All four major political parties in the borough are supporting the committee structure in the forthcoming governance referendum.
In January, Newham Liberal Democrats voted to campaign for the committee system, saying “[we] are against concentration of power in a single person… this
concentration of power means that different perspectives and the whole range of views the citizens of Newham have gone unheard.”
In February, West Ham Constituency Labour Party passed a resolution calling on members to campaign and vote for the Committee Model in the Newham Governance Referendum, stating that “the Committee Model ensures that there is greater equality between council members, with less of a hierarchy, as the council leader and committee chairs are elected by full council and all councillors belong to a decision-making committee.”
Last month, East Ham Conservatives agreed to support the committee system. “The Mayoral system is not working for Newham. We have seen too much power in one office leading to decisions being taken without proper public consultation or concerns taken into account… on 6th May 2021, Newham, we ask you to vote with us for the Committee system.”
Announcing their candidacy for East Ham Central last week, Newham Green Party convenor Danny Keeling said, “We have a real opportunity to inject democracy here in Newham… vote for the committee option in the Local Governance Referendum.”
Politics in Newham is often fractious and partisan, so it is good to see that on this key question of local democracy and governance there is consensus across all the parties that we need change.
