Tower Hamlets “Funnelling Cash to Bangladeshi Groups”

Tower Hamlets – where Mayor Lutfur Rahman’s party, which runs the council, only fielded Bangladeshi candidates at the last election – is under investigation over concerns it could be funnelling money to Bangladeshi groups. The Telegraph has the story.

Steve Reed, the Communities Secretary, has given three envoys sent into the east London council in 2024 new powers to review how community grants are distributed “compared to local demography”.

The borough is led by Mayor Lutfur Rahman, who was previously found guilty of electoral fraud.

Rahman’s Aspire Party runs the council and fielded only Bangladeshi candidates at the last election. Around 35% of the population of Tower Hamlets is Bangladeshi.

The investigation will give the ministerial envoys new powers to carry out a “deep dive” into the “use of resources compared to local demography”.

The review will consider whether the amount of money given to certain areas correlates with their level of deprivation. It will also look into whether some officials are fast-tracking housing applications and whether advisers have been “giving certain groups a direct line to the Mayor”.

The ministerial envoys were first sent into Tower Hamlets by Angela Rayner, the former communities secretary, after a damning investigation into a “culture of patronage” within the authority.

Reed announced earlier this week that the three envoys would receive new powers to take over certain council functions including governance, financial management and recruitment.

The envoys will also carry out investigations into five areas: patronage, community grants and assets, planning and licensing, the mayor’s office and advisers, and housing allocations.

It follows a report by the envoys to Reed, published on Tuesday, on what they have found at Tower Hamlets since first being sent in.

On patronage, they were concerned about appointments and promotions, as well as “immaturity” around senior appointments. On planning and licensing, they wanted to look at “behind-the-scenes activity surrounding decisions”.

The envoys also said they were concerned the Mayor’s advisers were “operating in the shadows”, including allegations of “improper political involvement”. The advisers were found to be “evasive” and under suspicion of “co-ordinating inappropriate activity”.

On housing allocations, the envoys have been given the power to investigate the “decision-making processes” and “allegations of fast-tracking”.

Worth reading in full.