring attention to our own faults at home. However, solidarity – especially the social media variety – tends to evaporate over time. A society built, instead, on the foundations of equality, fairness, and meritocracy is everlasting.  

We need to hold a mirror up to ourselves and be honest about where we have come from and what we want to see in the future. The UK is not immune from the worst aspects of institutional prejudice. There is a list of inquiries and reviews which proves this point: the Lammy Review, the Angiolini Review into deaths in police custody and, most damning of all, the Macpherson Report into the murder of Stephen Lawrence. 

Within our movement, there is still debate on how to increase the prevalence of black MPs and Councillors, especially black males, who find themselves in the minority. Where are the numbers of black senior staffers in Parliament and Labour HQ? Do we not have enough quality black graduates with an active interest in politics? We must put our own house in order first.

Our movement must seek, from this point onwards, to develop radical, anti-racist policies to deal with our own structural impediments. If black people aren’t in the room, then no one speaks for us on the policies affecting our community. If we think it is wrong for policies to be predominantly forged by white men, then we need to empower and promote women and black people in numbers that give them influence at senior levels. Perhaps, if black people were in positions of power, we would have a school system that delivers; a prison system that doesn’t warehouse its talent; and a country that protects its BAME population so they aren’t disproportionally represented in Covid-19 mortality statistics.  

As a roadmap for genuine change, we’ve set out some immediate challenges for Labour:

In The Party: Let us be the change we seek to promote. We should review and transform BAME-related political structures and increase Black representation at all levels of the Party. 

On Education: The impact of Covid-19 provides an opportunity to look again at our current educational structure. We should seize the opportunity to transform our primary, secondary and tertiary education systems, especially for black boys in our inner cities. How can we justify a policy for a national education service when sections of our community fail to benefit from the most basic of human rights? 

On Health: BAME communities are experiencing a disproportionate Covid-19 impact, whilst the Government downplays the situation by omitting the recommendations of its own BAME Disparities report. We need a credible Public health and NHS strategy, and implementation plan. Not mere slogans and protests, but genuine action to protect the BAME community.  

On Social mobility:  We don’t talk enough about social mobility and class. We should revamp our current policies, to truly promote social mobility, by appealing to the aspirations of the black community and enabling its talent to flourish. 

On Community Policing: As senior black Councillors in one of the UK most diverse boroughs, we know there is distrust between the police and sections of the black community. We can— and must— develop a plan that drastically improves perceived and actual community relations with the police. 

On Policy development: We must involve BAME communities in the development of policy outside of traditional areas such as health, education, housing and crime. We must be inclusive in our discussions on the most relevant issues of our time, such as climate change, Brexit, infrastructure, AI and the fourth industrial revolution.

Shirley Chisholm— the first black woman elected to the US Congress, and the first black candidate to run for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination— said in 1972: “If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair.”  

Now is the time for both: we must bring the folding chair and push for ample room at the table.

Terry Paul and James Beckles are Councillors and Cabinet Members in the London Borough of Newham and write in a personal capacity. They tweet @terrympaul and @james_beckles, respectively."

Local Government Conference 2019

Yesterday I went to Day One of this year's Local Government Conference in Bournemouth representing Newham. This is the annual conference for all councils in the UK and all political parties.

I arrived to hear the the debate on climate emergency & UN sustainable development goals moved by Bristol Mayor, Marvin Rees. To my surprise (not the only one that day) there was no speakers against and it was passed unanimously. 

During speeches by the outgoing and new Conservative Party Chair's of the LGA, I was astonished (and pleased) by the "one nation" Toryism I heard. I felt that I could be (almost) in a meeting of "Defend Council Housing" as both Lord (Gary) Porter and the new chair, Cllr Jamie Jamieson between them praised Council Housing as cheaper and better quality; called for reversal of austerity cuts and pointed out that local authority schools do better than academies.

Secretary of State, James Brokenshire, started his speech by saying because of the leadership election and Brexit he cannot announce anything and then spent the next 10 minutes proving it.

The keynote speaker was Governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, who successfully charmed the conference. I was able to ask him a question that if there's an economic trade shock from Trump or Brexit, will there be a role for councils to build homes as a fiscal stimulus? He replied basically Yes, you get more multiplier effect, "more bang for your buck", from investment in infrastructure /housing but he doubted that councils had capacity to build to scale needed.

I went to the UNISON conference stall and supported their #localservicechampions campaign and next door and met chair of LAPFF (Local Authority Pension Fund Forum) Cllr Doug Murdo.

The workshop on preventing homelessness & rough sleeping chaired by Cllr Nick Forbes (Newcastle) was fascinating. How come Newcastle only has an average of 6 rough sleepers per night?

In the evening I went to a fringe organised by the LGiU and Camra on the importance of supporting local pubs (no particular reason of course) then in the evening I met up for a late night chat with my Newham Comrades Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz and Cabinet Finance member Terry Paul who travelled down after our Cabinet meeting.

Back to London in morning for UNISON NEC meeting.

ReviveFM 94.0 - Poverty in Newham (and what the Council is doing about it)

Yesterday, in between campaigning for the European elections, Newham Council Cabinet lead for Finance, Cllr Terry Paul and myself were interviewed live on Community Radio, ReviveFM 94, which is based in Forest Gate, Newham.

Our interviewer was our Council Cabinet Colleague, Cllr Shaban Mohammed, who was assisted by local researcher, Armond Dean.

We discussed poverty in Newham and what the Council is doing to tackle it. We have the lowest average income in London, 28 000 families on our Council House waiting list and over 5000 families who are homeless. We have 50% more children living in temporary accommodation in our borough than in the entire north of England!

Since May last year a new Labour administration led by directly elected Executive Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz, has introduced anti poverty measures such as paying all our workers a London Living wage (with pay rises of up to £100 per week/£5000 per year); reducing Council tax for the poorest by 50%; building 1000 Council Homes at Council rents; ensuring that 50% of new developers homes charge a social rent; spending £120 million on improvements to our Council Housing stock: stop the privatisation of our Council services; introduce Community Wealth Building and tackle violence against our young people.

We did point out that while we can (and have and will do more) do many progressive things as a local authority to counter poverty in our borough, we need a change of our national Government and the election of one prepared to truly eliminate it.

Many thanks to Cllr Mohammed for organising and leading the discussion. Next Thursday he will have Newham Council Cabinet lead for Sustainable Transport and Parking, Cllr Zulfiqar Ali.

Newham Council Extraordinary Meeting on Repairs & Maintenance Service (RMS)

This is my speech to the crowded meeting on Tuesday where I moved a report with recommendations on why we had a £9 million overspend on RMS, what we did about it and what we are doing to make sure this never happens again.

"Thank you all for attending this extraordinary meeting.

The Chair has kindly agreed to hold this meeting in the spirit of openness and transparency to give councillors the opportunity to discuss the Council’s investigation into the allegations about the Council’s Repairs and Maintenance Service and also the completely unacceptable financial losses we have suffered.

There have been a number of inaccurate reports into this issue and the Internal Control Commission that the Mayor has announced will be investigating how this happened.

BUT even more importantly it will be looking at whole Council systems so that we can ensure this never, ever happens again. This is not isolated incident. We have suffered similar losses in the East Ham campus overspend (& being ultra vires), London Pleasure Gardens losses,  the Children services overspend and of course, the Olympic stadium debacle.

We want to create an effective system of internal controls, establish clear checks and balances and make Newham Council a beacon of best practice.

I will give a short outline of what has occurred. Then my cabinet Colleague, Cllr Ali, who is currently the lead member for Highways will give a more detailed information about what happened,

The RMS service was established in 2011. It is wholly owned by the Council and subject to Council financial procedures.

It has 4 key functions:

1. Repairs & Maintenance (R&M) for our Newham Housing stock

2. R&M Highways (minor)

3. Gas safety servicing

4. New build housing (minor)

In 2016, the Cabinet approved the "Keep Newham Moving Programme", a £100M investment over 10 years in highways. It agreed that RMS would undertake this work.

RMS had been identified as being subject to the Newham Council Small Business Programme which meant it was due to be externalised and therefore was told that they had to stop being Council bureaucrats, take risks, be entrepreneur and win new business.

At the time it was recognised that giving them these contracts was potentially risky since RMS had not undertaken such major highway works beforehand and certain measures were supposed to be put in place to control this risk.

By golly did they take risks, the senior management at RMS put a bid to the Council to carry out these works at a price far below what was actually needed to deliver it.

After this blunder RMS had to sub-contract these works to private contractors at a price far above the money they should have received from the Council. This resulted in a loss of £8.78M.

A number of serious allegations were made about financial mismanagement, including a whistleblower in June 2017.

This resulted in an investigation not only by qualified investigators, our internal audit but also two external auditing companies.

Specific advice was sought from these external advisers and also from a criminal barrister about whether there was sufficient evidence of criminality.

The advice was that there was insufficient evidence.

Despite the lack of evidence to support a criminal prosecution, there was evidence to progress disciplinary proceedings against staff and this resulted in a number of staff being dismissed or given final written warnings. A number of other staff have also since left RMS.

Even now if anyone has any actual evidence of criminality please let us know.

Finally, for now Chair, I would like to reassure Council  – as someone who has spent most of his professional career in enforcement and is used to attending court, working with police, instructing solicitors and helping put criminals into prison – that if there is any substantive evidence of criminality - we will prosecute.

(I will post my "right to reply" on the debate later)

Newham People’s Budget Forums

Hat tip Newham Council - Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz and her Cabinet members have listened to the views of residents and put forward proposals for how Newham Council intends to spend money on what people say is important.​​​​

join us at one of our Newham People’s Budget Forums to find out how the council is funded, the 2019/20 budget proposals, and​ how you would like to be involved in future budget decisions.

​Community Neighbourhood	​Date	​Time	​Venue
Beckton & Royal Docks​	​Wednesday 16 January	​6.30-9pm	​Beckton Community Centre​, 14 East Ham Manor Way, Beckton, E6 5NG
​East Ham	​​Monday 21 January	​6.30-9pm	​Newham Town Hall, Barking Road, East Ham, E6 2RP
​Stratford & West Ham	​Thursday 24 January	​10.30am- 1pm	​Old Town Hall, Stratford, 29 The Broadway, Stratford, E15 4BQ

To register for your place, visit www.newham.gov.uk/PeoplesBudgetForum or email any comments to Peoples.Budget@newham.gov.uk​.  

People's budget proposals 

The Mayor presented her initial 2019/20 people’s budget proposals to Cabinet which include:

• ​Investing £3m to pay our care staff the London Living Wage 
• Investing £1.4m into youth services to keep our young people safe
• ​Investing £6.3m so that primary school children continue to eat for free
• Investing £10.6m into Children’s Services
• Investing £1.3m to support children with Special Educational Needs
• £1.4m to support 19,000 lowest income households by cutting the cost of their Council Tax
• Investing £390,000 for free bulky waste collections
• Accelerating social housing delivery with an additional £500,000
• Investing £250,000 to ensure residents are at the heart of our decision making process.

The proposed investment is influenced by what residents have said, during Citizens’ Assemblies, is important; what councillors say residents have told them are the things they value; and from discussions with partner organisations. The final proposals will be considered by Full Council in February.

Mayor Fiaz said: “Over the past six years, the Government has drastically reduced the funding that we use to deliver services for our residents by almost £91m. In 2019/20 we will need to save at least another £8m lost from Government funding, and we can expect to have to save more in the years after that.

“What we decide now will provide us with a new and different type of budget. It is set to be truly transformative and would allow us to make some of the most radical changes this council has seen in years to the benefit of Newham residents. As well as delivering on manifesto promises, what is being proposed is what residents are saying are priorities; it is a people’s budget.

“And we cannot just think about next year; this has to part of a people’s budget process across the whole four years of this administration. The 2019/20 budget is a transitional one and, if approved, will be a balanced budget.”

To support the 2019/20 proposals, the council needs to make some tough decisions, including a proposed increase in Council Tax of 2.9 per cent alongside a two per cent rise in the precept towards the costs of providing adult social care, while at the same time reducing the burden on those least able to pay.

Councillor Terry Paul, Cabinet member for finance, said: “In terms of cold hard cash, this would mean asking residents for just 89p extra per week at Band D properties to cover the proposed increase in the Newham element of Council Tax. Alongside a planned programme of savings, this will give residents access to a whole raft of additional benefits in services as well as not having to reduce what we spend on libraries, parks, street lighting and cleaning, road repairs and leisure services for example.”

“Newham Council hasn’t asked for any extra Council Tax from residents for the past ten years. This has meant £82m has been unavailable to us that we could have spent on vital services. Whatever we decide, we will make sure the right support is available for the families who are the least able to pay. We will also continue to save as much money as we can by being more efficient in everything we do.”

To protect vulnerable residents against the proposed increase, the Mayor is looking to increase the support available to 19,000 lowest income families with a variety of measures including extending support to tenants dealing with bad landlords and making care leavers exempt from paying Council Tax until the age of 25. There are also proposed changes to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme, which could reduce the amount eligible residents have to pay in Council Tax to just 10 per cent of the bill, potentially saving them almost £120 per year.

Listening to residents is part of the council’s commitment to openness and culture change within the authority. Mayor Fiaz added: “Our successful Citizens’ Assemblies have told us what our residents value. We have listened and this budget will enable us to build on what we offer.”

There will be Citizens’ Assemblies in January for residents to have conversations about the budget proposals. Details will be published on this page www.newham.gov.uk/newhampeoplesbudget​ 

Residents can offer their views on the proposed change to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme through an online survey until 16 January. Currently, households eligible for the scheme pay a minimum of 20 per cent of their Council Tax bill. The consultation will ask whether this should be reduced to 10 per cent, 15 per cent or stay the same.

To take part in the consultation, visit www.newham.gov.uk/CTRconsultation or if you have any questions or would like to request a paper copy of the questionnaire please email CTRconsultation@newham.gov.uk​

(who can say politics doesn't matter)

Mayor gives Christmas Cheer to Newham Council Staff

A good news story for Christmas. The new Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz and the Finance Cabinet lead, Cllr (Red) Terry Paul have agreed to recommendations that the past administration Xmas working pay cuts to our staff are revised (as below).

Well done to all the recognised trade unions for their work on this and in particular, UNISON branch chair, Kim Silver, (UNISON is by far the largest union in Newham Local Government) who has been bending my ear on this topic (and others) for many a day.

Check out Newham website

"Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz has listened to the views of Newham Council employees and asked that pay enhancements to some staff which were reduced last year, are reinstated to their former level. ​

​In June 2017, the payments made to approximately 300 employees required to work on Bank Holidays and on extra statutory days such as the close down period between Christmas and New Year, were reduced as part of a review into terms and conditions of employment.

The Mayor, following consultation with the Interim Chief Executive and the recognised trade unions led by branch officers from Unite on behalf of colleagues from Unison and GMB, has asked that the pay for those offering essential services to some of the borough’s most vulnerable residents, is reinstated to its original 2017 level for those eligible employees who work on the days between Christmas and the New Year, and other Bank Holidays.

The Mayor said: “I am committed to putting people at the heart of everything Newham Council does, and that includes our employees as well as our residents.

“I respect and value the work of all of our staff. They do a brilliant job in providing the services that residents have told me are important. This is not just the work they do every day, it also includes Bank Holidays and extra statutory days.

“I thank everyone who is supporting me in delivering the priorities of this new administration, but following conversations with many of them, and our trade unions, I have listened to their views and have asked the Interim Chief Executive to reinstate the statutory day payments back to their 2017 level for those who are eligible.”

The new level of enhanced payment comes into effect immediately. Those employees who are eligible can expect to receive the additional entitlement with their salary from February 2019.

A "People's Budget" for Newham

Mayor and Cabinet members agree 2019/20 budget proposals

Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz and her Cabinet members have listened to the views of residents and put forward proposals for how Newham Council intends to spend money on what people say is important.​

The Mayor presented her initial 2019/20 people’s budget proposals to Cabinet which include:

• ​Investing £3m to pay our care staff the London Living Wage 
• Investing £1.4m into youth services to keep our young people safe
• ​Investing £6.3m so that primary school children continue to eat for free
• Investing £10.6m into Children’s Services
• Investing £1.3m to support children with Special Educational Needs
• £1.4m to support 19,000 lowest income households by cutting the cost of their Council Tax
• Investing £390,000 for free bulky waste collections
• Accelerating social housing delivery with an additional £500,000
• Investing £250,000 to ensure residents are at the heart of our decision making process.

The proposed investment is influenced by what residents have said, during Citizens’ Assemblies, is important; what councillors say residents have told them are the things they value; and from discussions with partner organisations. The final proposals will be considered by Full Council in February.

Mayor Fiaz said: “Over the past six years, the Government has drastically reduced the funding that we use to deliver services for our residents by almost £91m. In 2019/20 we will need to save at least another £8m lost from Government funding, and we can expect to have to save more in the years after that.

“What we decide now will provide us with a new and different type of budget. It is set to be truly transformative and would allow us to make some of the most radical changes this council has seen in years to the benefit of Newham residents. As well as delivering on manifesto promises, what is being proposed is what residents are saying are priorities; it is a people’s budget.

“And we cannot just think about next year; this has to part of a people’s budget process across the whole four years of this administration. The 2019/20 budget is a transitional one and, if approved, will be a balanced budget.”

To support the 2019/20 proposals, the council needs to make some tough decisions, including a proposed increase in Council Tax of 2.9 per cent alongside a two per cent rise in the precept towards the costs of providing adult social care, while at the same time reducing the burden on those least able to pay.

Councillor Terry Paul, Cabinet member for finance, said: “In terms of cold hard cash, this would mean asking residents for just 89p extra per week at Band D properties to cover the proposed increase in the Newham element of Council Tax. But this continues to give residents access to a whole raft of additional benefits in services as well as not having to reduce what we spend on libraries, parks, street lighting and cleaning, road repairs and leisure services for example.

“Newham Council hasn’t asked for any extra Council Tax from residents for the past ten years. This has meant £82m has been unavailable to us that we could have spent on vital services. Whatever we decide, we will make sure the right support is available for the families who are the least able to pay. We will also continue to save as much money as we can by being more efficient in everything we do.”

To protect vulnerable residents against the proposed increase, the Mayor is looking to increase the support available to 19,000 lowest income families with a variety of measures including extending support to tenants dealing with bad landlords and making care leavers exempt from paying Council Tax until the age of 25. There are also proposed changes to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme, which could reduce the amount eligible residents have to pay in Council Tax to just 10 per cent of the bill, potentially saving them almost £120 per year.

Listening to residents is part of the council’s commitment to openness and culture change within the authority. Mayor Fiaz added: “Our successful Citizens’ Assemblies have told us what our residents value. We have listened and this budget will enable us to build on what we offer.”

There will be Citizens’ Assemblies in January for residents to have conversations about the budget proposals. Details will be published at www.newham.gov.uk/newhampeoplesbudget​ 

Residents can offer their views on the proposed change to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme through an online survey until 16 January. Currently, households eligible for the scheme pay a minimum of 20 per cent of their Council Tax bill. The consultation will ask whether this should be reduced to 10 per cent, 15 per cent or stay the same.

To take part in the consultation, visit www.newham.gov.uk/CTRconsultation or if you have any questions or would like to request a paper copy of the questionnaire please email CTRconsultation@newham.gov.uk​

Hat tip Newham Council Press Release