Various news sources have reported that the on-off mayor of Tower Hamlets is in trouble again. Not content with a ban for five years for “corrupt practices”, (what The Guardian summarises as “vote-rigging, buying votes and religious intimidation”), Lutfer Rahman has found himself in trouble again. In February 2024, government inspectors were despatched to Tower Hamlets because of problems.

We continue to dig into the story about Cllr Lewis Godfrey’s suspension from the Labour Party. We are confident in this assertion, although, he still appears on the council website (Nov 8^th 2024) as a Labour Party and Co-operative Party member.

There was some surprise when Cllr Pushpa was reported to have migrated from Newham to Havering, less than one month after being elected to represent the residents of Plashet ward in East Ham.

We reflected on the rumour that Cllr Lewis Godfrey was suspended from the Labour Party. This seemed to be a bit odd, as he had only just been cleared of wrongdoing by the standards committee.

The impact of Reform is unlikely to be large in Newham. However, the growing distance between Labour and its former supporters in the white working class might be beginning to work to Reform’s benefit nationally.

We learn that Mayor Fiaz is endeavouring to have three miscreants suspended from the Labour Group. You will recall that Cllrs Kamali, Chadha and Masters all abstained on a vote against a Green motion.

The metaphorical vultures are reported to be hovering around the head of Cllr Lewis Godfrey. We are told that a well-known member of Green St West branch is already campaigning to be adopted as the candidate when Godfrey goes.

This is where it gets bizarre.

Just months after gaining a massive electoral victory, (securing 411 seats, with 20% of the nation’s voters), Labour’s popularity appears to be shrinking; down to 4% in early September according to More in Common.

It does seem that Cllr Thelma Odoi has not fully completed her disclosure to the monitoring officer. Her address is withheld, which seems to be the common practice now. However, we understand her to be a tenant of a council property. She may of course have purchased this.

A reader has kindly written to let us know that there should be a number of additions to the Landlords for Labour table. We are pleased to provide an update.

As we have noted, building a property portfolio has been popular amongst Labour councillors.

With the Paris Olympics about to start, Eddie Nestor of Radio London reflected on the Olympic Legacy to London, and Newham in particular.

Behind Cllr Shaban’s bid to replace Fiaz are two women, one a councillor and one a wannabe councillor. Larisa Zilickaja is a relatively new councillor who has yet to make an impression. She has, we are told, been very active promoting Cllr Mohammed’s virtues as a replacement for Fiaz.

After a traumatic few weeks in which firstly he was accused of sexual assault and then forced to stand down as a candidate for the safe parliamentary seat in Barking, only to discover that after the selections, the allegations suddenly evaporated, Cllr Darren Rodwell has chosen to stand down as the leader of the ruling Labour Group in Barking and Dagenham.

Several names have been suggested as potential replacements for Mayor Fiaz. Whatever happens, it seems that the smart money is on Fiaz being given the Spanish Archer before the next election.

We earlier reflected on the way in which allegations against Cllr Darren Rodwell, had suddenly appeared. And then, just as suddenly, disappeared. (Here and here.)

(Picture from The Conversation.com)

Locally and nationally Muslims are openly voting as a block. Not all of them. Not all the time, but the emergence of Aspire in Tower Hamlets (Bangladeshi), Newham Independents, (largely Pakistani) and four independent Muslim MPs in the 2024 election were all the result of campaigns built on the interests of a religious block, (perhaps ethno-religious blocks).

Labour, it seems is hemorrhaging councillors. Canning Town North councillor, Areeq Chowdhury has announced that he has left Labour in order to join the Greens. They have welcomed him.

We reported earlier, that Cllr Darren Rodwell, Leader of the Council in Barking and Dagenham had had his parliamentary ambitions quashed when an allegation of sexual assault was lodged with the Labour Party.

We reported on the dirty tricks campaign that saw Redbridge Council Leader, Jas Athwal, suspended from the party and therefore excluded from the parliamentary shortlist in 2019. As a result, the nomination, which was expected to go to the popular local candidate, went to a reliable Corbynite and close personal friend of Angela Rayner MP, Sam Tarry. On this occasion, Tarry was imposed by the NEC.