An early morning demonstration was underway outside Newham Town Hall on Thursday 6th July as Councillors met to decide the future of Queen’s Market. Friends of Queen’s Market (FoQM) and other local supporters gathered outside to shout out their demands to protect Queen’s Market, a vital source of fresh affordable food and clothes during a cost-of-living crisis, for some of London’s poorest families.
Newham Council appear to have given the public just 2 options over the future of the market; both FoQM say means demolition or part-demolition of the market, and likely luxury unaffordable flats. “The market should remain as a market. Any disruption is bad for business. £7m public money is currently being spent to refurbish the market, and behind closed doors the Council want to knock it down? The Council is contradicting itself”, says a furious lifelong shopper.
FoQM have so far gathered over 5,000 hand-signed signatures from shoppers and hard-working families from their weekly signature stall held outside of the market to demand that the historic market is protected.
FoQM accuse Newham Council of sending out mixed messages about Queen’s Market: where the Council say they are helping locals over the cost-of-living crisis, yet then want to knock the community’s vital food source down. The campaign group say that the Council have digitally excluded huge swathes of the local population through an online “co-create” public engagement platform that has so far failed to listen to the Newham community nor understand their needs.
The London Borough of Newham remains one of the poorest boroughs in the UK, with a young growing population and latest statistics say is the UK’s most ethnically diverse borough.
Gallery (below): Photos from FoQM’s Cost-of-Living demonstration (Councillors were apparently seen entering the Town Hall via the back door)
To promote and preserve a thriving publicly-owned historic street market 