Councillor Abdul Wahid

During December 2025, Abdul Wahid served as a substitute member for both the Pensions Committee meeting on December 11th and the Human Resources Committee meeting on December 22nd. He was also present at the Cabinet meeting on December 31st in his role as Cabinet Member for Customer Service, Equalities and Social Inclusion, though he did not participate in his capacity as Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and no specific actions or statements were recorded for him during this meeting.

During November 2025, Abdul Wahid's primary activity was in his role as Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee. On November 25th, he presided over a meeting where he moved a resolution to approve and sign the unrestricted minutes of the previous meeting held on September 15th, 2025, confirming them as a correct record of proceedings. He also formally signed these minutes as Chair at the meeting's conclusion. There is no record of Abdul Wahid speaking or taking action during the Council meeting on November 19th, 2025.

During October 2025, Abdul Wahid's primary activity was as Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee. On October 13th, he opened the meeting, delivered housekeeping announcements, and welcomed attendees. He facilitated the discussion on the strategic performance monitoring report, introducing speakers and managing the Q&A session. His prior actions as Chair included approving minutes from a September 15th meeting, where he moved resolutions to approve unrestricted minutes and to exclude the press and public for confidential matters. He was also designated as the Scrutiny Lead for an action related to obtaining additional benchmarking data from London Councils on budget monitoring.

During September 2025, Councillor Abdul Wahid was active in several council meetings. He attended the Human Resources Committee on September 1st as a substitute. On September 15th, as Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, he approved minutes and, in his role as Chair of the Youth Justice Executive Board (YJEB), provided a foreword to the Strategic Plan 2025-2028 . In this foreword, he expressed pride in the partnership's achievements, including Active Young People participating at our Youth Justice Excutive board , Outcome 22 – best outcomes diverted away from Court/stigma , SEND Quality Mark with Child First Commendation , and Children's Social Care Rated Outstanding . He also affirmed the YJEB's dedication to monitoring the Youth Justice Partnership Delivery Plan and its priorities, and endorsed the Youth Justice Strategic Plan 2025 – 2028 for Tower Hamlets and the City of London. Finally, on September 25th, Councillor Wahid was elected Vice-Chair of the General Purposes Committee for the 2025/2026 municipal year.

In July 2025, Councillor Abdul Wahid was appointed as the Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee. He subsequently chaired the Overview & Scrutiny Committee meeting on July 21st, where he opened the session, welcomed attendees, outlined procedural rules, and managed the initial formalities before facilitating the discussion on the strategic delivery performance report. On July 28th, Wahid acted as the interim Chair of the Audit Committee. During this meeting, he opened the session, set expectations for conduct, and proposed strategies to manage the agenda effectively, stating, > park it and move on if political undertones arose. He guided the committee through various agenda items, including the audit plan, the Council's response, and the draft statement of accounts, posing specific questions about risk reduction, opening balances, and IFRS 16 readiness. He also congratulated Councillor Haroun Mair on his appointment as Vice Chair and seconded the motion for Councillor Harun Miah's appointment as Vice-Chair. Wahid concluded the Audit Committee meeting by recommending the committee note the publication of the 24-25 Draft Statement of Accounts and the significant accounting judgments made.

During June 2025, Councillor Abdul Wahid was actively involved in council meetings, primarily in his role as Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee and as Vice-Chair of the General Purposes Committee. As Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, he presided over meetings on June 2nd and June 11th. In these meetings, he managed procedural matters, including introductions, apologies, declarations of interest, and the election of Vice Chairs. He oversaw the appointment of scrutiny lead members for various subcommittees, using his casting vote to break ties on multiple occasions. He also sought approval for subcommittee establishments and memberships, and addressed feedback on reports and meeting schedules. He informed the committee about an upcoming Members Work Programme Development Day and moved to exclude the press and public for specific business. On June 17th, Councillor Wahid was elected as the Vice-Chair of the General Purposes Committee for the municipal year 2025/2026. He also addressed timekeeping, reviewed and corrected minutes from previous meetings, and raised concerns about managing conflicts of interest. He acknowledged and thanked a councillor for a report on hate crime, emphasizing the importance of collaborative work on issues like Islamophobia and homophobia, and welcomed a review timeline for the report.

During May 2025, Councillor Abdul Wahid was appointed as the Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee at the Council meeting on May 14th. His presence was also noted at a previous meeting on April 2nd, 2025, though no specific contributions were recorded for him from that session.

During April 2025, Councillor Abdul Wahid, in his capacity as Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, actively participated in the Cabinet meeting on April 30th. He raised pertinent questions concerning the Children, Adolescent Mental Health Services report, focusing on data collation for service user improvements and the provision of culturally sensitive services. He also inquired about positive outcomes and youth engagement related to market events. Furthermore, regarding the Agency Worker Contract, he reiterated his concern about culturally sensitive data collation and requested to review the draft tender document and specifications to facilitate collaboration.

Councillor Abdul Wahid, the Cabinet Member for Customer Service, Equalities and Social Inclusion, was listed as present in the minutes for the Cabinet meeting on March 26, 2025. However, according to the reports pack, apologies for absence were received on his behalf, and he did not participate in the meeting. The minutes do not record him speaking or taking any specific actions.

During February 2025, Abdul Wahid attended two council meetings: the Cabinet meeting on February 19th and the Tower Hamlets Health and Wellbeing Board meeting on February 27th. In both instances, he was listed in his official capacities as Cabinet Member for Customer Service, Equalities and Social Inclusion, and as a member of the Health and Wellbeing Board. However, there is no record of him saying or doing anything specific in either meeting.

During January 2025, Abdul Wahid, in his role as Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, was active in two council meetings. On January 22nd, he congratulated the council on an amazing achievement and an outstanding mark by Ofsted, attributing the success to the mayor's investment and the borough's young people. On January 29th, he presented the committee's findings from their January meetings. These findings included satisfaction with investments in hardship initiatives, a request for long-term waste services funding, advice on risk assessment for technology and AI, wholehearted support for school uniform grants with a request for policy clarity, and recommendations for leisure services insourcing, including accessible promotion of Be Well, NHS engagement for physiotherapy, improved accommodation for women, and apprenticeship roles for care-experienced young people. He also reported on recommendations to strengthen flood risk management, acknowledging identified gaps.

In December 2024, Abdul Wahid was active in two council meetings. As Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, he presented the committee's findings to the Cabinet on December 18th. Key areas of discussion included the Best Value Inspection, endorsing the message of delivering at pace, and the agreement to co-design and monitor an improvement plan. He also reported on the committee's work regarding flood risks, highlighting concerns about incident response responsibility and contingency planning, and stated that a report with recommendations would be presented to the Cabinet. Further points raised by the committee, and presented by Wahid, involved EHC assessments, free school meal uptake, investment sustainability in waste services, mitigation for SEND overspending, funding for best value activities, and potential housing overspends. A significant focus was placed on the Home Care Contract Award process, where Wahid expressed frustration regarding the lead member's absence and requested that the Cabinet address the committee's concerns about future procurements and care for vulnerable residents. The committee recommended using this process as an LGA case study and referring it to the Transformation Assurance Board. Wahid concluded by emphasizing the council's commitment to caring for the elderly and vulnerable. He was also listed as a member of the Tower Hamlets Health and Wellbeing Board on December 10th, though no specific statements or actions were attributed to him in the provided documents for that meeting.

During November 2024, Abdul Wahid, in his role as Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, presented a review of the committee's recent work. He highlighted a commitment to fostering cultural change within the committee, aiming for a unified, constructive, and non-political approach to scrutiny. Key areas of discussion included the Chief Executive's positive response to the Best Value Inspection Report, the establishment of a new housing cabinet subcommittee, pre-decision scrutiny questions, the review of the waste improvement program, and the draft scrutiny executive protocol. Wahid indicated that further efforts would be made to address issues identified in the best value inspection report.

During the October 16th Cabinet meeting, Councillor Abdul Wahid, Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, questioned the methodology used to determine low resident engagement with leisure facilities, recycling services, and the IDO store, seeking clarification on whether this was data-driven. He also highlighted the significance of the recent residents' survey, noting its positive findings regarding resident optimism about cohesion and safety within the borough. He stated, > The recent result of the survey is very important. It shows the people in the Tower Hamlets, they are incredibly optimistic about cohesion. And some of the things that the mayor has highlighted, especially the 90% of the residents who feel safe within the borough. And I think there's a lot of, in terms of this tackles a lot of misconception, negative impact or negative news that goes out there in the media. This tackles this.

During September 2024, Executive Mayor Abdul Wahid made a significant announcement at the Cabinet meeting on September 11th, suspending the implementation of proposed changes to the Homelessness Placement Policy. This decision was based on new data showing a sharp decline in families needing hotel accommodation and positive governmental shifts regarding the housing crisis. He reaffirmed his commitment to resident feedback and the existing 90-minute relocation limit. Councillor Shafi Ahmad commended Abdul Wahid for this bold decision and another regarding the homelessness policy. Additionally, Abdul Wahid spoke about the Whitechapel Road improvement programme, emphasizing the importance of market stalls for job creation and income generation in the East End. He advocated for modernizing these stalls and infrastructure as a valuable investment to attract visitors and support local businesses.

During July 2024, Councillor Abdul Wahid, in his role as Cabinet Member for Customer Service, Equalities and Social Inclusion, attended a Cabinet meeting on July 10th. He noted that no members of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee had questions regarding cabinet papers. He also expressed his appreciation for the council staff's work during the general election count, stating he was personally writing to thank them for their efforts as returning officer. In a procedural change, Councillor Musthak Ahmed replaced him as the Council's nominee to London Councils' Greater London Employment Forum.

On July 24th, serving as Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, Councillor Wahid addressed the perception of the administration regarding dogs. He clarified that the focus is on responsible dog ownership, not an anti-dog stance, and shared personal experiences of dangerous dog attacks in his ward. He stressed the importance of communicating this message during the upcoming consultation, stating,

It's about responsible dog owners and for a few dog owners who aren't responsible for others to be basically in terms of tarnish their needs. So please, if you can make sure that message is also out in the consultation.

There is no record of Abdul Wahid speaking or taking action in the Council meeting on July 17th.

During June 2024, Abdul Wahid's only recorded activity was sending his apologies for absence from the Tower Hamlets Health and Wellbeing Board meeting on June 10th.

During May 2024, Councillor Abdul Wahid was active in several council meetings. On May 8th, he voted against amendments proposed by Councillors Marc Francis and Nathalie Bienfait, but voted in favor of the main Budget Motion. At the Annual Meeting on May 15th, as Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, he expressed gratitude to the Speaker for their professional conduct and positive experiences accompanying them to events, acknowledging the challenging task for the incoming Speaker. He also praised the outgoing Speaker's year in office, presiding over difficult meetings, charitable work, and service to the Borough. On May 16th, Wahid expressed his delight at being elected Chair of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, emphasizing its critical role in council governance and his ambition to partner with the cabinet to improve council performance, aiming to add value and support the mayor, cabinet, and officers in delivering services. He also attended the King George's Field Charity Board meeting on May 29th in his capacity as Cabinet Member for Jobs, Skills and Growth, and Cabinet Member for Equalities and Social Inclusion, though no specific statements or actions were recorded for him during this meeting.

During April 2024, Councillor Abdul Wahid attended the Cabinet meeting on April 24th in his role as Cabinet Member for Jobs, Skills and Growth. The provided minutes do not record any specific statements or actions taken by him during this meeting.