Most Council meetings are open to the public. Going along and seeing your councillors perform is a good way to keep an eye on them and learn about what’s going on. Meetings can move or be cancelled, so check your Council website on the link provided before going to a meeting listed below.
Tower Hamlets Monday 20th July, 10am: Pensions Board There’s some start-of-year business and then loads of technical documents – many of them in the closed part of the meeting, when press and public are excluded. We confess we haven’t read them, but we wonder where the Council is in its disinvestment process.
Monday 13th July, 6.30pm: Housing & Regeneration Scrutiny Sub-Committee The meeting starts with start-of-year business items. The Committee will then look at the Council’s response to an Ombudsman’s investigation into homelessness. After this, the Cabinet Member and Corporate Director will present a report on the successes, priorities and challenges for the year ahead (the successes are presumably for the last year). This is a weak agenda: a report on your priorities does not really lend itself to scrutiny. There is a report, but no individual priorities have been drawn out for scrutiny. Councillors should be better than this.
Tuesday, 21st July, 6.30pm: Strategic Development Committee The meeting starts with start-of-year business items. There are three planning applications up for decision: The South Quay Building, a building in Cambridge Heath Road and standon House.
Wednesday, 22nd July, 7pm: Council It is the first Council of the new Administration. As is customary, Aspire (the majority Party) has tabled a motion that the Council should adopt the Aspire manifesto as its Plan for the next four years. This is how winning parties ensure that they deliver their manifesto. There is then a slot for the opposition to put a motion. As Labour and the Greens each have a paltry five councillors, they are both the opposition – so they will take turns in putting forward a motion. This time it is Labour, which has put forward a motion supporting the workers at the Be Well centres. Afterwards there are a number of reports generated by the Government’s Envoy: these are zazzy modern management stuff that management types think is useful. Hmph. The Post Elections Report is interesting, and includes some interesting stuff on “family voting” – strangely, this is seen as something only voters who need translations do. Finally there are questions and motions from councillors. Past experience suggests these will fall off the end of the agenda.
Thursday, 23rdh July, 6.30pm: Audit Committee After some start-of-the-year stuff, there are various technical documents. It’s all very well having technical documents, but these are very hard for councillors to scrutinise.
•To see the agenda and papers for the meeting, go to the calendar and then click on the meeting: Calendar
Newham Monday, 120th July, 6.30pm: Local Development Committee This meeting has been cancelled. It looks like officers have been able to take all necessary decisions on their own.
Tuesday, 21st July, 3pm: Cabinet What a strange time to hold a Cabinet! Daytime meetings are harder for members of the public to attend. This Cabinet will be looking at parking and the budget.
Wednesday, 23nd July, 10am: Licensing Sub-Committee This will be hearing a request to vary its license from premises in High Street North, E6.
Wednesday, 23rd July, 3.30pm: Chief Officer Appointment Committee An Appointment Committee will be established to recruit a Director of Young People and Opportunities. Not really much to see here.
Thursday, 23rd July, 10am: Licensing Sub-Committee The meeting will look at an application for a new licence from 339 Barking Road.
•To see the agenda and papers for the meeting, go to the calendar and then click on the meeting: Calendar
Hackney Monday, 20th June, 2pm: Licensing Sub-Committee Some small items.
Monday, 20th June, 7pm: Cabinet The Cabinet is looking at various reports on finance and on procurement. In an example of how Cabinets can look at big items and small items, this Cabinet will then consider the Britannia Masterplan and… Graffiti Removal Policy. There’s then the SEND Reform Plan: this is not on the Council website, it is just marked “to follow”, which is not good practice.
Tuesday, July, 21st, 2pm: Constitution Committee Today the Committee is looking at changes to the Planning Committee Terms of Reference. Yum.
Tuesday, July, 21st, 7pm: Scrutiny Panel Today the Panel is looking at the Annual Report on Complaints and Members’ Enquiries and the Budget update, followed by a report on Digital Strategy, including AI – before deciding on the work plan for the year ahead.
Wednesday, 22nd July, 2pm: Hackney Procurement Board There’s reports on Passenger Transport (SEND), the Floating House Support, the London Accommodation Pathfinder (parts of this are in a closed session), and the Water Supplier.
•To see the agenda and papers for the meeting, go to the calendar and then click on the meeting: Calendar
Barking & Dagenham Tuesday, 14th July, 4.30pm: Health & Wellbeing Board & ICB Sub-Committee There’s a lot of chunky stuff here: A New Vision, child measurement, the Better Care Fund, and a VCFSE Strategy (no, the initials are not explained). Wednesday, 22nd July, 4pm: JNC Appointments, Salaries and Structures Sub-Committee This will deal with the appointment of a Director for Assets and the public is likely to be excluded.
Wednesday, 22nd July, 7pm: Council Council will be looking at various items on audit and risk and Children’s Care. There are then motions: The British West India Regiment and Global Majority Service Personnel; the CPZ and Housing Allocation.
•To see the agenda and papers for the meeting, go to the calendar and then click on the meeting: Calendar
Redbridge It’s a quiet week in Redbridge.
Monday, 20th July, 2.30pm: Licensing Sub-Committee Three temporary events at the Ali Curry House in High Road, Ilford.
Thursday, 23rd July, 10.30pm: Licensing Sub-Committee Application for a new premises licence at the Naan Stapp, Ilford Lane.
•To see the agenda and papers for the meeting, go to the calendar and then click on the meeting: Calendar
Havering It’s another quiet week, out in Havering.
Wednesday, 22nd July, 7.30pm: Council Three Councillors are presenting a petition – but it has not been published on the Council website. There’s a report on the Youth Justice Service Plan. There’s questions from Members: 15 of them, mostly on quite solid local issues. Afterwards there’s six motions. The Labour Group wants to congratulate Hornchurch Football Club for its promotion to the National League. Reform UK wants to establish a “Member Champion of Faith” (who knew that was one of Reform’s priorities?), and it wants to do away with the “Climate Emergency” policy, which the Residents’ Associations Group has amended. Reform then has a moan about ULEZ (with the Residents Associations Group putting in some tidying up amendments, in the manner of the Lib-Dems).
•To see the agenda and papers for the meeting, go to the calendar and then click on the meeting: Calendar
Waltham Forest
Monday, 20th July, 10am: Licensing An application from premises in Hoe Street.
Monday, 20th July, 10am: A Strange Thing The public calendar lists a provisional meeting of the “Waltham Forest Stop and Search Group”. The page states that the agenda will be displayed in the week before the meeting, but it is not actually up on the website. Perhaps someone has a headache.
Wednesday, 22nd July, 7pm: Health and Adult Social Care Scrutiny Various lists and plans. NB: members of the public can take part in scrutiny meetings in Waltham Forest.
•To see the agenda and papers for the meeting, go to the calendar and then click on the meeting: Calendar