Galloway’s Respect Party calls for elected mayor for East End

GEORGE Galloway’s Respect Party councillors at Tower Hamlets have come out in favour of a directly-elected mayor for the East End like the Mayor of London. They have attacked the Town Hall’s Labour administration which is against an elected mayor in favour of the ruling group leader’s term extended to the full four years between council elections

By Mike Brooke

GEORGE Galloway’s Respect Party Opposition councillors at Tower Hamlets have come out in favour of a directly-elected mayor for the East End like the Mayor of London.

They have attacked the Town Hall’s Labour administration which is against an elected mayor in favour of the ruling group leader’s term extended from 12 months to the full four years between council elections.

“Tower Hamlets needs strong leadership directly accountable to the voters,” said Respect group leader Abjol Miah.

“The current situation is untenable. We have a Cabinet representing a deeply divided Labour group which decides major issues in secret with just the occasional council meeting which never makes any significant decisions. This is centralisation of power without proper accountability.

“Voters need a direct connection to local government which is spending hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ money a year.”

Proposals are currently up for consultation on three alternatives, an elected mayor favoured by Respect, extending the ruling party leader’s term and no elected mayor as favoured by Labour, and keeping the present system of ruling party re-electing the council leader annually which is backed by Tower Hamlets’ Opposition Tories.

A recent East London Advertiser online poll favoured a mayor elected directly by voters, like neighbouring Hackney and the Mayor of London.

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