Universal Credit blunders continue despite council pointing out errors
Latest figures show a further 150 errors on Universal Credit claims in Tower Hamlets this year resulting in £335k in overpayments and £215k in underpayments to date. Speaking last month at a conference on the future of Universal Credit, Mayor John Biggs highlighted the many errors in the system and new figures showing that a […]
Labour’s Conference plans set to make a difference in Tower Hamlets
Labour has announced a range of new policies at its annual conference in Brighton 21st – 25th September 2019, including major new climate policies and major changes to social security. Party members agreed a ‘Green New Deal’ motion which aims to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2030; the UK’s current target is to bring all […]
Overground services must improve, mayors and MPs demand
The mayors and MPs for Hackney and Tower Hamlets have written to Transport for London Commissioner Mike Brown to demand that Overground services at Hackney stations improve, after increasing reports from local people of delays and cancellations that make it harder for them to get around. Trains are also reported to be missing Hackney stations […]
Tower Hamlets Council opposes London City Airport growth proposals
Tower Hamlets Council members have agreed a motion in opposition to London City Airport growth proposals. The motion was debated at a full council meeting on Wednesday 18th September. Members criticised the environmental damage that would be done through any increases in operations and highlighted the detrimental impact that the airport has on residents living […]
Tower Hamlets Council condemns Government over special needs funding crisis
At a meeting of the full council (18th September 2019), Tower Hamlets Council overwhelmingly passed a motion criticising the government over its record on special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services. The government’s funding for these services has failed to keep pace with rapidly rising demand, leaving local councils across the UK to pick up […]
Mayor Biggs backs ‘Cover the Cost’ campaign
The Mayor of Tower Hamlets has backed a new campaign from the homelessness charity Crisis, calling for the government to urgently address the gap between Local Housing Allowance rates and private sector rents. Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates are set by the government and are used to calculate Housing Benefit for tenants renting from private […]
Mayor Biggs calls for tuition fees to be scrapped as UK student loan debt soars
New analysis of official government projections shows that the total interest being racked up by graduates on their student loan debt is set to rise to £8.6 billion in 2024, an increase of £4.2 billion. Figures published by the Department for Education on student loan repayments show that almost all the rise in accrued interest […]
EU citizens’ rights must not be used as ‘bargaining chips’
The Mayor of Tower Hamlets has written to the Prime Minister calling on him to safeguard the rights of the 41,000 non-UK EU citizens’ who live in Tower Hamlets. The letter criticises the government for using the rights of EU citizens’ as ‘bargaining chips’ and calls on these rights to be taken ‘off the table’. […]
Special needs services now ‘at a tipping point’ warn London boroughs
Council cabinet members with responsibility for children’s services across London have co-signed a cross-party letter calling for an end to the funding crisis in Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) services. The initiative, led by Tower Hamlets Councillor Danny Hassell, sees 26 London boroughs warn the government that ‘we have now reached a tipping point’ […]
‘Dangerous’ NHS hostile environment policy must end
Mayor John Biggs and Dr Jackie Applebee, the chair of the Local Medical Committee for Tower Hamlets, have written to the Secretary of State for Health to warn that the Government’s ‘hostile environment’ policies in relation to the NHS may lead to ‘dangerous situations.’ The policies mean that hospitals must check whether patients are eligible […]
