Labour lashed out as Lutfur Rahman’s Aspire Party followed up his re-election with a romping victory in Tower Hamlets’ local council elections.
Rahman’s localist party took 33 of the council’s 45 seats to build on his re-election, but the Labour Party, who suffered significant losses in the borough and across London, hit out at Aspire.
Longstanding Labour councillor Abdal Ullah, one of just five remaining, said the Aspire-majority council had a “toxic culture”.
Victoria Fleur Upton, a first-time Labour councillor for St Katherine’s and Wapping, said: “I think it’s really important that we all work together to scrutinize what is going on at the council level and what the Aspire administration is doing, and collaboration is going to be key to that.”
Upton also claimed the Greens’ performance, which saw them secure the same number of seats as Labour, left them in “uncharted territory”.
The borough has the highest concentration of Bangladeshi residents in London, with Aspire’s candidates reflecting that.
When asked about the criticism of his party’s culture, Mayor Rahman said: “I reject that in the strongest terms. We bring a progressive agenda, a politics of hope, grounded in community.
“I grew up in this borough, I had white and black families who contributed to my upbringing, and I’m indebted to the communities of Tower Hamlets. We will see a different council going forward for the next four years.”
Shafi Ahmed, newly elected Aspire councillor for Whitechapel, said: “Under the leadership of Lutfur Rahman, it has been proven time and time again that he is a people’s mayor. He wants to give back to the residents and for the younger generation to prosper.”
First-time councillor Rougie Khanom added that the party was very welcoming for women and she loved how they offered free swimming for women and girls in Tower Hamlets.
The theme of optimism was also present among the Greens, as they had a record breaking set of elections across North East London.
New Green party councillor for Bow West, Rupert George, said “I’m really happy and excited that I’ve been elected as a councillor in the ward where I live and where my kids go to school.”
George said the Green Party’s membership went from just over 400 to over 2000 people in nine months – adding he expected the election results would put the party in a position that a year ago wouldn’t have seemed possible.
Green mayoral candidate Hirra Khan Adeogun, who wasn’t elected as a councillor, claimed the party were just getting started.
She said: “We’re trying to bring a much more positive, hopeful kind of politics in Tower Hamlets. We need to draw a line under the bickering, the undermining, the fighting, and hopefully we’ve shown the way of how to do that.”
Conservative councillor Peter Golds won his seat back in Island Gardens, just 63 votes ahead of Aspire candidate Sadiqur Rahman, who also won a seat.
Golds said: “I am now Tower Hamlet’s longest serving continuous councillor. I love serving the people here and I love the borough.”
Lansbury candidate Abul Monsur was suspended by Aspire for antisemitic tweets, but it was too late to take him off the ballot, leading Labour candidates to boo him as his successful election was announced.
You can read all of North East Londoner’s local election coverage here.
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