Dear Colleague,
On the 21st of October the people of Tower Hamlets spoke with one voice. They entrusted onto me this sacred duty to serve our borough as Mayor regardless of party affiliation.
You know I did not leave the Labour party, and those Labour values still guide my manifesto and my Mayoralty. I hope you will agree that what binds us together more than our shared values’ is our common purpose to serve all our residents. This purpose demands of us great courage and sacrifice – it demands of us the need to put aside our differences and work together to protect our public services and deliver a better and fairer future for the people of this great borough.
Colleagues, of all the victims of the coalition government’s Comprehensive Spending Review, none have more cause for complaint than the local government. Councils are facing a 27 per cent cut in central funding. It has been estimated that this fiscal consolidation will result in thousands of jobs disappearing in local government. Birmingham City Council, Britain’s largest local authority, has already put 26,000 employees on notice that their jobs are at risk. But it is not just those who work for councils who are under threat, it is the things they do too. Spending on basic council functions such as rubbish collection and social care will be affected if we do not take a stand.
The people of Tower Hamlets will ask each one of us – did you oppose the Mayor - thereby stifling the will of the people or did you support the Mayor and so protect our services and bring about a better future’? My response is simple - I will do everything I can to work with each one of you.
I start by seeking your co-operation in forming my Cabinet and filling a number of advisory positions so that it has the diversity of talent and people reflective of Tower Hamlets. Over the next few days I will be calling you for your cooperation – I hope you will stand up for the people of this borough and support me.
Please do not oppose the will of the people. Not when we’re just beginning our journey of change which we’ve been all working so hard for, and when there’s so much do.
Thank you
The end.
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