All nine candidates for Mayor of Tower Hamlets get to contribute to a booklet posted to all the addresses on the electoral roll, and mine's just arrived. I've read it, also the candidates' websites, and my word there are some ridiculous claims that should debar every single one of them from winning. Many also have many positive points but I'm focusing solely on the bad, thoughtless, inept stuff.... in alphabetical order of surname.
Zami AliTower Hamlets Independents(manifesto)
• AI systems embedded across all council operations. (oh god)
• The shift to an AI-enabled council means every manual process replaced by technology reduces cost and enhances human efficiency. (oh god)
• Every community centre refurbished as a Technology & Skills Hub. (the man's obsessed)
• £1 billion identified in procurement, waste, duplicate contracts, and inefficient systems. Recovered and reinvested, that is £15,000 in service value for every family in Tower Hamlets over four years. (but it's only £8000 for every household because Zami is focusing on families at the expense of single people)
• £0 Salary - 100 Day's Of Mayoral Pay Redirected For You (if you can't do apostrophes, you can't run a council)
Mohammed HannanLiberal Democrats
• Being able to use your local train station is a basic right that everyone deserves, whether its disabled people, those with
mobility issues, or even those with buggies and young children. That Wapping, Shadwell, and other stations on the Windrush line continue to be inaccessible is not acceptable. (these stations don't have step-free access because they're Victorian, both already have lifts it's just the last 20-odd steps that can't be wheeled, if it was easy to shoehorn access into the extremely restricted space they'd have done it when the stations were upgraded 20 years ago, you're just moaning about something you can't change)
Hirra Khan AdeogunGreen(manifesto)
• Solidarity with people of Palestine, calling out the UK’s role in genocide (the current Mayor's been doing that for years and it's changed nothing)
• Cheaper energy bills for at least 2000 households to start. (wow, what do the other 118,000 of us do in the meantime)
• Implement a new 'Pass-through Traffic Charge' for heavy non-domestic vehicles. This will not impact Tower Hamlets residents and those who work in the borough and will only apply to vehicles passing through without engaging with local businesses or residents. (that'd just send a ton of lorries through the Silvertown Tunnel rather than the Blackwall Tunnel, you muppets)
Hugo PierreTrade Unionist and Socialist Coalition
• A socialist mayor would bring unions and the community together in a mass campaign to win more money from the government. (cloudcuckooland, mate)
• Scrap developers’ greedy plans, build 100% council homes. (a worthy aspiration, but realistically nothing would get built for years while all the existing plans changed)
• Campaign for free public transport. (I think you've misunderstood the powers of a Mayor)
Dominic NolanConservative
• I will see houses are allocated fairly. Houses for local people. More homes in the right places. (Dominic's text is vague, detail-less and written as if for ten year-olds)
• Tower Hamlets reportedly has the lowest recycling rate in England. I (you've sent your document to the printers with the end of a sentence missing, sheesh)
Sirajul IslamLabour(manifesto)
• The recent Government Best Value inspection made clear that Tower Hamlets needs fresh leadership to end the chaos. (that's not actually what it said)
• Restore pride in our streets (that's never going to happen)
• Reinstate the Victoria Park fireworks (you can't afford to bring back everything the current Mayor's scrapped)
• Remember: Only Labour can beat the current administration (you can show all the bar charts you like, but technically that's very false)
John BullardReform UK
• Tower Hamlets’ finances are broken and only a Reform UK Mayor will fix it. (that's not true, Reform don't have a monopoly here)
• PUT LONDONERS FIRST FOR SOCIAL HOUSING (I'm not sure you're allowed to do that)
• OPPOSE HOUSING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IN HOTELS (well you can, but it's central government that decides this)
• END ULEZ AND THE WAR ON DRIVERS (we don't care, only 34% of households here have a car)
Lutfur RahmanAspire(manifesto)
• Since being elected Mayor in 2022, my priority has been to make Tower Hamlets work for all. (I don't think you've included all of us)
• We are also proposing a brand new Whitechapel leisure centre with a new swimming pool. (this is the sole future policy amongst 900 words of what Lutfur's done already)
• Introduce a Public Health Service that is COVID-ready (hang on, your 'Manifesto' is just cut and pasted from 2022)
• I ASK YOU TO CONTINUE TO PUT YOUR TRUST IN ME (reminds me of Kaa in the Jungle Book)
• "Lutfur and Aspire have my full support, showing us what is possible when local government prioritises social justice" Jeremy Corbyn MP (I'm not sure that's the top endorsement you think it is)
Terence McGreneraIndependent
• What I propose for Tower Hamlets is to establish its own lottery, sell the idea to other London boroughs and help them to combine in a London wide organisation. It would be called THE LONDON LOTTERY. The proceeds would help to set up a property company to build, buy and manage homes for rent on a non-profit basic. (this is your only policy, you literally have nothing else, and it requires working with other boroughs so it's never going to happen, you're focused but delusional)
Tower Hamlets Mayoral election round-up
