Election results, new reports, and calls to ‘Decolonise’ Newham

Working-class ethnic minority communities across the city appear to be united by similar concerns: once welcomed to help rebuild the UK after the Blitz (WWII), many now feel they are treated with disregard by politicians and decision-makers. This month, however, People Power has broken through the political ranks in Newham, signalling that the ethnic minority votes can no longer be taken for granted by career politicians.

Just Space Network’s Alternative Plan for a caring city

First of two newly published reports represents years of interviews by researchers and campaigners from Just Space Network (JSN), an informal alliance of community groups, campaigns and organisations advocating for fairer planning and development across the city. Acting as a collective voice for grassroots Londoners and local communities, JSN regularly brings together groups such as Friends of Queen’s Market (FoQM) with other struggles.

JSN’s latest report is the result of three years of research and engagement, gathering evidence on what Londoners want from their city plan. It has been shaped by the need for an alternative to successive London Plans which, over the past 25 years, have worsened conditions for many residents by deepening the housing and rent crisis, privatisation of public land, damaged street markets while enabling unchecked property development to reshape and hollow out communities – all for a quick buck for themselves!

The report argues that the close relationship between developers, political interests and finance has contributed to a model of city-building that often overlooks the needs of existing Londoners. JSN’s proposed Alternative London Plan for a caring city, offers a different vision for London’s future and can be read online via the link below [FoQM feature on page 41]: https://justspace.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Justspace_Alt_Plan-2026.pdf

_{Image (above): Printed copies of the report are available to collect from selected community spaces.}

How do we effectively address the Racism in the UK planning system?

This second published report follows the emergence of Protect Our Places (POP) in late 2023, a coalition of eleven campaigns, organisations and community groups across London, including FoQM. POP brings together anti-gentrification campaigns from across the capital, all working to protect the markets, town centres, high streets and affordable retail spaces that are central to their communities and cultural identity. You can read the Protect Our Places (POP) anti-gentrification report here: https://latinelephant.org/coming-together-pop-report-released/

_{Image (above): front cover of the report. Printed copies are available to collect from community spaces.}

Is Newham witnessing a three-way political split, or are signs of a more democratic future beginning to emerge?

Recently, our supporters posed questions at the local election hustings at the Tate Institute in Silvertown, Newham – historically a social club for Tate & Lyle factory workers. The venue remains an important community space that now needs support to continue serving local residents. Those involved are working hard to keep the space open for vital community use, and donations are encouraged to help with renovation – click here to find out more. The community organisers generously hosted a hustings with all prospective Mayoral candidates on Saturday 2nd May, yet Labour’s Mayoral candidate was notably absent – rumours abounded, suggested concerns about a potential “Green trap” may have discouraged attendance. The Newham Independents candidate Mehmood Mirza spoke about his mistreatment having been targeted, with his family being followed in the lead up to him taking public office – see these YouTube videos ‘Targeted by Labour for their ethnicity’ – see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5vHEkYo6LU
Also see: ‘The Labour Files: Episode 3. The Hierarchy – Al Jazeera Investigations’ [M. Mirza mentions being followed at point 39:49]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-cHBQf5z_M

The Green Party candidate, Areeq Chowdhury, a self-described “data nerd” did really well to face the audience largely alone because Mirza had to leave early – if Areeq has further information on how Newham Council uses public and retail data trends, whether larger private companies have access to this data, or why key local data, including statistics on the importance of Queen’s Market, food poverty and community needs continues to be overlooked in favour of speculative development plans, we encourage him to share it with us.

_{Scrolling gallery of photographs (above): A sign was placed where the Labour candidate was supposed to be, reading simply: “Labour?”}

The proof is in the ballot box

Following the elections, the Newham Independents Party achieved a significant increase in council seats in and around Queen’s Market, particularly in Plaistow North (where Queen’s Market is located), Boleyn and Green Street wards – securing a whopping 24 council seats in total. However, the green shoots have been most surprising, with Green Party support resulting in 16 Councillor seats secured across other parts of the borough. Now, with no overall control, Newham Council’s long-standing one-party dominance appears to survive largely through Labour’s directly-elected mayoral system – clinging on for dear life as career politicians defend an ageing, crumbling structure that has rarely worked in the interests of Newham’s diverse and growing population.

For many local residents, the latest election results reflect the continuing importance of Queen’s Market in the lives of Londoners; at a time when food prices continue to rise and more families are being pushed deeper into poverty, people have shown what matters most by voting differently.

_{Image (above): “One finds oneself in need of an additional manservant, in order to arrive at the club with suitable haste” thought the colonial master. Are colonial roles like master and manservant being played out in Newham’s political scene?}

Are we witnessing Newham finally moving beyond one-party dominance and toward Decolonisation?

The diverse electorate inside Newham has finally woken from the outdated and ‘toxic’ colonial-style politics, calling for increasingly transparent ways to engage in the democratic process, while also safeguarding what matters most to help their communities thrive.

But will the newly elected representatives listen and understand that change is a two-way process, and that they also need to let go of what hasn’t been working for decades?

Green Deputy Mayor visits, but locals ask: who’s really standing up for Queen’s Market?

There’s never a quiet day when those in power keep trying to pull the rug from under our feet.

Recently, Green Party Deputy Mayor Zoë Garbett visited Queen’s Market. Zoe likely cycled down from the new Greater London Authority (GLA) that’s moved into Newham now. Funny, isn’t it? All this “movement” from City Hall, yet so little progress for the local communities living right where they’ve set up shop.
To be fair to Zoë and the Greens at the GLA, they have always bothered to listen to the plight of Queen’s Market’s traders, so we really appreciated them coming down.

During their visit, market traders shared powerful stories about why Queen’s Market matters: it’s not just as a place to shop, but is the beating heart of the community. One trader pointed out that the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, seems to view everything through a narrow “investment” lens. Well, if the Mayor truly wants to invest in London’s future, he should start by investing in the people who make this city alive, and not into sterile, privatised developments that push out working-class families and erase our cultural heritage.

London doesn’t need more glass towers and corporate plazas. It needs places like Queen’s Market – places where people connect, trade, and thrive together. But instead of supporting us, the powers that be are letting our markets crumble while calling their plans “regeneration.”

Across London, ethnic minority and working-class neighbourhoods are being steamrolled by gentrification, dressed up as “progress.” As one local put it bluntly: “They’ve proper gentrified the lot.” And for what? So we can pay more for fruit and veg while decision-makers sit in air-conditioned offices paid for by our taxes? No thanks, we won’t stand by and let that happen here.

Meanwhile, even the basics are being ignored. As the days grow shorter, Friends of Queen’s Market, alongside shoppers and traders, are once again pleading for proper lighting inside the market. The issue has been raised time and again – yet still nothing. It’s a simple, essential fix that would make the market safer and more welcoming. We’re calling on those responsible to act now before the new year, before another winter in the dark. Because this market isn’t just a retail place, it’s a community and social space worth fighting for.

Photos (above): Zoë Garbett, the Green Party Deputy Mayor visits Queen’s Market to hear the views of local people.

Delays in the Good Growth delivery beckons Mayor of London’s office

This week, an area manager from the Mayor of London’s office and the Greater London Authority (GLA) visited Queen’s Market (21/01/2025) with a community-led envoy of shoppers, traders and shopkeepers at hand to tell the truth about their experiences regarding the fast disappearing Good Growth funds, that promised so much, but simply delivered cheap decorations!

The envoy including Friends of Queen’s Market, representatives from the traders association and independent shoppers who walked around the market with the GLA area manager and a Newham Council manager for an hour. Local people were visibly frustrated with the terribly slow progress with the Good Growth fund amounting to £7.3million, saying that that they have been ‘kept in the dark’ by public officers, and to add salt to injury, Newham’s “digital divide” a.k.a. Co-create website wasted another £3.1million. When asked about the money re-directed from Queen’s Market to suddenly “save” Stratford’s Market Village (formally Inshops), the manager from Newham Council described the re-directed £700,000 as a “small amount” – seems like a big number to us, seeing as the Council have recently announced near bankruptcy, and wanting to increase Council Tax by a whopping 10% – WHO MAKES THE DECISIONS ABOUT THE PUBLIC FINANCES, WE ASK ?

Friends of Queen’s Market meet with the GLA and Council for a ‘reccy’ of the works to date

The fact that there is no new roofing nor improved flooring to date, despite the early promises is an absolute travesty.

The terribly ineffective Con-sultation process and money allocated to deliver the outcomes was raised with the GLA manager, as was the 11 consultations that took place at one time for Queen’s Market – local people were left confused throughout the entire process. Behind the fake consultation façade, the Council was scheming to demolish our historic market, and to pile on luxury flats that locals cannot afford in a lifetime. “The Council have their own contractors, so there’s no way in. It’s like a closed shop, it’s their way or the highway”, said Jamshed, a local trades person.

The lighting that fails to light anything effectively was described as “substandard” and of “poor quality” by the traders association representative. “Millions were spent without asking anybody”, said one shopper visiting from North East London. It transpires now that further lighting will be added by the Council – what about reimbursing the lighting bills for the traders?

The pigeon-netting still allows pigeons in, and structural fabric of the market building has not been improved – see photographs below:

Cheap lick of paint cannot **cover up** the state of the shop windows – is this really what was “co-created” ?

The Market Manager who was also present during the walk around appeared to shrug off genuine concerns, and gave ‘off-the-peg’ answers to what were basic maintenance issues. “It’s so frustrating to communicate with management, who are always first to cover their backs and play the Blame Game, but never do the right thing. We’re not asking for much”, said a shopper.

A hole in the ground that visitors almost tripped into

The community-led envoy told the listening GLA area manager that procurement took an extraordinary long time, and that works were due to be completed in May 2023. We’re almost 2 years over schedule. There’s the markets department, asset management, highways, planning department, property service (One Source) and carpark departments to get through, so decision-making takes too long, and to the detriment of the community and the market traders.

“It’s like a game of Russian dolls inside the Council. We’re told to speak with this department, this head, that officer, that new department – where is the accountability?”

_{Image (above): Dealing with Newham Council is like a “game of Russian Dolls” say locals [Image source: goldencockerel.com]}

The aggressive and annoying loud tannoy that blares out warnings to shoppers about pickpockets fails to welcome visitors to the market. Instead it puts people off from visiting. This is counter to any marketing strategy in the United Kingdom – “We’ve never seen anything like it. [Market] Management appear clueless”, said another local shopper. (The tannoy announcement appeared to have been switched off during the hour-long GLA visit, and then switched back on afterwards).

^{Photograph (above): Eagle-eyed volunteers at Friends of Queen’s Market showed the GLA and Newham Council managers what local people were presented with at stage 1 of the Co-create process, and what they are now being lumbered with.}

“We’ve never seen business this bad. Trade is down. The Council just don’t care, and cannot see how months of disruption affects us. We want to be respected by the Council. Right now, we’re being treated sub-human”, said one longtime trader.

The GLA area manager and Council manager admitted that certain promises from the Good Growth fund have not been delivered adequately and that decisions had changed from the first instance. They said that they will encourage better communication on Queen’s Market with the community and traders, and chase up the current status of the Good Growth expenditure to hasten its delivery. Well, we’ve waited long enough!

^{Photograph (above): the community-led envoy at Hamara Ghar Square, located next to Queen’s Market. Traders say that their ideas were not integrated into the final renovation of the square, and that maintenance is woefully negligent.}

^{CLICK TO VIEW the video (above): In September 2024, FoQM made a request to the Mayor of London’s office through Zoë Garbett, Green Party assembly member. The current Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said that he would visit the market to see how the Good Growth funds have been used – or squandered, as we’ve seen so far.}

And to top it off, the lighting in the carpark is practically none existent. It’s so dark after 4pm that it’s scaring shoppers away…

Photo (above): The Queen’s Market carpark where a trader recently counted only “1 light of 36 working” [Source: QM trader]

NEWSFLASH (21/02/2025): We never give up! at last, two sort-of wins In the fight to save and improve the market….

The tannoy now welcomes people to the market as well as going on about pickpockets and thieves (the welcome is only in English: wot no inclusivity?)
Newham’s “digital divide” Co-create website has been updated for the first time in months. It says that there is an ‘internal review’ of the two ‘demolish and develop ‘ options for the market’s future. And they actually invite ‘residents with immediate concerns’ to email them on HFGfuturestrategy@newham.gov.uk

So if you are a resident, trader or market shopper and if you are concerned by the threat of luxury flats on the market site: if you have questions about the Council’s less-than-transparent dealings with our market, why not email in and ask. If you like you could copy in friendsofqueensmarket@yahoo.co.uk so we can monitor public concerns. The council even promises to put ‘relevant’ responses on the website. FoQM says don’t hold your breath!

Traders furious at being ‘left in the dark’ over new lights that fail to deliver

^{Photo (above): In July FoQM and the Traders Union led a demonstration to highlight the ineptitude by Newham Council and it’s ‘well-paid’ private consultant firms.}

Sorry to say “we told you so”, but Newham Council have make a mockery of the public funds meant to help restore Queen’s Market. Over the last few years we have been keeping a close eye on the £7.3million of public funds secured under the Mayor of London, Greater London Authority’s (GLA) ‘Good Growth Fund’, Levelling Up Fund and from Newham Council’s own funds, but sadly there’s little good about it when the funds are in ‘dodgy’ hands.

Friends of Queen’s Market and the Traders Union have put pressure on the Council to explain themselves: they say they will be investigating why the new lights by private consultants have failed to deliver adequate lighting into the market and possibly even poses a public safety risk. Yet, more officer time is being spent on their self-made mess, and some officers are on annual leave during these summer months, which means further delays for the traders!

^{Image (above): sums up any investigation by Newham Council.}

The pigeons have come home to roost

The PIGEON NETTING, meant to stop pigeon has consistently failed to keep pigeons from making home in the inner roof structure, and now the LIGHTING has failed to light up the market! Both cost a whopping £731,000 – that’s for some basic pigeon netting and new lights. This was after the Council spent £116,530 on just removing the pigeon netting. Kerching – looks like a whole bunch of people making a lot of easy money behind the scenes!

400 lights were removed from the market and replaced with just 99 lights. These new lights were suppose to be much brighter and better, but the lighting does not reach the market stalls on the ground.

**New lighting fails to light up walkways**

^{Photos (above): On the left, shows how the new lighting does not even light up the central walkways, and on the right how traders are forced to use their own flood lights to showcase their goods. Thankfully it’s summer and the light wells on the roof help bring some natural light inside, but come winter, it will be a different story say traders and shoppers.}

“It’s a disgrace” says a local shopper “we were led to believe that the £millions will be spent on a much-needed new floor and roof, but it’s just all cheap decorations with no substance – sums up the Council well, I guess.”

“My customers can’t even see what they are buying under these new lights, so I’ve got no choice but to use my flood lights to light up my stall”, saying one trader who sells fashion accessories.

Naveed Choudhary, Chairman of the Traders Union at the market says:” The Council is saying because it’s darker, it will lead drug users away but it’s the opposite way. When it’s bright, less pickpockets and crimes are committed here, because the drugs users will be scared to come inside… they [the Council] are not listening to us.”

The Good Growth funds were suppose to “cocreate” improvements to the market – another waste of public money – where Newham Council created a ‘Newham co-create’ website for £3.1million that many local people do not access, and is accused of being prejudiced towards many local people who are not digital savvy and cannot understand the jargon.

The amount of funds being wasted by Newham Council from the Good Growth Fund is STAGGERING – see the breakdown below:

Have you shone the light onto the finances at Newham Council?
The latest lighting saga is just the tip of the iceberg, of what’s been decades of systemic incompetence and inertia inside Newham Council. Who knows what you find in your investigation…