Transcript

and our guests to the town hall for this meeting. I would like to welcome the members of the public and press who are physically attending or watching on YouTube. In particular, I would like to welcome our new monitoring officer, Rachel McColl, for her first council meeting. (audience applauding) Thank you. Hi, Kornadol, our corporate director for resources who will be deputizing in her absence. We wish Abby SPD recovery. The meeting is being filmed for broadcast on YouTube. Please note the cameras are focused on everyone within this meeting. I would like to take this opportunity to remind the public that to enable the council to conduct its business, if there are any interruption at today's meeting, I'll ask the individuals or individuals to stop and give a warning. If this continues, I'll give a second and final warning should the disruption continue. I'll ask security to remove the person or group from the council chamber and will adjourn the meeting. Members of the council, please can I ask that you indicate when you wish to speak by raising your physical hand. I would like to advise members in order to comply with the allocated time for speakers. If you go beyond your allocated time, you will be automatically muted. Please can I ask members and officers to introduce themselves when speaking. I would like to ask that everyone turns their mobile phones to silent mode. We are not expecting a fire drill this evening, so if the alarm sounds, please remain calm and follow the instructions of the town hall staff. The fire assembly point is accessed by Westham Lane. My mic is echoing. Can you stop the echoing sound, please? Thank you. I'm now moving to item one, apologies for absence. I have received apologies for absence for this evening meeting from Councillor Masur Alam, Muhammad Ghani, Joshua Garfield, Stephanie Garfield, Selim Petal, Lathmanisha, Carlin Liebokki. Are there any other apologies for absence from Councillors to be recorded?

• Yes, Madam Chair, I got time. Apologies from Councillor Joanne Laguda, Councillor Celine Patel, Councillor Rachel Tripp, Councillor Mariam Dawood, Councillor Terry Paul, Councillor Tony Wilson, and Councillor Dina Hussain. Thank you.
• Thank you. I'm now moving to item two, Declaration of Interest. Are there any other members wishing to declare any disposable pecuniary interest or any other interest they may have in any matter which is to be considered at this meeting? Thank you. Councillor Allen.
• Yes, thank you, Chair. As a member of the Strategic Development Committee, I'll be declaring interest in the motion about the city airport, and I'm sending myself. I think several others will say the same.
• Thank you. I'm now moving to item three, minutes of the last meeting. I move the minutes of the last meeting of Councillor Held. Sorry, Councillor Islam.
• Chair, in the minutes section where we have apologies, we note that Councillor Pushpa Maguana's absence is not recorded as an apology. Could we have that reflected, please?
• Thank you. Councillor Patel.
• Thank you, Chair. Can I also declare the same interest as Councillor Allen Griffiths as I'm a member of the Strategic Development Committee? Thank you.
• Thank you, that's been recorded. Councillor Lewis.
• Apologies, Chair. I have to declare both an interest as a member of the Strategic Development Committee, but also I work for a company named in motion for which is my own motion.
• Thank you, Councillor Lewis, Godfrey. Councillor Susan Master, Councillor Muirza, Councillor Vardy. Thank you.
• Chair, I also wanted to declare the interest. I'm also a member of the Strategic Development Committee. Thank you.
• Thank you, Councillor Vardy.
• Okay.
• Chair, likewise, I want to declare interest as a member of the Strategic Development Committee. Thank you.
• Thank you. I think she would like to say something.
• Oh, thank you. Yes, thank you, Chair. So all those members that have declared interest in motion three, London City Airport, so when that item comes up for discussion, then you can't partake in that discussion because of the declaration that you've just made. So if you could step outside for that item, please, and then someone will come to just let you know when the debate and everything is finished on that, and then you can come back in. And the same would be for motion four, Councillor Godfrey. Thank you.
• Councillor, Louise.
• Sorry, sorry, motion four, were you going to--
• Yes, did you say that there's a conflict of interest?
• I do work with (mumbles)
• Do you mind coming on the mic, please? Thank you. Sorry.
• Apologies, Chair. I, so I don't think the declaration of interest rules me out of speaking on that motion because the conflict of interest is incidental. It's more a declaration of that conflict of interest. So I don't think I'm ruled out of speaking on that motion, but I'm happy to have a conversation about that.
• Okay, so I suppose it depends on the nature of the declaration that you're making. What's the nexus, et cetera?
• So the company Amazon is named as one of several companies I work for Amazon.
• I understand.
• No problem. - Okay. I think that's okay, this instance, thank you. Thank you, members.
• Thank you, Rachel. I'm now moving to item three, minutes of our last meeting. I move to minutes of the last meeting of Council held on 22nd of July, 2024. Do I have a seconder, please? Thank you, Denny. All those in favor, please raise your hand. Thank you. All those against, please raise your hands. Any abstentions? Agree the minutes, thank you. I'm now moving to item four, adaptations. I can inform the Chamber that there will be no adaptation under Rule 13 of part four of the constitution, so I'll move on to the next item. I'm now moving to item five, petitions. Are there any petitions by any members? Thank you. Councilor Pushba-Makkola?
• Thank you, Chair. We've got petition from residents of Tennyson Avenue, which is in Plachette Ward, in regards to installation of electric vehicle. And they said that they've not had any consultation, or neither, as Councillors, we've had any input on the installation, what they're gonna start working on, the 18th of September.
• Thank you, Councillor Pushba. Responses of acknowledging the petition and setting out how the matter will be dealt with will be sent to the Councillors within 10 working days. As stated in our constitution, the petition will be referred to the relevant corporate director for their attention and response, and responses acknowledging the petition and setting out how the matter will be dealt with will be sent to the Councillors within 10 working days. Thank you. I'm now moving to item six, questions by the public. Or do I have more petition? Councillor Goulham-Jabbar.
• Thank you, Chair. I'm just submitting the petition for the behalf of the people from the Woodhouse Grove, Tennyson Avenue as well. There was no paper consultation before the planning to install electric charging point on the street. Thank you, so I have two petitions from the two streets. So I just want to submit them, thank you.
• Thank you. Councillor Blossom-Young.
• Thank you, Chair. Just to advise colleagues that there is an ongoing petition in relation to the East London Gymnastics Club in Becton, where the club is at threat from closure due to the private sale of the assets.
• Thank you, Councillor Blossom. Are there any other petition to be presented? No, thank you. I'm now moving to item six, questions by the public. There are three questions from members of the public accepted under rule 15 of part four of the constitution. The questions, along with the responses, are attached on pages seven to 16 on the supplementary agenda published earlier today. Phil Lindsay, Assistant Secretary Newham, and Eve has indicated that he wishes to ask this question in public. Phil Lindsay, please ask your questions.
• Good evening, Chair. Council, can you update us on the Councillor's response to the recommendations made in the recent Newham-Neu SEND report? And also suggest whether there will be a drive to ensure that every Newham school has a Councillor on their school's governing body to see to it that statutory SEND requirements around provisions and training are being adhered to where they have not been in the past. Thank you. (audience applauding)
• Thank you, that concludes this item and I'll move now to next item. Published. I've already said that. Published, yes.
• Yes.
• Sorry. Councillor Sarah Ruiz. That's what I said. Please, seven to 16. Councillor Sarah Ruiz, could I ask you to come to the mic, please? Thank you.
• Thank you, Chair. I would say that the response is as published. However, I do meet on a regular basis with officers from the NEU and if there is anything outstanding, we can pick that up in our regular meetings.
• Thank you, Councillor Sarah Ruiz. I'm now moving to item seven, announcements by Chair, which is myself. I would like to inform the Council that I have attended around 10 public engagements and my role is as first citizen, both inside and outside the borough. Black History Month, the Council, had published its Black History Month program for next month in October. Black History Month is an annual celebration of the contribution made by Black, African, and Caribbean communities in the borough, nationally and internationally. The national theme for this year is Reclaiming Narratives, signifying a dedication to addressing historical inaccuracies and citizen control of narratives by highlighting stories and histories. Please look at the NEU home's website to explore a month of virtual and live events that celebrate the contribution made by Black, African, and Caribbean communities in the borough, nationally and internationally. Eidul Milla Adnavi, I would like to extend my best wishes to those who are celebrating Eidul Milla Adnavi, the birth of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam) I'm now moving to item eight, announcement by the mayor of Sanafir. I invite mayor of Sanafir to address the Council to make any announcements. Sound. Sound, can somebody, can I have my time started? Ten minutes start from now. Colleagues, can you hear me now? All right, brilliant. Actually, what I should have said before I started to speak, albeit none of you could hear me, was to forgive my snuffly voice, or should I say deep voice, because I've come down with a cold. Look, welcome back to the chair and all members, following what feels like a summer that was an age ago, and I hope you had a restful break. And as the chair of the full council mentioned, our chief executive, Abi Bargo, is not with us this evening, because she is away for a couple of weeks due to a medical procedure. But no doubt, she is watching on YouTube, so let's take a couple of seconds to give her a big wave. I'm sure she'll be watching. Also, I wanted to join in the chair welcoming our new permanent monitoring officer. I was just about to say interim. Actually, not interim, thankfully. For the first time in, I think, about coming up to four years, our first brand new permanent monitoring officer who's attending her first council meeting. So welcome, Rachel. I'm sure, like me, all the other members here are looking forward to working with you in the coming months and years, and I'm sure they'll all be on their best behavior for you tonight. With the changing weather, as you can note, I've come down with this awful cold. The nights are drawing in and the schools are going back, and it really does feel like autumn. Albeit this afternoon, it was pleasantly warm, and I hope you managed to have some of the respite in the sun. Speaking of schools, can I take this opportunity to congratulate all of our amazing young people in Newham for their fantastic A-level, B-tech, T-level, and GCSE results this year. Both myself and Councilor Sara Ruiz attended a couple of schools to celebrate with young people as they waited in anticipation for their results. And last week, I was really delighted to see in an official Department of Education statistics report published last week that for reading, writing, and maths, Newham year six pupils are ranked fourth in England, with 72% achieving the expected standard or better in those subject areas. It's a really fantastic achievement and a huge credit to our students, their families, who provide them supportive environments in the most challenging of circumstances in many households, not least because of the cost of living crisis and the insecure lives that many of those families lead, but also for our amazing community of schools and the supportive staff members who always want the best for our young people as we do. Talking about celebrating success, I wanted to let all members know that by the time we meet next, we will have launched the call for nominations for this year's Civic Awards. It will be a fantastic opportunity to celebrate our community heroes and demonstrate our civic pride in our borough and its brilliant residents. I should point out that the Civic Awards 2024 will open imminently, albeit the celebration event won't take place until 2025, primarily because we've had a succession of elections, one of which led to the amazing outcome of a new labor-led national government, which I'll keep on repeating for at least another six months, but it has meant that the amazing staff in our electoral services as well as democratic services have been tied up with that and other statutory requirements. Hence, the Civic Awards process will be commencing soon, but the actual celebration won't be happening until early next year. So when you do see the details, please do play every effort on your part in encouraging as many of your contacts across the spectrum of the voluntary community and faith sector and local businesses in stepping forward and nominating our local heroes. Chair, at last council, we approved the interim delegation scheme for planning applications to the London Legacy Development Corporation to be delegated to the council from the 1st of September, and that was in anticipation of the primary legislation change required at parliament not being met in case it wasn't met by the 1st of December. And it's all part of our campaign since May 2018 of ensuring democratic accountability for all those things that are really important to our place vision here at the borough and ensuring that residents are involved as well as our elected representatives in determination of planning committees. I'm delighted to be able to let you know that we've now passed another significant milestone with the London Legacy Development Corporation's transition statutory instrument now completing its parliamentary process. What that means is that the handover and transfer of planning powers formally will come into force from the 1st of December of this year, and it marks another area of delivery for this labor-led campaigning council. Colleagues, autumn is also a time when our minds turn to our annual budget process. Members will recall I spoke at our last meeting of full council about how Newman faces the brunt of the country's temporary accommodation crisis, and we'll hear more this evening from the cabinet member for housing services, but also by way of a first speech from Councillor Young. Temporary accommodation is presenting extraordinary financial impact on all councils, and it's an extraordinary challenge that all councils are facing. Newman is not alone in this financial challenge that we face. Across the country, all councils are grappling with the same issue. Only last week, London Councils published its submission to Her Majesty's Treasury about the scale of the challenge facing councils in the capital, some 700 million pounds shortfall that is required to be met. We have heard some really impressive plans from national government, and I am hopeful, but with a dedicated and laser-like focus, and certainly that has been the sentiment and that has been evoked by the new government, and in my discussions with all the labour leaders and ministers of state, they're very, very clear that councils should not be tarnished because of a broken housing market. We set out the full details of the impact here in Newman of the temporary accommodation challenge, and it's in line with us being always, at all times, transparent and clear, and we set this out in the summer 2024 finance report that was published in late July and came to cabinet in early August. It's available for all members and indeed the Evening Standard to see. We've continued to update all members and MPs on the budget position, and we'll be doing more of that updating over the coming weeks. We face a forecast budget gap of 175 million pounds in the coming three years. Approximately 100 million pounds of this relates to our temporary accommodation pressures. Chair, as members will know, without these additional temporary accommodation costs, the council would have been in budget for each of the last two years because this is a responsible council with robust financial management of the public's money that we spend. As members know, the scale of these financial pressures means some form of government assistance will be required, and we are already, as mentioned earlier, in direct contact with government about this. However, the scale of the pressure means that we must take action now because despite the problem being not of our making and not something we can directly control, we have a duty for our residents to be fiscally responsible. We are already barking on a significant transformation program that will reduce our overheads at the council, make significant savings, and transform how the council operates, delivering innovative and cost-effective solutions, delivering the right services at the right time in the right way, and the right services at the right time in the right way, all framed by our building of Fair and Newham Manifesto, as iterated in the corporate plan. And I announced at cabinet in August that the council will be re-profiling the budget for this financial year to make in-year savings. We will be bringing forward that re-profiled budget in October, and it will also set out the latest budget forecasts and overspend information for 2024-25. It will recommend proposed in-year savings to mitigate the overspend, and recommend the start of consultation on further budget savings in 2025 to 2026 and later years. We'll of course be engaged with all members as well as residents. And Chair, before I conclude, I just really need to make this important point. The savings that we will be making will not be easy. They will be difficult decisions. But these decisions will be made within the framework of our focus on building a fair and new room, a healthy and happy and well-known room, and where we build an economy that is inclusive for everyone, creating the best place for children and young people, and where we tackle the inherent and structural inequalities that exist. Thank you, Chair.
• Thank you, Mayor Oksana-Fiaz. I'm now moving to item nine, addressed from the cabinet members, deputy cabinet members, or commissioners. Any members of the cabinet, deputy cabinet members, or commissioners who wish to update council will be allowed to speak. There shall be no debate or questions allowed. Does any member of the cabinet, deputy cabinet member, or commissioners wish to speak? Councilor Chabot. (gavel banging)
• Thank you, Chair. Newman is at the epicenter of the current housing crisis. We have large numbers of residents coming through the council for support. During the last 14 years, local government has been facing a funding crisis, especially in housing, adult social care, and children's services. More recently, this funding crisis has become more apparent in housing services due to the cost of living crisis, with combined lack of housing supply, steep rises in housing costs. This is seeing huge rises in homelessness. Spiraling costs and increased demand means that we have seen huge increases in the cost of TA without additional financial assistance from government. Over the last year, we have seen our nightly paid accommodation rates rise by 70%. We have a generation of young Londoners who simply cannot afford to live or stay in boroughs like Newham. We have multi-generational households who are living in overcrowded accommodation due to lack of supply. We are currently working with London Council to lobby the government for more funding for TA and homelessness. We have continued to address these issues and provide homes to those in need. But we have also introduced a number of changes to increase the opportunities to prevent homelessness and when need emergency housing. We have restructured the homeless prevention service to work with residents to focus on maintaining their tenancies. For example, managing discussion housing payments to assist with preventing homelessness. Introducing tenancy liaison offices in the private sector to enforcement team to assist tenants who are being harassed or threatened with legal eviction. Introduce specialist housing pathways officers to support residents with specific or complex needs to prevent homelessness or find alternative accommodation. Embedding housing offices into the welcome Newham team to support asylum seekers who remain to leave into accommodation into the private sector through our national housing schemes such as Home Finders. We are also introducing new resettlement teams to provide support to households and move them from temporary accommodation into more secure homes. This is just some of the work we are doing but also we have large scale acquisitions programmes where we are purchasing good quality housing supply in Newham and around London boroughs to support residents. With a new Labour government this is a real opportunity to address the housing crisis and work with councils like Newham urgently who are bearing the highest financial burden in temporary accommodation and work with them on a new housing homelessness strategy.
• Councillor Siobhan, you've got 332nd.
• Which needs to address the root causes of homelessness. Finally, I'm shocked and saddened by the Grenfell report. We must recognise the hurt that this report must have caused and will continue to do so until justice is served. Please be assured that resident safety in their homes remains at the heart of everything we do and is a key priority. As cabinet lead, I endeavour to ensure that safety to our tenants is paramount. Thank you, Chair.
• Thank you, Councillor Siobhan. (audience applauds) Councillor Amavardhi, you have up to three minutes.
• Thank you, Chair. Councillor Amavardhi, cabinet member for Community Safety and Crime, Green Street West. I would like to provide the following update to council members and residents on the subject of community safety and knife crime. Under the previous Tory government, we oversaw a 70% increase in knife crime under the new Labour government. I welcome the announcement by the Prime Minister, Home Century, informing the Anti-Knife Crime Coalition. The coalition will look at tackling the root causes of knife crime rather than addressing the symptoms, looking at banning ninja swords, disrupting the online sale of legal knives, stronger sentencing along with the current zombie knife surrendering in order to half knife crime in the next 10 years. As you know, the impact of knife crime impacts victims' families, the wider community, which can lead to heightened levels of fear, tension and continued ripple effects. I spent time speaking with family members who attended the knife crime summit last week and I will be forging great partnerships with them and others in our continued approach in addressing this issue. Within Newham, we've also been affected by knife crime. We're also encouraging the safe surrendering of knives, providing anonymous non-judgmental and safe way to dispose of knives. Working closely with other cabinet colleagues within health, housing and children's, the deployment of new knife bins and trauma kits have been provided to our youth zones, community centres, place of worship and other assets across the borough. In my role and a part of the violence reduction unit multi-faith alliance called Staring Group, the aim of supporting local place of worship centres will provide a plenty of support with those who are affected with knife crime. Last year, I also hosted a Get Hired event, job event for young people with a renowned charity organisation to commemorate the life of Stephen Lawrence, who sadly lost his life to knife crime. Additionally, youth empowerment, children's services and offer for young people also play a crucial role. This will build on the new Young Futures programme already set out by the Home Office to offer young people a pathway out of crime. I also stressed the need for greater policing responsibility and standards locally within Newham and I recognise the place to put more police and PCSO officers within our communities and increasing funding by the Mayor of London in creating a safer place for not only the residents within London but within Newham. Later this evening, you'll hopefully hear a motion on tackling knife crime further and I encourage members to endorse this. Thank you very much.
• Thank you, Councillor Marberdi. As absence of abbey, I now invite Conrad Hall to make any announcement on behalf of the Chief Executive.
• Thank you, Chair. I would like to announce the leadership roles for the Green Group as follows. Councillor Nate Higgins, leader of the Green Group and Councillor Danny Keeling, deputy leader of the Green Group and business manager. Thank you, Chair.
• Thank you, Carmen. I'm now moving to item 11, overview and scrutiny programme and future commissions. Councillor Mckillan updates his outline on page 41 to 78 on the published agenda. Councillor Mckillan, you have up to five minutes to present your report with another five minutes allocated in total for posing and answering questions. Your five minutes begin now.
• Chair, I rise to give council a brief summary of scrutiny work since July. The Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the Scrutiny Commissions have now finalised their work programme for the year to come. At nine months since the JLA Cooperate Prayer Review Challenge, scrutiny also continues to play a crucial role in Newham Council's improvement journey with active participation in governance and scrutiny development workshops already completed in July and with some more to come in October. As I make my report to you this evening, we look ahead to a busy autumn furthering our than the ease of a busy summer for scrutiny. Our summer work include two Overview and Scrutiny Committee meetings, a health scrutiny meeting and some preparatory work meeting to lay the foundation for our budget scrutiny work. While this is covered in more details in my written report, so I would like to focus instead on something else with far-reaching implications for our residents and how we conduct scrutiny. Madam Chair, as I stated before, and my colleagues will be aware of this, scrutiny with its statutory role is here to amplify the voice of our residents. I am certain that many of us will have read the sobering findings of the Grenfell Report and I highlight this in a serious reminder to all of us collectively of the importance of listening to our residents and the importance of having the residents are the art of all that we do. Amongst other things, the Grenfell Report raised concern over the absence of any independent and rigorous scrutiny. In our work program, particularly in the work with the executive and officers, we are continuing to work together, members and officers alike, to constructively and collaboratively to deliver for all the residents of Newham. But it is also a balancing act for scrutiny as we also endeavor to maintain our independence and in the interest of rigor and transparency in local government decision-making. I also mentioned the Grenfell Report as tomorrow night, the Ousin and Regeneration Scrutiny Committee will be looking at building safety, amongst other things, as part of our ambitious work program. Madam Chair, the needs of our residents are central to our scrutiny work program. These needs continue to drive increasing demands on our services. This is true across the UK as the financial landscape for local government everywhere continues to be fraught. On behalf of my colleagues, scrutiny colleagues, we, scrutiny members, will endeavor to work together collaboratively in these challenging times to ensure accountability, transparency, and to deliver for all the residents of Newham. Thank you.
• Thank you, Councillor McMillan. Now you have five minutes for questions. Is there any questions for Councillor McLemond? No, thank you. (audience applauding) I'm now moving to item 12, members questions under rule 16 of part four of the constitution. I can inform the council that there is six questions received and accepted by the chief executive. The questions with the published responses can be seen in the water paper published earlier today. The questions are from Councillor Mahmoud Mirza, Schubert, Goulson, Goulumson, Sophia Knappi, Arik Chaudhry, Nate Higgins, and Danny Killing. Questions one. I call upon Councillor Mahmoud Mirza to ask his questions.
• Thank you, chair. I have received the published response, but I would like to ask the question in this chamber. Many residents have expressed concerns about the recent changes to the bin collection policy, particularly regarding the requirement for bins to be placed at the boundary of their properties. There have been numerous report of the missed collections with the refuse operator refusing to collect the bins that are not precisely at the boundaries. Even in cases where the resident have made reasonable effort to comply, given the widespread dissatisfaction and the negative impact this policy is having on the community cabinet member for environment sustainable transport should commit to a review to this strategy. What immediate measures can be taken to ensure the residents' bins are collected constantly and fairly without unnecessary refusals? Thank you.
• Thank you. I call upon Councillor Sarah Ruiz, secretary deputy mayor and cabinet member for environment sustainable transport, children's services and education to respond to the questions or to confirm as published.
• Thank you, chair. Just as my response is as published.
• Thank you, Sarah. Councillor Mirza, do you have any other supplement questions?
• Yes, chair. Thank you for your answer. I've noted, but obviously you mentioned about 41,000 collection was missed in couple of months. And it's not too many about the collections we collected, but obviously the policy is not working and the lot of people have to put their bins on the pavement because they refuse to take the bins within the boundary. So can you please review the policy because a lot of residents are affecting. Thank you, chair.
• Thank you, Councillor Mirza, Councillor Sarah Ruiz.
• Thank you, Councillor Mirza. I would think that actually 0.04% of collections missed was actually quite a remarkable achievement. I think you underestimate changing a whole system of how we collect our bins, both our refuse and our recycling is actually quite an amazing feat. And I think our operatives have done really well, given that many of their rounds will have changed. So they are not familiar with the rounds that they normally do. As with all council stuff, we obviously we review it and if something is really not working, then we would be really stupid if we didn't actually go back and see how we can change it. But actually the number of people who when we actually have an inquiry as to why their bins haven't been collected, it's because they're either containing stuff that shouldn't be in there and they also are not at the boundary. Putting your bin on the pavement is also not allowed. So the bins have to be on the boundary of your property. And probably you won't be aware, but all drivers of our refuse lorries now have mobile devices. If they don't collect a bin, they take a photograph and they give an explanation. So we will obviously, in six, 12 months, be reviewing if I can't see that it will change.
• Thank you for the response. (audience applauds) Question two, I'll call upon Councilor Jubei Gulam to ask these questions.
• Thank you, Chair. Thanks for the Republic's response. I just want to add one question only from the in-pressure park. There are not enough camera. Also some of them are not working. I request for more camera to be installed around the park for the safety for the residents. Thank you.
• Thank you, Councilor Gulam, Jubei. I call upon Councilor Sera Ruiz to respond. (audience applauds)
• Thank you, Chair. It's amazing, isn't it? I've been here six years and this is, I've never had members' questions before until tonight, so it's bumper time. I would just say it's as published, Super.
• Thank you. Councilor Jubei Gulam, do you have any supplementary questions?
• No, thank you.
• Okay. Question three, I call upon Councilor Sofia Nagbe to ask her questions.
• Sorry. Given the urgent financial challenges highlighted in the recent summer 2024 finance review report and in the light of Councilor Mirza's letter sent to the mayor on August 13, 2024, regarding the proposed service cuts in Newham, can the mayor confirm when will she be releasing the requested information on these cuts? Transparency and timely action are crucial for managing our budget effectively. And I urge the mayor to provide clarity on when this information will be made available and to show all the members of the council can engage in meaningful discussion to address the financial pressures facing our borough. I received the response, but I'm still not understanding what the answers, I don't get the, can I?
• So do you have a supplementary question?
• People in Newham are stressed, are worried about the situation they are facing day by day. What answers are we supposed to give to our residents when they're asking us? So can you please help me to answer that?
• I call upon Councilor Jennifer Cowley, cabinet member for finance and resources to respond to this question, please.
• Thank you, chair, and the answer is as published, but for the purpose of clarity, as Councilor Naqvi said, that I think the question asked, when will the information be made available? And the answer clearly states that the draft is going to be worked on, it's likely to go to cabinet on 15th of October, and the information will be published for scrutiny on 30th of September as per the decision of the cabinet earlier on this year. I hope that clarifies. Is there any?
• Thank you, Councilor Jennifer Cowley. Council, there's no more, you already have your chance to have supplementary questions. Thank you. Now I ask Councilor Eric Choudry to ask these questions.
• Residents across Newham will have been concerned by news reports in the BBC, Sky News, and the London Evening Standard that the council faces bankruptcy with a budget gap of 175 million pounds. The council has said that the responsibility for this lies solely with the previous Conservative government and the inefficacies of London's housing market. To remedy this, the council appears to be seeking a central government bailout to alleviate the costs related to temporary accommodation, and will be making significant cuts to public services. Can the council provide an update on the levels of financial support that will be provided by the government, and can they assure residents that they will not be imposing an above inflation rise in council tax?
• Thank you, Councilor Eric Choudry. Can I call Councilor Jennifer Cowley to respond or to confirm as published, please?
• Thank you, Councilor Choudry. The response is as published here, but just to clarify that we, the Labour government, which is in position now, has recognized the pressure that we are facing across the whole local government sector, and is going to be making a budget statement on 30th of October, and that is when we will have further information in respect of what support the government will provide. And as to the council tax, previous governments had set 5% target previously, and in their calculations, they actually assumed the council will have to increase the tax by 5%. But at this stage, there's no clarity, therefore I can't confirm anything at this stage. Thank you.
• Thank you, Councilor Jennifer Cowley. Councilor Eric Choudry, do you have a supplementary question, please?
• Thank you. Residents in Newham will be disappointed that they will be made to pay for the council shortfall through an above inflation rise in their council tax. The council rightly identifies challenges in the private renter sector as a contributing factor. One potential solution is to introduce rent controls, something which the mayor pledged to support in her election campaign. The Renter's Rights Bill currently does not include anything on rent controls. What action has the council taken to advocate for an amendment to the bill to include rent controls?
• Councilor Jennifer Cowley, do you wish to respond?
• Thank you, Chair, and I'm sure my colleague appreciates that this is a national crisis, and if you look at the latest representation made by LGA and London Council, the councils are suffering over a 6.2 billion pound deficit, and that has accumulated since 2010, '11. And if you think about the impact this has had in local services, you know, there is an estimated 24.5 billion pound that has been lost since 2010 'til '22, '23. And if you work out that percentage, it's nearly 42% of our funding has been reduced as a result of the tories of strategies and cuts. Yet inflation has gone up, wage bill is going up, demand is going up, complexity is going up, so nearly 42% of our 400,000, 400K revenue budget, it works out to 160 million pound. Had we had those 160 million pound, we wouldn't be in this position. I must say, Chair, the last year and this year, we could have balanced our books had we not had the TA crisis, and that crisis is something the government is recognising as an issue, and we hope that something will be done in the government budget statement which coming through in due course. But I think we all welcome the renters bill, and that is something that we've been driving forward, and in fact, the London Council have made further representations to enhance that, and that is something that we hope the government will take into consideration, and I hope it answers your question, Councillor.
• Thank you so much, Councillor Jafakali. I call upon Councillor Nick Hagen to ask your question, that question number five.
• Thank you. Can you hear me?
• Yes, we can.
• Thank you, Chair. Statistics compiled by local Green Councillors in Stratford Olympic Park have shown that violent crime has risen by 68% since East Village Police Station was closed in 2021, and overall crime is up 44%. We know this is the legacy of the previous Conservative government who were content to let our society crumble. I want to thank Mayor Fiaz and Councillor Ruiz for supporting ward councillors and responding to some of these serious violent incidents in recent months. As part of our work to make our residents safer, we have now launched a campaign as the local councillors to reopen the police station with our local ward panel, and over 1,000 residents signed our petition in its first 24 hours. That petition is now over 2,000 signatures. Will the administration now join our campaign and call on Sadiq Khan and the Metropolitan Police to reopen our local police station in Stratford Olympic Park?
• Thank you, Councillor Nate Haggins. I call upon Councillor Amarabad, the cabinet member for community safety.
• Thank you, Chair. Just in the interest of time, as published, thank you.
• Thank you. Councillor Haggins, do you have a supplementary question?
• Yes, Chair. It's a shame the Councillor didn't want to read out the answer, but it doesn't directly answer the question of whether the administration supports the petition and supports reopening Stratford Olympic Park police station. So yes or no, will the administration support reopening the police station?
• Thank you, Councillor. It's not as a straight question as a yes or no, because speaking to the superintendent for neighbourhood policing just last week about this, it's a policing decision. And in regards to the hub that was there, it wasn't as effective in terms of what it was meant to do. Speaking to the superintendent, they wouldn't actually put a police station as such. It's more of a hub more than anything else. So when you say, would we advocate for something? I think we've got to look at in terms of what do we want the police to do? We want a presence, we want a patrol. Having a sort of a station, you have to ask yourself, what does it serve and its purpose? I think speaking with the police and the partnership I've got with the police, and as I mentioned earlier today, as a Labour administration, what we're looking to do is get more police officers on the ground, on the beat. I think that's what we should be calling for. (audience applauding)
• Thank you, Councillor Marabardi. We are on question six now. I call upon Councillor Jenny Keeling to ask your question, please.
• In December 2023, I was informed nine knife bins would be installed across our borough. Unfortunately, only a total of three have. The request for one in December was because a recent scrutiny report stated that Stratford Olympic Park had the most defences of knife crime in the whole borough in that financial year. China Fort dispatches highlighted Stratford Olympic Park as having 2,500 thefts and robbery cases reported to the police in the last three years, in which 89% went unsolved, the worst in the whole of the UK. In the last few weeks, we've seen residents stabbed and hospitalised in unprovoked attacks against innocent victims. Will this council take seriously that Stratford Olympic Park is a crime hotspot and work with me to install a knife amnesty box in the ward, which would act to help reduce knife crime and save residents' lives?
• Thank you, Councillor Jenny Keeling. Councillor Marabardi, did you wish to respond?
• Yeah, thank you, Chair. Just quickly, yeah, as published due to interest of time, but just to stress the point that I mentioned earlier on when I just mentioned my report, I think every part of the borough has a concern in terms of the safety and wellbeing, and obviously this is why knife crime, the initiative that we've put in place to put three knife bins in additionally in terms of the one that we've got already in place and the activities we're looking to put into place and the discussions that I've had since last week to activate and do more is an indication and sign of how seriously we're taking this. Unfortunately, I've had to go to incidents myself and speak to victims and families, and it's not a fortunate thing that anybody wants to do. I recognise the fact that there's obviously more to be done. If I didn't take this seriously enough, I wouldn't be in a position which I am in now, and I understand that there obviously is more to be done, but I recognise that obviously the call to get more knife bins is key, but same again in terms of the preventative work we need to do in terms of working with organisations and obviously community groups, and I'll stress that point once again. So yeah, of course we'll look to deploy more, but I just recognise that there's a lot more groundwork to be done and obviously it just goes back to a point that I made earlier today at the start of this meeting. Thank you.
• Thank you, Councillor Mavridi. Councillor Denikling, do you have a supplementary question?
• Yes, Stratford Olympic Park has the highest amount of knives found in the whole of the borough. I would like to ask the cabinet member if he would work with me to work with private partners in finding a location for this, because I think that's-- - Thank you.
• Without a doubt, I think the key thing as we look at this is the partnership work that we can forge, and I think that's the key thing about if you think these are identifiable areas, by all means, happy to work with everybody involved and anybody else, I extend the invite to work on that. So I hope that helps, thank you.
• Thank you, Councillor Mavridi. I'm now moving to item 13, speeches from members. In accordance with the part four, rules of procedures of the Council's constitution, paragraph 17, two speeches have been accepted, from Councillor Melanie Onovo on the impact of ethnic minority in the UK of far-right rights, Councillor Blossom Young on temporary accommodation. I call first on the Councillor Melanie Onovo, you have up to five minutes. I remind Council there will be no debate after the speech or questions. Melanie, your time starts now.
• The far-right riots that began on the 30th of July were anti-migrant, racist, and thuggish protests. Though they did not come to Newham, as a black woman, I questioned my place in this country. However, that is not the question I should have had. Not whether I belong here, but my question should have been, where our social resilience has gone? Where our social cohesion has gone? Two things in this speech. Firstly, on Newham's community resilience. Secondly, on poverty's relationship with community cohesion. The challenges that we face around health education and poverty are acute and is no stranger to anybody on this council. Newham is incredibly diverse and home to several ethnic, linguistic, and religious backgrounds. This makes us unique in our mandate to have a community that creates resilience and change. Community resilience is being able to respond and withstand and recover from adverse situations with our own resources and expertise and this resilience isn't created by tolerance alone. This resilience is economic and works symbiotically with tolerance. Our borough is projected to have significant demographic change. The speed of social change is a challenge both to central government and to local council. For instance, with us projected to have an older generation becoming the majority group, can we say that, for instance, our healthcare system is prepared for the vital services that need to care for these people? This is not an opportunity for us to criticise Newham Council. If anything, the opposite. We've just ended 14 years of Conservative government, which came with harsh austerity. It made it far more difficult to provide for a borough that was already affected by inequality, by poverty, and yet here we are, we stand today with so much to be proud for in our borough. On the second point, as already mentioned, poverty is rife in Newham and this is an intersectional issue with many low-income families being from minoritised communities, having exceptional needs with physical or mental health and possible special educational needs and disabilities. Social cohesion refers to the extent of connectedness and solidarity among groups in society and a sense of belonging. What significantly inhibits this social cohesion is poverty and a lack of public service provision. Those out on the streets rioting were described by some as predominantly working class, but racism and xenophobia is not a working class issue, it's a systemic one. The real underlying issue here is directly relevant to Newham in that the working class have real grievances with their quality of life and the effects to their material needs as a result of the last Conservative government. The problem is they were told by some irresponsible politicians that that was the fault of migration, that was the fault of asylum seekers, when actually that was a government default on their mandate to protect working class people. Poverty's relationship with social cohesion means that everyone on this council, no matter whether you are in a minority opposition group, should be supporting the administration's efforts for wealth generation in the borough, giving young people opportunities to succeed in education and the workplace, regardless of background and making sure that there is in borough economic opportunities to prevent capital flight of our talent. I sit on the Black Boys Commission. Why is it that black boys are overrepresented in the care system, in exclusion numbers, in pupil referral units, in prison? Can we really claim to have perfect social cohesion when equity at its most basic level isn't being performed? It has been a matter of contention that there should be, that there are more black boys in prison than in university. The fact that a black boy has a higher chance of going to prison than university, isn't that something we lament? Pride flags in Forest Gate defaced, because some people--
• You have 30 seconds.
• On our LGBT community. Attacks on women of ethnic and religious minorities. We in Newham are also having problems with social cohesion. If you want to see how well a local authority is doing, we should look up their least advantage. Are they feeding, are they having a good education? Do they have access to stable employment? And if that is not all there, then maybe there are some issues with community integration. Newham is a borough with a rich history and a deep culture. From our 19th century participation in the Industrial Revolution, to our 20th century growth in our multicultural character and social movements that have paved the way in workers' rights and anti-racism, we need to create the opportunities and circumstances that are conducive to social cohesion.
• Thank you.
• And not be complacent of the fact--
• Thank you, Councillor Maloney.
• That something as awful as took place in cities across the UK could not happen here too. As a girl that went to Kingsford Community School, Brampton Manor, and ended up at Oxford University, being a part of this council is not something that I'd ever envisaged, and I feel that it is a privilege to be here. Thank you very much.
• Thank you. (audience applauding)
• Thank you, Councillor Maloney, on over. I now call upon Councillor Blossom-Young to give her speech, please. You have up to five minutes. Your time begins now.
• Thank you, Chair. Thank you, Chair, colleagues, for the opportunity to address you today. As you're aware, and as the mayor has described earlier, our council is grappling with severe financial challenges, primarily driven by the escalating costs of temporary accommodation. This issue has significant implications for our community, and it's crucial to explore the factors involved and potential solutions. The surge in homeless families and the rapidly rising costs of temporary accommodation are placing immense strain on our budget. This is not just numbers on a spreadsheet. It directly affects our capacity to deliver essential services and support to residents, and could have severe consequences for maintaining and enhancing our community services. But this crisis extends beyond Newham. A report from London Councils last week reveals that local authorities across London face very similar issues. The report estimates a 600 million pound overspend across all services this year, with a projected 700 million pound funding gap next year. This is a systemic issue impacting the capital and beyond. Over the past 14 years, structural underfunding from the previous Conservative government has exacerbated the strain on local services. Local authorities call spending power is now 28% lower in real terms than in 2011, despite a growing population. In London, over 175,000 people are living in temporary accommodation, and that's about one in 50 residents. There is on average at least one homeless child in every London classroom. And the capital accounts for 56% of England's homeless households. The number of families in temporary accommodation has risen by 10% in the past year, and the cost of these accommodations has surged by 40%. London boroughs collectively spend 90 million per month and three million every day. Subsidy rates for temporary accommodation have been frozen by the previous Conservative government at 2011 funding levels, failing to reflect the rising costs over the last 14 years. And the rise in homelessness and associated costs can be attributed to several complex factors. Primarily though, this is down to the cost of living crisis. Policies from the previous administration have exacerbated financial hardships. Many families in Newham, where average incomes are below the London average, are struggling with rising rents. And I agree wholeheartedly with Councillor Anovo about the disproportionate impact of this for minority communities. We have an affordable housing shortage, where demand for affordable housing far exceeds supply. In Newham, this is particularly acute, limiting our ability to provide suitable temporary housing, or indeed permanent social housing. And the impact on families is severe. Temporary accommodation often means overcrowded, unsuitable living conditions within adequate facilities. This instability disrupts children's education and overall wellbeing. With 38,000 households on our social waiting list, the situation will only worsen without a significant increase in housing supply. However, there are promising solutions. Councillor Mohammed has outlined the significant steps this council is already making. We also need to build more affordable homes. Our council is committed to this goal, delivering at least 1,000 homes at social rent through our Affordable Homes for Newham plan, with an additional 43,000 homes of all tenures projected between 2018 and 2033. This ambitious plan is vital to address our housing crisis. And the new Labour government is taking significant steps to tackle the housing crisis. The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will streamline infrastructure and affordable housing development. The English Devolution Bill will empower local leaders in strategic planning. And the Renters' Rights Bill will protect tenants from unfair evictions and excessive rent increases, and extend protections against damper mould to private landlords. We also need fairer funding settlements. Doubling the Homelessness Prevention Grant and removing the 2011 capital... -You have 20 seconds. -30 seconds, Chair, could help alleviate some of the financial pressures faced. -These measures, alongside our local efforts, offer a comprehensive approach to solving the crisis. Addressing both symptoms and root causes will require collaboration between central government, regional authorities, and local councils, including ours. While the situation is challenging, there is a potential path forward. By increasing affordable housing supply, leveraging supportive government policies, and obtaining a fairer funding settlement for local authorities, we can address the temporary housing -- temporary accommodation crisis. As part of a Labour Council working with the Labour government, I am committed to advocating for the necessary resources and policies to support our most vulnerable families and ensure a brighter future for all new residents. -Thank you, Councillor Blossom-Yang. [ Applause ] Thank you. I will now move to Item 14, Political Portionality Allocation of Seeds. The report is outlined on pages 17 to 22 on the supplementary agenda. As a Chair, I move this report. Do I have a seconder, please? Thank you, Councillor Petter. We now move to the debate. Does any member wish to speak? No. Can you now move to the recommendation, which are outlined on page 17 on the supplementary agenda? All those in favor, please raise your hand. Thank you. All those against, please raise your hands. Any abstentions? Thank you. The report has been approved. I'm now moving to Item 15, Code of Conduct Complaints procedures. The report is outlined on pages 22 to 36, the supplementary agenda. As a Chair, I move this report. Do I have a seconder, please? Thank you, Councillor Hoak. We now move to debate. Does any member wish to speak? Can you now move to the recommendation outline on pages 23, supplementary agenda? All those in favor, please raise your hand. Thank you. All those against, please raise your hands. Any abstentions? Thank you. The report has been approved. I'm now moving to Item 16, Motions. There are four listed for consideration of this meeting, namely increasing the quantity and equality of public toilets in Newham, fight child poverty in Newham, London City Airport planning appeal and safeguarding the curfew and quality of life of Newham residents, cracking down the knife crime. An amendment from the Green Group has also been accepted under Rule 20 of Part 4 of the Constitution, the Motion 3, the London City Airport planning appeal and safeguarding the curfew and quality of life of Newham residents. I will remind members of the council procedures rules. 20.1, Points of Order. This relates to an alleged breach of the council rules or procedures of the law. 26, Personal Explanation. This is applied if a member considers they have been misquoted or misunderstood. Motion 1, I call upon Councillor Simon Rask to propose this motion, which is outlined on page 84 to 85 on published agenda. Councillor Simon Rask, you have five minutes. Sorry. Yeah, Councillor, Minister. Thank you, Chair. I would like to bring that in on a record. Our motion... Sorry. Okay. Our motion on a clear cost is being disallowed on this meeting by this Labour-run council, which is very disappointing. Sorry. Residents have a right to know... Sorry, can you slow down, please? It's a point of order. Your motion, that's need to be speak to the module of research. Once again, democracy has been denied here. Yes. The opposition voice has been denied. Sorry, Councillor. Points of order are either on a point of law or a breach of the constitution, and what you're describing isn't any of those. So it was ruled out of order because it didn't comply with the criteria as set out in the constitution, and that is something offline to discuss with myself. Thank you. All right, Chair. Thank you. Thank you. Councillor Simon Rask, you have five minutes to propose your motion. Your time's beginning now. Thank you, Chair. Simon Rask has already been pointed out, Councillor Plaster-West in Canningtown East. I'm talking regarding the motion, which is the first motion tonight, which has been circulated with the older papers and as move of the motion. The council notes that the first public toilets were installed back in 1423, a 128-seat toilet hanging over the River Thames at the mouth of the rule book, which is in the city of London, was established by London's first mayor, Dick Whittington. That's the one with the cat. It was divided into 64 seats for men and the same for women and is believed to be the first segregated public toilet. And the first flushing public toilets installed in London were in the Great Exhibition, Crystal Palace in 1851. Brief history lesson over. Public toilets are still as important today, especially for the elderly, parents with young children and people with disabilities, who shockingly are having unnecessary and often very painful surgery due to the lack of public provision of toilets. Other people who are disproportionately affected by the lack of public loads include those who suffer from bowel and bladder problems and obviously include various cancers with bowel and bladder. More than that's up to 300,000 people that are affected by inflammatory bowel disease in the UK alone. And two out of 10 people are affected by irritable bowel syndrome, a condition nearly everyone is likely to encounter at some point or at the other end, of course. I have first knowledge of the experience as a volunteer walk leader who, on the regular basis, go out in various parks with elderly residents and we often have to get our walk short due to the fact that there's lack of toilet facilities within our route. This council resolves to review the council's current community public toilet scheme and develop an annual work plan to encourage your introduction of more community toilets. Review all council properties and assess the viability of opening toilet facilities to the public. Agree the principles and develop an agreed minimum design standard for the new build of public toilets that is incorporated in all appropriate planning applications. Use its influence with partner agencies and those that it commissions to encourage them to also make accessible and support this upkeep and maintenance of the public toilets. Please vote in favour of these motions in taking steps in improving available toilets within the London Borough in the room. Thank you.
• Thank you, Councillor. (audience applauding) Is there a seconder for this motion, please? Councillor Femi for the love. (gavel banging)
• You have three minutes.
• Can you hear me? Yeah. My name is Femi Falola, one of the East Arm Councilors. I'd like to employ you to support this motion about a public toilet. Recently, we had in the news that there's a lady caught in Stratford using a phone booth to ease herself. She was arrested by the police. And the message was that I have to use it because there's no public toilet. Now, making the best out of the bad situation. I know the council is doing a lot to improve the well-being of the people. But like Oliver, we have to ask for more. We need public toilet in our street, high street, in our park. And it's not just for old people, it's for us as well. Because what happened is that most of these people, when there's lack of public toilet, they create their own public toilet. The corner of our street, the highways, whenever people, it's a malnation, when people want to use the toilet, you can't stop them from using the toilet. You can't stop them from using the public place for a public toilet. And also, the maintenance of our current public, as well, toilet, like the one in Stratford, down here in the mall. The public toilet, they are open 10 o'clock and close five o'clock. Now, the traders are there from seven or eight o'clock in the morning. And Salisbury, one of the store, one of the outlets in that mall closes 10 p.m. So what happened is that people that comes after that, hours after this public toilet is closed, they use the corner, they use all the area as a public toilet. Now, we cannot overemphasize the need for it and its risk of public health when people are using the public place as a public toilet. So I will employ you, Comrade, to support this motion.
• Thank you. - Thank you. (audience applauding)
• We now move to the debate. Members, you have up to three minutes each speaker. Now, Councilor Susan Master, Councilor Danny Keeling, Councilor Neil Olsen, is there any other members? Raise their hand, no.
• Thank you, Chair. Councilor Susan Masters, East Ham South. So Madam Chair, Mayor and esteemed Newham Councilor colleagues, I'm not one for long speeches, but as Chair of Health and Adult Social Care Scrutiny, I'm flushed to support this motion. Access, not just to toilets, but to the washing facilities and water that accompany this provision is a key factor in the protection of public health. Street and park urination is a regular complaint from residents and yet, as Councilor Falola's just laid out, the lack of availability of local toilets makes such behaviors inevitable, especially in a society served by app-based drivers and livers who lack local facilities. I'm proud that in Central Park, East Ham is one of the borough's changing places toilets, a fully accessible cubicle that offers full facilities for residents with a high level of disability. I'm aware that many of our supermarkets and libraries also provide free customer facilities in what should be a safe and inclusive space, but also that many other residents aren't as aware of our full offer. So I would hope that any revisiting of our community toilet scheme could include the provision of maps, detailing provision of public toilets, if necessary with hours of operation and facility details. I realize too that times are hard for local government finances, so when it comes to spending a penny, I would suggest that as a key consideration in negotiating still and section 106 payments for new developments, possibly for commitment to accessible provision within an agreed distance. When it comes to resident wishes, this is a proposal on which we can't lose. (audience applauding)
• Thank you, Councillor Susan Musta, Councillor Jenny Kaling.
• Papers are flying, Danny.
• Sorry, I saw Councillor Rush like this 'cause it was so low. Thank you, Councillor Rush, for bringing this motion forward. It's been quite a while on the waiting list, which we obviously will be supporting tonight. We know this is yet another inequality crisis in our borough with nowhere enough being done to address it. Every resident in London deserves to be able to go out their day confidently without having to worry about where and when the next opportunity is to use the toilet. The Green Group are very well versed in the need for more public toilets with Green Champion in London Assembly Member Caroline Russell consistently holding the Mayor of London to account in this. She even hosted an event with Age UK at City Hall and released a cross-party report called the Toilet Paper, which stated of the 3,504 Londoners that were surveyed, 91.3% of the respondents do not feel toilet provision is adequate. She was also instrumental in putting together the London Loo League table, which states Newham has the largest number of TFL stations without accessible toilets. While it's true that the Elizabeth Line has the best toilet access of any line, it is a disgrace that new Elizabeth Line stations were built so recently here without access to toilets. Have we still not learned our lesson here? Community toilets can be a helpful add-on for people who have the privilege to feel confident to walk into a business and use the Loo, but they can never replace free public toilets that support the many Londoners with health conditions, and they provide crucial access to a toilet for them to travel with confidence and dignity. People with conditions like Crohn's disease, receiving treatment for prostate cancer, or whom are pregnant, or travelling with small children all need and deserve access to public toilets that are free to use. This motion gives a great foundation to making the changes needed, but further work must be done. My recommendations will be giving this piece of work to the health and social care scrutiny when it is complete, and also passing our report to City Hall. We need to push TFL stations and the borough to ensure accessible toilets are available for use, and those that are on Council-owned land are open for longer hours. I'm really glad that today we're taking action rather than crossing our legs and doing nothing about it.
• Thank you. (audience applauding)
• Councillor Neil Wilson, Councillor in Plasto South, and in this capacity, cabinet member for health and adult social care. I've been waiting so long, I think, for this motion to come to this Council. It reminds me of the motion around dentistry that's already been praised in other Quarters, not least last week. So we are a campaign in Council. I want to put on record that I think it's important for all the many medical conditions that have been outlined, that I don't wanna go too much into anecdote, but one of the saddest bits of casework I had was when somebody got a parking ticket for parking with a friend in a zone because it was the only place where their disabled son could actually get to a public toilet. There's this famous thing about there's no public transport toilet between Barking Station and Liverpool Street. We live in a society where we've often taken away things from people. The community public toilet scheme currently I think needs very clearly reviewing. We've had not just an anecdote in this, but concrete evidence of where people have been discouraged to develop toilet facilities in the community scheme because of the way we've set it up. So I welcome this resolution. I also welcome the many references to the parks because there's a clear evidence base to say that where there are toilets, people will use our parks. And obviously speaking as a cabinet member for health and adults, I want people to use our parks more alongside our colleagues in the parks team. And I just want to pay tribute to them where we have opened one recently in Littleilford Park to address both the funding, but also the ASB in the area. So much relies on the provision of infrastructure like toilets. So I welcome this motion. And I do welcome the colleagues across the, I was gonna say across the floor, but you know from other parties who are suggesting that we keep the pressure on partner agencies. I share the concerns about TFL. I think it's a rather obscure body sometimes at the best time. But it is important that as Councillor Masters did highlight that despite our financial constraints and toilets and their upkeep is very, it's been a great source of comparison in past budgets about the cost of them. I think it's important that we address not just all the relevant groups who are affected, but to make certain that we are an inclusive borough. And in that regards, we are also considering along with a toilet strategy, the more inclusion of gender issues around toilet provision.
• Thank you, Councillor Nielsen.
• Thanks, Chair.
• Thank you. (audience applauding) Is there any other members who wish to speak? Councillor Mirza.
• Thank you, Chair. And thank you, Councillor Simon-Raj, to bring this motion. Newham Independence support this motion. And going further, I think we do need the toilets facilities in the parks as well, as Councillor Neil Wilson just mentioned. During the summer, I have been approached by many constituent who was complaining about lack of facility in the prairie park. And also, I think we do need toilets facilities near to stations, because we see every other time we go past by the station, people are urinating, there's no facilities for the ordinary member of the public. Thank you, I support this motion.
• Thank you, Councillor Mirza. (audience applauding) Councillor Simon-Raj, you have right to reply. Do you wish to say anything further?
• Thank you, Councillor Simon-Raj. We'll now move to the vote. All those in favor, please raise your hands. Thank you. All those against, please raise your hands. Any abstentions? Thank you very much. That's been carried out. Motion two. (audience applauding) I call upon Councillor Nate Higgins to propose your motion, which is outlined on pages 85 to 87 on the published agenda. Councillor Higgins. You have up to five minutes, and your time begin now. Can I ask the technical people, peer system people, to set the mic for the Councillor Higgins, please? I think it's falling down, it's not fixed properly. Thank you. Thank you. Your time's beginning now.
• Okay. How about that? Can you hear me? - Yes, we can hear you.
• Didn't expect cheers from Weber for hearing me, but thank you. Councillor Nate Higgins, Stratford Olympic Park, and leader of the Green Group. The two-child benefit cap is cruel. No child should be punished because their parents can't afford to support them. No child should go hungry, no child should starve, no child should have to know poverty. No pregnant woman should have to face breaching their faith because their money simply doesn't stretch far enough for another child. The Tories say they introduced this policy because families receiving benefits should be forced to face the same financial decisions other families do when having a child. But no child chooses to be born. No child chooses to starve. That is the false prospectus the Labour government has sadly endorsed. We know that scrapping the cap could lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty and simply taxing the unearned wealth like earned income and tackling tax avoidance could more than fund it. If rich people can afford to corrupt our politicians by showering them with VIP tickets and thousands of pounds worth of clothes and glasses, they can afford to pay their fair share in taxes. But Labour sources in government are calling this a virility test for the new government. I hope everyone agrees with me. That is disgusting. Some outside this room seem to be treating child poverty like a political game. That is frightening. I am a survivor of child poverty. I grew up with a disabled Muslim mum in a household with seven children. She didn't choose to have so many children, but multi-child births and her religious beliefs brought me into this world. My earliest memories include my bed being taken away by Bright House while I was in primary school, cleaning dishes at my primary school's breakfast club to earn a free spot so that we didn't go hungry and being bullied for it, terrified to tell my mum after I lost my school blazer, wearing the same uniform for most of secondary school, being left out of school trips because of not being able to afford the fee and watching my mum cry into her purse. This isn't a game for me. This isn't a game for Newham's children. And I grew up under the previous Labour government before the two-child cap. I cannot imagine how much worse things would have been with the child benefit she received slashed by the Tory two-child benefit cap. I am confident I could not have made it here today if I had grown up under this policy. Now, today, under the two-child benefit cap, 50% of children in Newham live in poverty. 32% of children are facing food insecurity. Bangladeshi and Pakistani communities, which make up so much of our vibrant community in Newham, are disproportionately impacted by this cap. The economic and societal impacts of child poverty cost the UK £39 billion every year. If the moral case for scrapping the cap somehow doesn't convince you, the economic case is clear. I'm proud that campaigning on the cap by Green and Labour MPs have led to an announcement of a new child poverty unit. But if you had told me seven Labour MPs had been suspended, I would never, in a million years, have guessed it was for failing to vote in support of the two-child benefit cap. Last month, Newham Labour reiterated their opposition to the cap in response to my question. Now is the time for this borough to tell this child poverty unit what it needs to hear. The two-child benefit cap must go. Newham led the way on a free school meal programme for primary school children, which is now a national movement. Research by the National Education Union as part of their No Child Left Behind campaign has found 71% of the public support extending free school meals to all children. The public knows what should be obvious. Children don't stop needing to eat when they start secondary school. Tower Hamlets is already funding free school meals for secondary school children too. We cannot allow our children to be left behind. We know the Conservative government decimated local government finance, but Newham has been spending £6 million per year on the primary school Eat for Free programme, which is now funded by the Mayor of London. It is vital this funding remains dedicated to tackling child poverty. And now is exactly the time to put the pressure on Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves to provide the funding we need to continue leading the way on fighting poverty. Councillors have a choice tonight. For all the talk of difficult decisions, this is not one. Vote to take action against child poverty now. Thank you. - Thank you, Councillor Haynes. (audience applauding) Is there a seconder for this motion? Councillor Jenny Kaling. You have three minutes to speak.
• One major thing we learnt in this general election is that lifting children out of poverty is not a priority for this government. And the Labour Party have consciously chose to drive kids into hardship and squalor by keeping actively disgusting Conservative policies with no intentions to reverse it. The two-child cap that is in question here affects 450,000 households, drives more than quarter of a million children below the poverty line, furthermore pushes 800,000 children into further hardship, and of those, 57% of them have at least one parent in work. Research from the London School of Economics has found that this policy has not pushed people into work as intended by the Tories, but in fact the opposite, making it harder for parents. We all want the best for children, and they need the best start in life. Unfortunately, this is what they're currently faced with in the end. The worst borough in London for rough sleeping, temporary accommodation, evictions, premature mortality, income deprivation, one of the worst poverty rates in London, and one of the worst child poverty rates in London too. We as councillors should know our residents better than anyone. We should know the situations that they are in and the struggles they go through. Our residents do not have it easy and need all the help and supports that they can get. This Labour government is morally bankrupt from the get-go. They do not change their stance on this, and will just show the kind of government they really are. Just as austerity was deemed as a cruel choice, so is the two-child cap. Colleagues, I ask you to vote for this motion for our residents and the children that we are here to represent, giving them the best start in life. (audience applauding)
• Thank you. We now move to the debate. Members, you have up to three minutes each to speak. Councillor Sofia Nakhvi.
• Councillor Sofia Nakhvi, Plaster North. As an educationist and mother, I am in strong support of this motion to extend free school meals to secondary schools. This motion is vital in addressing the deep inequalities that persist in Newham. Where far too many children are living in poverty, the E for Free programme has been a lifeline for primary school children, ensuring that every child has access to nutritious meals, but our responsibility doesn't end there. Expanding free school meals to secondary school is a logical and necessary next step in our commitment to tackling child poverty. I have seen firsthand the impact of children not having the finances to have a basic meal, and it is their right to do so. We have been elected to make a difference and it's our responsibility. Now that funding for primary school meals is secured through the Mayor of London, the six million previously allocated can be reinvested into extending this programme to secondary school, rather than being redirected elsewhere. This ensures that the fight against child poverty continues with the focus it demands. It has given us the opportunity to help more children, and this shouldn't be something we take for granted. This motion prioritises fairness, equality, and wellbeing for children across Newham. By supporting it, we commit to building a future where no child goes hungry and is held back by poverty. It's time to ensure that free school meals are available for all children, no matter their age, and to make child poverty a thing of the past. Thank you. (audience applauding)
• Thank you, Councillor Sufjanagmi. Councillor Ellen Griffith. (coughing)
• Okay, Councillor Ellen Griffiths from Canning Town South Ward. I'll be speaking against this motion very firmly. Now, from my childhood, I did not have the hardship designed explained by the Green Mover, and that's because growing up in two small mining towns, both my parents were school teachers, and as such, among the best educated and best paid people in the community. But it wasn't always like that. My dad went through the war on free dinners, and he was the only one in the sixth one. He didn't talk about that very often, but occasionally, he made some key, he made some pointed comments. As such, he had about nearly twice as many years of full-time education as his older half-brothers and half-sister. So those years of free school meals were a hand up, not a hand out. They didn't stop him being poor when he was a childhood, but they gave him the opportunities to learn, qualify, and earn a good living later. So what's actually in the Green Motion? I've been through a marksman of it. There are 11 proposals for public spending, none of them with a cost, and all of them paid for children who are in poverty and not to get them out of poverty. Failed the test of being a hand up rather than a hand out. And both Green Councils spoke about parents of poor children, but none of that is in the motion either. Meanwhile, what's going on in government? There's cross-government working on developing a strategy on child poverty. It's not a straightforward subject. It's complicated. Already in parliament, there's the Renters' Rights Bill, which will abolish no-fault evictions, a huge step forward for security of the home and therefore of income. There's bills coming forward on rights at work to improve job security and therefore income. And then there's temporary accommodation. Now, some of us know people who grew up in temporary accommodation and went to university, but not many. So getting people out of temporary accommodation into secure accommodation is crucial. And all those things I've listed are a hand up and not a hand out. They are investments in people's future that will--
• You have 25 seconds.
• That we'll pay back later. And the council's angle is already doing other things, London Living Wage, training and skills. Those kind of things are the way forward. Changing nothing but just spending more money on the problem is not. (audience applauding)
• Thank you. Councillor Mahmoud Mirza.
• Thank you, Chair. I wasn't going to speak on this motion, but it's very important. And I think I will have a conflict of interest in there. My child is a secondary school child, going to secondary school in Brampton Manor Academy. I know how much it cost. And my wife is a teacher as well. And she tells me the stories of the children. Some of the children, they can only have the proper meal, which is just a school meal. Some of the children cannot have a proper meal at home. It's very crucial for our young generation to have that opportunity. Second thing in the motion, it's about two child benefit care. I think the minorities like aging community is going to be left out because we have traditionally have a big families. And London Borough of Newham is very much diverse community and our residents will be going to be affected. And I'm afraid the Labour Party, which meant to be the party for the working class people, the party for the trade unionist, is bringing the motion to scrap this cap on the child benefit. It's a shame that the Labour government is not caring for our pensioner. This year about the winter fuel allowance has been cut. The Councillor, Ellen Griffith, mentioned about not costing. I think being the sixth richest country in the world, we have got resources. If we have the resources to fund the wars, if we have resources to send the 3.5 billion pounds every year to Ukraine to fund the war, we should have money to feed our children. We should have some money to bring our children out of the poverty. I will support this motion, Chair. Thank you.
• Thank you. Councillor Sarah Ruiz.
• Councillor Sarah Ruiz, cabinet lead for children education, environments and sustainable transport. Providing free school meals for every child and young person in school, in this current financial climate is not achievable. Yes, we allocated 6 million for eco-free in our last year's budget, as we have done for many years. But without that funding from the Mayor of London, I think we would have to be making some really difficult decisions this year. 6 million pounds does not cover the cost of eco-free, nor does the Mayor of London's money that he allocates us provide the full cost for our free school meals. Schools have to top up that budget, and with their ever dwindling budgets this year, they would find having to find any more money really, really difficult. Free school meals are not the only way in which we as a council continue to support our children and our families. It is just one of a number of ways. Our Holiday Action Activities Fund provides activities, hot food and food vouchers for all children and young people in receipt of free school meals at every single holiday. We support the Newham Food Alliance, who distributes tons of free food every single week. We administer the Household Support Fund, again supporting our families. We support our Newham Work, our Newham money, both actively working to put more money into the pockets of our residents. We as a council are a London Living Wage employer, and actively campaign for others in Newham to join us. However, we will continue to campaign for universal free school meals for all our children and young people, and we will do that hopefully with the new government, but unless it is recognised of the additional funding it will take, that is not achievable by Newham Council in its own.
• Thank you sir. I've got Councillor Miras Patel, then I've got Councillor Eric Choudry, then I've got Councillor Melanie Onigbo. May I ask Councillor Miras Patel?
• Thank you chair. Most of my points have actually been addressed, so for the interest of time, I think it's important for all of us to take time, I won't bore members with the points that have already been raised, but just to echo Councillor Griffiths' points and Councillor Ruiz's points as well, this motion actually doesn't specify the funding of how this would be achieved, and the Green group and the Newham Independent group do not actually clarify exactly how they would actually achieve this. And I do want to actually make a point of order as well. I do believe that irrelevant points such as funding wars and the winter fuel elements around pensioners et cetera is not really relevant to this chair. And finally, a lot of conversations happening about political gain, and this is not for political gain, but I see nothing but political gain being scored by the Greens and this Newham Independent group. Correct me if I'm wrong, thank you very much. (audience applauding)
• Thank you Councillor Miras Patel, Councillor Egan-Childrie.
• I'd like to speak briefly in favour of this motion which asks the council to call upon the government to remove the two-child benefit cap. Removing a two-child benefit cap should be an open and shut case. It is immoral to penalise families who happen to have more than two children. But if you don't accept the moral case, you should listen to the expert case which has been made by many organisations and individuals that the council should listen to. Listen to the Trades Union Congress who have called to remove the two-child limit and the arbitrary benefit cap in its report a replacement for universal credit. Listen to the Resolution Foundation who described the cap as catastrophic and say the two-child limit results in low-income families losing £3,200 a year for any third or subsequent child. They described the two and a half billion required to abolish it as low compared to the harm the policy causes. According to their analysis, if abolished today, 490,000 children will be lifted out of poverty. Listen to the Institute for Fiscal Studies who highlight that when fully rolled out, the two-child limit will affect three million children in total and that two in five children living in families of Bangladeshi and Pakistani heritage will be affected. Listen to Save the Children who call this the sibling tax and state that removing the two-child limit would be an immediate way to dramatically reduce child poverty. Listen to the Archbishop of Canterbury who said and I quote, the two-child limit falls short of our values as a society. It denies the truth that all children are of equal and immeasurable worth and will have an impact on their long-term health, well-being and educational outcomes. Shamefully, he added, children from ethnic minorities and homes where someone is disabled are most affected. Which of these people are wrong? The TUC, the Resolution Foundation, the IFS, Save the Children, or the Archbishop of Canterbury, or have we still had enough of experts? I would ask colleagues to be brave and take a stand for what they know to be right and back the call to remove the two-child benefit cap. (audience applauding)
• Thank you, Councillor Aichalji, Councillor Meneally, honorable. Councillor Islam, do you used to speak? (speaking off mic)
• Chair, I actually wanted to do a speech, but I'm looking at the time, so could we go straight to the vote?
• Thank you, I'm mindful of the time. So can I ask-- - If not, I can do my speech anyway, it's not a problem, so sure.
• Yes, so is that everybody agree? So thank you. Councillor Haggard, you have right to reply, do you wish to say anything further?
• Thank you, Chair. Mostly, hmm, I'm actually just quite disappointed by some of what we've heard from Labour this evening. You know, in the past, I've somewhat understood the fear to take action in this area, you know, concern about being told off by senior people at Labour for breaking the line on their policy or fear about where the money would come from but what we've heard from Councillor Griffiths is that they think vital support to lift children out of poverty is a handout. To quote a very wise woman, Keir Starmer said he's changed the Labour Party, he's right. He's changed them into the Conservatives. I want to thank Councillor Griffiths for being honest with residents this evening about why the Labour Party opposes action on child poverty. It's not about money not being available, it's just clear that in their minds, these children are not deserving of the support that they need. Labour asks how we'd fund it. This motion doesn't ask the council to spend a single penny, it asks the council to get behind campaigns that many of which Councillor Chaudry mentioned and particularly the National Education Union for spending national money on free school meals. The Labour administration talks a lot about the previous administration, the Robin Wells administration and a lot of the negative sides of that administration and I agree with many of those, but that's the administration introduced Eat for Free. This is an administration that's now calling that a handout. That is disgusting. It's clear that this is not about how this is being funded. We funded it in our budget amendment to the annual budget this year. They voted against it then, they'll vote against it again and again and again and residents are waking up to it. This is your last chance, Councillors, to not make this mistake of falling into the conservative lies about how funding works and I urge Councillors to take a stand now against child poverty. Thank you.
• Thank you, Councillor Higgins. Councillor Denny, Councillor Denny. I would like to ask for the 23.5 for the constitution, asking for a recorded vote on any child poverty motion, please.
• Members.
• Okay, so then members. Okay, so we will need to proceed to that.
• What I'm gonna say, I'm gonna ask all members to vote on it, to agree whether they would like to have a recorded vote.
• It's just six members, yeah, that's right, that's right. So what we need to do, six members need to rise to their feet and I'm just reading it out and the names for and against the motion or amendment or abstaining from voting will be taken down in writing and entered into the minutes. Recorded votes are always taken. Okay, that's about council budget. Okay, so that's fine. So that's six there, yep, okay. Okay, we're just getting that all together. One moment.
• You can, yeah. I hand over to Konrad, yeah.
• Okay, I'm now going to read out the list of.
• Yes, councils to pressure.
• No, what the rules are by 9.15, then a motion, if it's going to be moved, to suspend standing orders and then if it is, then you can extend the meeting by 30 minutes maximum to 10 o'clock, but that's with the agreement of the meeting. We're not at that juncture yet at 9.15, so.
• Can you have one meeting please?
• Yes. (muffled speaking)
• Sorry, with them, yes, understand, understand. What happened is there's been changes to the council procedure rules. These came into force, yes, that's right. So they've been on the books, as it were, since the 23rd of May. So the last meeting the members attended in July, it was under this new procedure and that is the procedure. Yeah, that's what it is now. Okay, thank you.
• Okay, I'm now going to proceed to take the recorded vote. I'm sorry, I don't have a list of members in alphabetical order, so I'm going to take them in the list that they're ordered in the sheet in front of me, which starts to my left. So I'll start with Mayor Fias.
• I am for Labour's strategy to reduce child poverty in this country. I'm against, I am against, I am against, I am against a narrow fight child poverty motion brought forward by the Greens. (muffled speaking)
• I'd like to carry on reading out the list of members, please, this will also include members who are not present. I'm just going to go through the list as I have it. So Councillor Muhammad Ghani.
• Not in.
• Not present. Councillor Shantou Ferdous.
• She's there. (muffled speaking) (muffled speaking)
• Yeah, you have raised your point. Can I chair the meeting, please? (muffled speaking) Thank you. I'll hand over to Connor to record the vote by calling the names. So I will be grateful if you could kindly say yes or no for the motion in favour, or against, please, thank you.
• Thank you, chair.
• Councillor Femi Falola. (muffled speaking) Councillor Maryam Darwood, I think is not present.
• She's not in.
• Councillor Liz Cronin. Councillor Caroline Corbin. Not present. Councillor Rita Chadder. Councillor Nun Begum.
• She's not there.
• Not present. Councillor Saeed Bashar.
• He's not there.
• Councillor Stephanie Garfield and Councillor Joshua Garfield, I can see are not there. Councillor Musawara Lamb, I think is not present.
• No.
• Councillor Achtharola Lamb.
• He's not there.
• Not present. Councillor John Whitworth.
• Yeah.
• Councillor Madeleine Saly-Pontin. Not present. Councillor Miraj Patel. Councillor John Morris. Councillor Mumtaz Khan.
• Yes.
• Councillor Sabia Caroli. Councillor Anne Easter.
• Yes.
• Councillor Rohit Dasgupta.
• Yes.
• Councillor Steve Brachel.
• Yes.
• Councillor Carolina Deja.
• Yes.
• Councillor Anam Islam.
• Yes.
• Councillor Jennifer Bailey.
• Yes.
• Councillor Sarah Ruiz.
• Yes.
• Councillor Amar Verdi. Councillor Neil Wilson. Councillor Shabam Mohammed. Councillor Charlene McLean. Councillor Zulfika Ali. Councillor Mehmoud Mirza. Councillor Sophia Nakri. Councillor Zouba Galamousin. Councillor Lakhmini Shah.
• Not present.
• Not present. Councillor Susan Masters.
• Not present.
• Councillor Terry Paul.
• Not present.
• Not here. Councillor Anthony McCormant.
• Not present.
• Councillor Nate, excuse me, Councillor Nate Higgins.
• Not present.
• Councillor Danny Keeling.
• Not present.
• Councillor Arik Chow. Councillor Belgica Guana.
• Not present.
• Excuse me a moment. Councillor Tony Wilson I think is not present.
• No.
• Councillor Rachel Tripp I think is not present. - She's not in.
• Councillor John Gray.
• Not present.
• Councillor James Beckles. Councillor Carleen Leifakwe.
• Not present.
• Councillor Joy Leguda I think with an apology. Councillor Lester Hudson. Not present. Councillor Dina Hossain.
• Not in.
• Councillor Imam Haq. Councillor Alan Griffiths.
• Not present.
• Councillor Louis Godfrey.
• Not present.
• Councillor Larissa Jalakshaya.
• Not present.
• Councillor Blossom Young.
• Not present.
• Councillor Winston Vaughan.
• Not present.
• Councillor Harvinder Singh Verdi.
• Not present.
• Councillor Simon Rush.
• Not present.
• Councillor Mujibur Rahman.
• Not present.
• Councillor Celine Patel.
• Not in.
• Not present, okay. Councillor Melanie Inouye.
• Not present.
• Councillor Thelma O'Dowie. Councillor Jemima McColmont.
• Not present.
• Councillor Pushpa Mukwana.
• Not present.
• Councillor Jane Lofthouse.
• Not present.
• Are there any councillors whose name I've neglected to call out in the vote?
• No, I don't think so.
• Apologies for any mispronunciation of any names. What's the outcome of the vote, please?
• One moment. Thank you, Chair, I'll just pass this to the acting... Pardon?
• Sorry?
• I'm just announcing the next stage. I'm just going to pass this to the acting chief executive to declare the result, thank you.
• Okay, so the outcome of the vote is that there are 27 votes against, there are three abstentions, and six votes for, the motion is therefore lost. Thank you.
• Thank you, Conan. I'll call, I'll move to the motion three now. I call upon Councillor Anne Easter to propose her motion, which is outlined on page 87 and 89.
• Yeah, could I just ask, oh brilliant, I was just going to ask all members that declared their declaration of interest earlier to depart, thank you. And if a member of Democratic Services could just, at the appropriate juncture, just let members know when they can return, that would be brilliant, thank you.
• Are they all gone? Councillor Anne Easter, you have five minutes to begin now.
• Thank you, I'm Anne Easter, one of the Councillors for Royal Albert Ward. In preparation for this evening's debate, I read the story of the London City Airport, fascinating, and I commend it to you. Created at the instigation of the chair of the LDDC Regeneration Programme at the time, a site of about 150 acres in Royal Docks was chosen, and building began in 1986. Now it's the fifth busiest London airport after Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and Luton, and at the last count employs about 2,500 people, 42% of whom live in Newham. Passengers depart and arrive from all sorts of destinations, some glad of the airport's proximity to the City of London's financial--
• Councillor Anne Easter, can I stop you for a minute, please, because we are coming to quarter past nine, and if you need to extend the time, I'm asking the members, you need to propose it now and agree by now, by half an hour you can extend the time.
• So, if members are, if you would, if it's being moved and proposed to suspend standard orders under 8.3, and then to afford the meeting to continue for a further 30 minutes at the half nine juncture.
• Sorry, Nate, you were saying something. You're proposing to extend the time. Any other members wish to speak?
• Seconder.
• Is there a seconder?
• I seconded the proposition to extend the time.
• So, sorry, I think there's some confusion here. You have proposed it, and Councillor Danny Keelings has seconded, so we are extending the time for a 30, extra 30 minutes. Sorry?
• So, need to vote on it now.
• So, I'm gonna go for a vote. The members who are agreeing to extend another 30 minutes can you raise your hands, please? The members are against of extending another 30 minutes, please raise your hands. All right, therefore, we are extending another 30 minutes, so we can continue another four minutes. Councillor Hannon, you still have only four minutes left to propose, but you won't have the time to debate your motion.
• Sorry, Chair, so just to correct you, so we still have 'til half past nine, but members have voted not to suspend standard orders beyond that, so we've got until half.
• Half nine. - Thank you.
• There, I was just getting in me flow there, as well. There we are, where were we? Well, we were talking about where these people come from, where they go to. Some of them are delighted to be near the City of London with its financial industry. Others go for business within Britain, and for leisure both in and out of Britain. You can go to Edinburgh, you can go to Mallorca, whatever takes your fancy. But when I read the story of London City Airport, I was reminded of that playground game we used to play. Do you remember Grandmother's Footsteps, where one person has her back to the others, who attempt to reach her without her noticing? Every time she turns around, the players have got a little nearer. But remember, Grandma is always right. And it's that sort of game that the airport has played with us over the years, there's been an insidious creep. More flights, more passengers, more noise. Newham Council has a stated ambition of becoming carbon net zero by 2030, because we recognise the unequal impact of climate change for our residents. And we continue to lobby and campaign to encourage other modes of transport, enabling inclusive growth, and just transition to a better life. London City Airport is not without its value, but the cost of that is disproportionate for our residents. Already, increased flights leads to additional cars, some waiting around our streets for pickup, and the effect of pollution in the air from them and the aircraft makes our atmosphere more toxic and physically dangerous. But to my mind, it's the noise which is especially damaging towards residents' health and wellbeing. Come and visit, come to my ward, and hear how, with monotonous regularity, the noise of taking off and landing planes banish conversation and all conscious thought for a few seconds, several times an hour. This motion comes today because Newham Council has successfully restrained the growth of the airport, and I feel we must continue to limit its activities. Seen, unseen, and heard, for the sake of our residents' wellbeing. I therefore propose that this council resolves to write a letter to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities, and Local Government, and to the Secretary of State for Transport, to urge them to resist any attempts by London City Airport to remove that precious 24-hour weekend air flight curfew which is in place. Tasked officers to consider all options available to them to challenge the decision made by the government.
• Thank you, Councillor Lannister.
• And to lobby government to change its policy approach to air travel, aviation, and airport expansion in response to the climate change in ways that enable inclusive growth and a just transition. I move this motion.
• Thank you. (audience applauds) Is there a seconder for this motion? Councillor Steve Bush.
• Thank you, Chair. Councillor Steve Brashaw from Royal Victoria Ward. Dear colleagues, firstly I would like to thank Newham's Strategic Development Committee, the mayor of Newham, the mayor of London, and our Labour councillors for helping our residents keep the 24-hour curfew on flights. This will mean that from 12.30 Saturday until 12.30 on Sunday, we keep our quiet time which is so valuable to our residents. As my colleague, Councillor Easter has stated, we are disappointed that part of the airport's appeal was upheld, specifically the rising passenger numbers and an increase in flights. And Councillor Easter also eloquently stated what we propose to do about that. I have read the amendment by the Green Group. Besides it being overtly political in nature and a love letter to their Green colleagues, it is, in my opinion, financially illiterate. Clutching at imaginary job figures whilst ignoring the economic progress the airport has contributed to. It is all part of a well-established Green shoddy politics to sow division rather than find real-world solutions to problems, like plain politics with child poverty. That's pretty low. But don't just believe me. Look at the Green London mayoral results. Over the last five years, their vote went down by 53,000 votes. Londoners are saying no to their ideas, so why should we listen to them? I'm now gonna tell you something that might surprise you, especially as many of you know how visceral I have been in my condemnation of airport expansion. I don't hate City Airport. I don't hate City Airport, I just don't want it to grow. I don't hate City Airport because it's helped drive investment in the local area. I just don't want it to get bigger. I don't hate the airport because it answered the call as what do we do with the derelict docks? I just don't want it to pave over the docks it helped regenerate. I don't hate the airport because it's the only truly London airport. I just don't want more flights. I don't hate the airport because it's got one of the fastest check-in service I've ever known. I just don't want to be woken up by planes every morning. I don't hate the airport but we need it to be a better neighbor. We need it to deliver quieter and more fuel efficient planes and not tie those in to removing our quiet window.
• You have 20 seconds.
• I don't hate the airport because it employs over 2,500 employees who work on the site. 2,500 jobs, 2,500 careers, wages, family supported and the ability to put food on those family tables. As a labor council we are steadfast in opposing city airport expansion and we'll do everything we can to do this without harming the economic progress of our borough.
• Your time is up. Thank you.
• And I happily commend this motion to the council.
• Thank you Councillor Stavrosia. (audience applauds) Councillor Tegan as you can be seeing the time we've got only five minutes so I'm going to ask to go for straight to vote for amendments. We don't have much time. So I've got three minutes so if we...
• Thank you chair. One of the first acts of the labor government has been to overrule local residents in pushing through this expansion which residents and councilors overwhelmingly reject. For all the airport claims to care about the community it has imposed itself upon, as soon as we tell them no, they exclude us from the conversation altogether. Just like the dreadful Silvertown Tunnel, Newham residents are being told we have no voice. We know it's not a coincidence that a borough where 50% of children live in poverty with some of the most ethnically diverse communities in the country that we repeatedly ignored. Over 100 people in Newham die every year due to our toxic air. 100 lives lost, blood on the hands of countless corporations just like London City Airport, too obsessed with profit to reckon with the harm they inflict. The labor motion acknowledges that the decision of their government will have implications for climate change. The government's own climate change committee has said there must be no net airport expansion if we are to meet our net zero goals. This is a climate-denying decision. At the original hearing of the application, I said in a sensible world we'd be discussing our plans to close the airport and to build thousands of homes in a brand new community that Londoners so desperately need. We must take a stand against the never-ending incrementalism of airport extension. That's why Greens are asking the council to endorse our ongoing campaign to redevelop London City Airport. A quarter of flights left London City Airport more than half empty in the first half of 2023. Over half the journeys can be taken by train in under six hours. Four in 10 flyers are ultra-frequent flyers. We know Newham is beyond a housing crisis. Instead of using limited space for an airport which contributes to our toxic air, we could use it to build thousands of homes and create 16,000 net new jobs, 400 million pounds for the economy as well as much-needed green space. Other cities understand this. Munich, Denver, and Helinski have all closed airports and already have or are in the process of redeveloping the sites to build new homes. I urge councillors to back our plan to replace a polluting airport with desperately-needed housing for our residents. Thank you. (audience applauding)
• Thank you. Is there a seconder? Thank you, Councillor Denny. Now I move straight to the vote for the amendment. Those in favor, please raise your hands. Thank you. Those against, please raise your hands. Thank you. Any abstentions? That's when the amendment has not been carried out. Thank you. Now I'm going to go for, you have a right to reply, Councillor Aniston, but because of the time, I would like to ask, would you happy to go straight to the vote? Yeah? Okay, thank you. All those in favor of the original motion, please raise your hand. Thank you. All those in favor, please raise your hand. Any abstentions? Sorry, all those in against, please raise your hand. No? Any abstentions? No? Thank you very much. The motion's been carried out. Thank you. (audience applauding) Can we call the members who are out of the room, please? He's coming. Godfrey to be. We are on motions four. Finally, I call upon Councillor Louise Godfrey to propose his motion, which is outlined on pages 59 to 60. As mentoring officers advising me to go straight to the vote so Councillor Louise, is that okay? Thank you. I will move to do a vote. Those in favor, please raise your hands. Thank you. All those in against, please raise your hands. Any abstentions? No? Thank you, the motion's carried forward. I now declare the meeting is closed. Thank you everyone for attending and watching. I hope that you enjoy the rest of the evening. Thank you very much. (laughing) [BLANK_AUDIO]