The Independents campaigned, insisting that it was a two-horse race. Clearly they were right, though if this had been a horse race someone would have asked whether the Labour horse had been nobbled.

Firstly, Newham Independents are riding high. Their victory in Plaistow South, where they totally humiliated Labour should set the alarm bells ringing for Labour.

Andrew Baikie died on holiday in Jamaica earlier this year. The details of his funeral are as follows.

Newham Independents storm ahead in Plaistow South overturning a formerly safe Labour seat.

Plaistow South was in the safest ever Labour parliamentary constituency of Plaistow, which Will Thorne MP took with 95% of the vote.

There is a general point to be made about this. Politicians, not just Labour ones, like headlines. They equate a bold statement or spending money with achievement. It isn’t.

What they don’t like to do is continue when the cameras are looking elsewhere. But it is (Weber’s) “slow boring of hard boards” that makes the difference, not the banner headlines.

Is it too cynical to suggest that Fiaz is spending to gloss-up her own record whilst having no regard to the person who will have to pick up the bill after she goes?

It seems that within a few hours, Cllr Zulfiqar Ali is about to become the statutory Deputy Mayor. We noted on a previous occasion that the mayor might have reason to reconsider Cllr Ali for such important portfolios. 

We could see both a low turnout from Labour voters in Plaistow South and defections from Labour to Reform amongst those who cast their ballots. If this happens, the ultimate beneficiaries are likely to be the Newham Independents.

In a masterpiece of spin, the cabinet member responsible, Cllr McLean is quoted in the Recorder apparently seeing a 50% cut in funding as a positive thing.

The only real winners from Fiaz’s inaction will be Labour’s opponents in Newham, who will find ample ammunition. For the rest of us, the outcome is far bleaker: fewer services, higher costs, and a borough left poorer by the Mayor’s failure to face reality.

For Cllr Shaban Mohammed, the only path to survival may be to flip the script go public with the who, what, when and why of Newham’s housing collapse, and force the mayor to wear the mess herself.

With less than a week before nominations close in the Plaistow South byelection, the following candidates have been announced.

Observers have been swift to suggest that Labour still seems to be incapable of organising the convivial consumption of alcohol within the confines of a manufacturing plant owned by Truman or Carling.

What began as an internal falling out between Newham’s two top women has now spilled over into the pages of Private Eye, which has reported on the rather awkward consequences of their feud. In the process, Private Eye even gave a nod to our own humble blog for keeping tabs on the drama.

We are told that the cabinet has jointly written to the Standards Board with a complaint against Mayor Fiaz.

This has been an issue for two years, yet no action has been taken. It took until May this year to agree upon a consultation about closure.

One of the frequent complaints we heard when Mayor Fiaz was new in office was her refusal to make decisions. It seems that this problem has not gone away.

Members of the Labour Party report that the deadline for submitting applications to join the list of candidates for 2026 has been extended to the 4th August. Gone, it seems, are the days when there were three or four applicants for every available position.

In what was once the flagship borough driving improvement in private sector lettings, the BBC state that “In part of Newham, where there are only 75 licensed properties, he found more than 700 possible HMOs.”

Is it time for Cllr Virdee to consider his position?

It was announced on Wednesday 30th July that Cllr Neil Wilson had died whilst with family in Scotland.

Nor did they follow up with a question asking whether she was interviewed. Nor did they ask either her or the Labour Party, asking why she was unsuccessful.

We could offer the following answers; she did, she was, and because she has been an unmitigated disaster for the borough and the Labour Party.