The events in southern Israel and in Gaza which are respectively obscene and tragic are already having repercussions in Newham. On Monday 16th October, Newham Council held a debate around a motion submitted by Cllr Mirza (starts at 40.20 on the video) and seconded by Green Councillor Keeling.

Three narratives:

On the evening of Friday 20th October, a modest crowd gathered “to remember those who lost their lives in the senseless violence in Gaza”. Or,

In an attempt to generate political support in the by-election, on the back of the suffering in Gaza, a vigil was held on Friday 20th October. Or,

It was a chance for a bit of virtue signalling.

In the Halcyon days of opposition, Rohsana Fiaz did not have to worry about the consequences of opposing the policy of rehousing Newham applicants outside of London. It sounded like the socialist thing to do; people should be housed locally, or so the argument ran.

When we are wrong we like to say so. We have even apologised in the past!

We carried the title “Pro Hamas? Join the Greens”. That has been amended to “Pro Hamas?”

This (Pro Hamas?), we feel is a legitimate question aimed at Cllr Higgins who “couldn’t agree more” with a fellow Green councillor, (not from Newham), who advocated protesting “in solidarity” with and “ending the occupation of” Palestine.

It seems that the cuddly party, the one for vegans of indeterminate sexuality, wanting to save the planet, aint so cuddly after all.

Newham’s Standards Advisory Committee must now rank as the most inept and useless of all the bodies of Newham Council. According to the Newham website, “Newham has set up a Standards Advisory Committee, comprising of five independent people and four councillors”.

Any Newham councillor knows that they should keep their collective mouths shut about Kashmir.

Kashmir has been an ongoing sore since 1947.

Those old enough to remember, will recall Labour’s Robin Cook making a hash of it as Foreign Secretary when he suggested using the “good offices” of HMG to facilitate a peace agreement between Pakistan and India over the issue.

How far do the mayor’s feelings of solidarity extend?

Mayor Fiaz and Deputy Mayor, James Asser did eventually share their solidarity with the people of Ukraine.

You’d be forgiven for thinking that all of Newham’s financial problems are the result of national issues and the policy of the Conservative government.

Newham cites “inflation and the cost of living”, but surely, the increases in the cost of living are the same as inflation. Maybe padding it out makes it sound more impressive.

On December 6th 2022, Tahir Hamid and Nazma Yaqoob were driving in Newham. Between them they were issued with three fines totalling £390.

They decided to contest these fines and engaged legal representative, Ivan Murray-Smith. Mr Murray-Smith happens to be a Tory councillor in Great Yarmouth.

You might have thought that piles of dumped mattresses are top of the mayor’s hit list. Or maybe, abandoned electrical goods, fridges, freezers etc. Or you might have considered the occasional pile of builder’s rubble that appears at the end of the street to be an issue that the mayor needs to get sorted. Or just maybe, you are offended by the piles of silver vape canisters that litter the roadside.

Newham was recently reported as one of the dirtiest boroughs in England. Against this backdrop we would hope to see bold initiatives and a commitment to both better response times to dumped rubbish and some level of enforcement, but of course, the mayor doesn’t like enforcement.

It seems that Mayor Fiaz has overcome her long-standing antipathy towards holding full-council meetings at East Ham Town Hall.

From Newham Voices, we learn that Mayor Fiaz and deputy cabinet member, John Whitworth will be joining the DESI protests. Again.

The tribunal hearing for Dennis Carabott is drawing close. Any desire on the part of Newham that this issue might be quietly forgotten seems to be in vain. Members of the Unite Union at Folkstone Road have been balloted and they have voted in favour of strike action.

Politicians and senior council officers have to have thick skins. It’s in the nature of the work. It would be nice if everybody was thoughtful and considerate, but they aren’t.

This was the headline in 2014.

Below Mayor Fiaz is repeating it in 2023. Interestingly, it is not a policy that she has always been so supportive of.

Social media is buzzing with photos like these. They speak for themselves.

Cllr Mirza has managed to embarrass the powers that be in Newham Council. Again. In his own words (and pictures).

When it comes to campaigns and declaring their socialist credentials, a number of Newham councillors are prominent extolling their trade union involvement and demanding the rights of workers everywhere. Everywhere that is, except Newham.