London, 25 July, 2022: New data shows that an estimated 20,200 families in Tower Hamlets are in serious financial difficulty, all while the Conservatives are distracted trying to fix their crumbling Government. This is why Tower Hamlets Labour is proposing a motion at a meeting of the Tower Hamlets Full Council on Wednesday 27th July 2022 calling for the new Mayor of Tower Hamlets to bring forward an Emergency Budget designed to support the borough’s poorest residents over the next two years.

The motion notes that the Cost of Living Crisis demands an urgent response from central, regional and local governments if we are to prevent even worse levels of poverty and destitution. While Mayor Rahman did approve a package to help children in families who are in receipt of free school meals, and those residents on Pension Credits, the Tower Hamlet Labour Group state that more needs to be done and is calling for specific intervention in order to protect those most vulnerable in the borough.
The motion calls for a number of measures to tackle the Cost of Living Crisis, including:
Increasing the “Standard Utilities Allowance” used in the calculation of Homecare charges from £5 a week back to £15 a week as of 1st April 2022;
Allocating a sum of £500,000 to top-up the Discretionary Housing Payment funding pot to the same level as 2021/22;
Allocating a £500,000 Council Tax “Hardship Fund” for residents struggling with these bills;
Set aside a total sum of £100,000 to award one-off grants to the voluntary food-banks operating in Tower Hamlets in 2022/23 so that they are better able to ensure no-one goes hungry in the East End this year;
Allocate an additional sum of £150,000 to the School Uniform Grant funding to enable an increase in the £110 allowance per child agreed in 2019/20 and a second payment to be made for each eligible child, for example when starting Primary School.

Leader of the Tower Hamlets Labour Group, Cllr Sirajul Islam said: “While the Conservative Government descends into in-fighting and ignores the worst drop of living standards since the 1960s, the Cost of Living Crisis is hurting families across Tower Hamlets.

When we were in power, Labour put forward a budget, which aimed to protect those poorest in our borough, including a 100% Council Tax reduction for those who need it and additional money to support residents with the rising costs of energy bills and food poverty. We hope Mayor Rahman puts politics aside and supports this motion for the good of Tower Hamlets residents.”

Cllr Marc Francis, who is proposing the motion, said: “Families in Tower Hamlets are feeling the pinch from the cost of living crisis, and the Council cannot sit back while our vulnerable residents struggle to survive. This motion looks to ensure the Council takes a direct intervention in tackling this drop in living standards, and I hope the Mayor and his Aspire Group support the proposed measures.”

Cllr Mufeedah Bustin, who is seconding the motion, said: “We cannot be in a situation in the 21st century where struggling families are having to choose between heating and eating. Our proposal for an emergency budget will help provide those most in need of help with some much-needed extra support during these difficult times.”