The Council approved the delegation of planning powers from the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) to Newham Council, appointed a new Monitoring Officer and made appointments to several committees. The Council also debated a motion relating to comments about the Bangladeshi community made by the Labour Party leader, Sir Keir Starmer. An amendment to the motion, proposed by the Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz, was passed and the substantive motion, as amended, was agreed. A motion on child poverty was withdrawn. The Council also agreed a motion on the Newham dental crisis and a motion on temporary accommodation.

Delegation of Powers from the London Legacy Development Corporation

The Council discussed a report on the delegation of powers from the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) to Newham Council. The Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz, in proposing the report said:

We will be as a consequence of effective negotiation and advocacy on behalf of our borough, its people and our local planning authority over the past six years and having achieved that in October 2022, under the auspices of a memorandum of understanding with the mayor of London, the GLA, alongside the other growth boroughs as known presently, that’s the London borough of Waltham Forest, the London borough of Hackney and the London borough of Tower Hamlets along with Newham. We arrived at consensus that our planning powers will be brought back by the end of 2024.

The report was agreed.

Response to Commitments Made by the Labour Party Leadership

The Council debated a motion that related to recent comments made by the Labour party leader, Sir Keir Starmer, to The Sun Newspaper about the deportation of migrants to Bangladesh and to subsequent comments made by the then Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Jonathan Ashworth, about the UK's asylum system. The motion, proposed by Councillor Sofia Bhatia, noted with deep concern the comments made by the two politicians. It called for the Mayor to write to Sir Keir Starmer demanding an apology on behalf of the Bangladeshi residents of Newham. An amendment to the motion was proposed by Councillor Eric Chaudhary that removed references to the Labour Party. An alternative amendment was proposed by the Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz. The Mayor's amendment acknowledged that the comments made by the Labour Party leadership had caused concern, celebrated the contribution made by the Bangladeshi Community to Newham and resolved to:

Stand in solidarity with the Bangladeshi community in Newham and across the UK and elsewhere in defence of their human right to live free from fear, harassment and violence.

In proposing her amendment, the Mayor said:

I am a proud member of the Labour Party. I am someone who has been inspired and stands on the shoulder of giants in the defence of our diaspora immigrant communities to this country. I am a child of immigrants to this country.

Councillor Anam Islam seconded the Mayor's amendment. He said:

Contrary to allegations and criticism by troublemakers that we did nothing to challenge this issue, whilst we have been at the forefront of demanding accountability and action.

Councillor Chaudhary's amendment was rejected. The Mayor's amendment was agreed and became the substantive motion. The substantive motion, as amended, was agreed.

Fight Child Poverty in Newham

Councillor Nate Higgins proposed a motion that called on the council to reaffirm its commitment to being a borough that takes a lead on tackling child poverty. The motion called on the Mayor to:

Write to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions urging him to remove the two-child limit on benefits.

The motion also called on the council to:

Commit to maintaining the current £6 million investment in the Eat for Free programme to support other initiatives to tackle child poverty in Newham.

Councillor Higgins withdrew the motion.

Newham Dental Crisis

Councillor Susan Masters proposed a motion that expressed the Council's concern about the lack of access to NHS dentists in Newham. It called on the Mayor to write to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to request an urgent increase in funding for NHS dentistry in Newham and to request an urgent review of the NHS dentistry funding formula. The motion was agreed.

Temporary Accommodation

Councillor Mohammed Shabban proposed a motion that called on the council to:

Commit to a more ambitious target to reduce the use of temporary accommodation (TA) by ensuring a minimum of 2,000 homes a year are delivered at social rent levels.

It also called on the council to:

Lobby the government to scrap the cap on the benefit cap and Local Housing Allowance.

An amendment to the motion, that had been circulated in advance, was moved. The motion, as amended, was agreed.