Two Opposition Groups on Hackney Council walked out of the Annual General Meeting to call out the Labour administration’s record of failure and constitutional changes that shut out criticism.
As they left they held up five signs highlighting their concerns, which read:
- Systematic Housing Failure,
- Overriding Residents’ Views,
- Restricting Democratic Accountability,
- Ignoring Genocide,
- ‘Savings’ That Really Mean Cuts.
The 5 councillors left the meeting immediately after Labour councillors and the Mayor voted to make changes to its constitution which significantly restrict the public’s and opposition councillors’ voices in the Council Chamber.
Cllr Alastair Binnie-Lubbock, co-leader of the Greens in Hackney said: “Our Town Hall is now a stifled and controlled environment.
We agreed that signs, expressing what many people we've spoken to feel about the Council’s performance, were the most effective way to show we’re still fighting for residents and we’re on their side”.
Cllr Claudia Turbet-Delof, co-leader of the HISG, explained what the changes mean: “Curtailing the length of opposition speeches, cutting the number of motions in Council meetings to just one, and obstacles to the public’s ability to submit petitions, are the way Labour responds to justified worries about Labour’s competence.”
Green councillor for Stoke Newington, Liam Davis said, “The way the Council has ignored the growing clamour for it to divest its pension funds from companies which are helping to fund genocide in Gaza, is symptomatic of its attitude to residents’ opinions.
“They’ve just stopped listening.”
Constitutional rules were even ignored to deny opposition groups opportunity to question the cabinet member separately to the truncated debate where members were only given 1 minute to critique these changes to the constitution.
Cllr Binnie-Lubbock said: "it's really sad to see the Labour council break constitution rules in order to damage the constitution itself. This comes after Deputy Mayor Bramble had to vote twice in the constitution committee to break a tie on whether these undemocratic measures should go to full council for approval."
The opposition groups also challenged Labour’s choice for the next Council Speaker and Deputy Speaker.
Cllr Penny Wrout had proposed that her HISG co-leader should take the Speaker’s seat, say to the assembled councillors that: “Not only would Cllr Turbet-Delof chair meetings in a fair-minded way, but as a proud migrant woman, choosing her to represent the Council would reassure many residents alarmed by heightened anti-immigrant rhetoric and would show Keir Starmer that Hackney has no truck with his ‘Island of strangers’ dangerous talk.”
While Cllr Zoë Garbett, co-leader of the Greens had supported her colleague Liam Davis for Deputy Speaker.
Garbett said: “Tonight Hackney Labour had the chance to recognise it has gone too far in censoring those who call out its shortcomings.
“It could have rejected the proposed constitutional changes, and sent a powerful message to the party nationally about the valuable contribution of migrant voices.
“Instead, councillors chose the path of least resistance, which only makes them look out of touch with the mood in the borough.”
