East London News A Force for the community…
THE COUNCIL has a new “Speaker” – Cllr Victoria Obaze, who was elected at the AGM on 15th May. But will she be a dignitary who sits in the Town Hall or one who comes out and confronts difficult issues in the community?
The post of “speaker” is a new name for an old post. Councils usually have ceremonial mayors who chair Council meetings while spending their year in office raising money for their favourite local charities. As Tower Hamlets has a directly elected Executive Mayor, the Council decided some years ago to re-name its “ceremonial mayor” the “speaker” – in order to avoid confusion.
Unfortunately, some “speakers” have confused themselves with the rather better known “Speaker” of the House of Commons. This, together with the CCTV cameras trained on the bit of the council chamber which make some councillors think they are on “Today in Parliament” on the telly, can give the Tower Hamlets speaker delusions of grandeur.
It is unlikely to be so with Cllr Victoria Obaze, who is a conscientious and committed councillor. However, she would not have been put forward as speaker without gaining the confidence of Executive Mayor John Biggs. And no councillor can gain that confidence unless they support John Biggs’s plans to close nurseries, wind down the Community Language Service – and cut council workers’ pay.
On 30th May there was a public meeting in St Paul’s Way on Community Safety. Community members were joined by a number of councillors and representatives of the police. Were those who addressed the meeting trying to tackle difficult issues, or were they there to put a gloss over the problems by insisting that the Council is doing its best in difficult times?
If the Speaker comes out to community meetings, she will learn first hand the difference the Council’s policies are making. If she stays in the Town Hall, she will be part of making policies and not being accountable for their effects. If she comes out only to support charities, she will be part of putting sticking plaster on local problems rather than tackling the cause of the problems.
Many residents will hope that the Speaker will be out on the streets – or, at least, in the community halls – this year will then return to the Town Hall to advocate for the people. They will have to wait to see if Labour, and their speaker, are listening.
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