Local News
Season of Bangla Drama returns to Tower Hamlets
“CURIOUS” is the theme of the annual heritage and creative expression festival that is the Season of Bangla Drama – and playwrights have responded to the challenge in a variety of ways. Let’s ask Mayor Lutfur Rahman to explain why residents – and the wider Bangla community – look forward...
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Imported salmonella eggs identified
A MASS salmonella outbreak some weeks ago was fairly quickly attributed to “imported eggs”, which were later identified as eggs from Ukraine. These eggs were not usually on general sale, but they were being supplied to the catering industry. British eggs are each individually stamped, so retail ...
Sounds on Sunday: 50 years ago – 1976-26
FIFTY YEARS AGO we were humming along to the hits of 1976. Some have magnificently stood the test of time; others have not. Join us on Memory Lane as we review them on their golden anniversaries. This week 50 years ago, Mississippi by “Pussycat” were still at number one in the charts. This gives...
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Police and Council partnership recovers stolen goods
CRIME RELATED to mobile phones was the target of a national police operation throughout September. In Tower Hamlets, police joined forces with Tower Hamlets Council’s “Regulatory Service” team to bring local results. As part of the partnership working, neighbourhood police teams conducted “i...
Police want witnesses to fatal collision in Hackney
A MOPED driver died in a collision with a car on Thursday, 15th October. The collision occurred on the Lea Bridge Road, near Chatsworth Road, in Hackney, just after 7pm. Now the Metropolitan Police are asking for anyone who witnessed the accident to come forward and help them with their investigatio...
Mayor and Deputy work together on fighting poverty
TOWER HAMLETS Council has marked Challenge Poverty Week (12-18th October) by “shining a spotlight” on the wide range of support services it has in place to help residents with the cost of living. The Council has an ongoing commitment to tackle poverty and reduce inequality in Tower Hamlets. It r...
Romford flat severely damaged in fire
IT WAS just past 2pm on 13th October when the first of six calls came into the London Fire Brigade control centre, reporting a fire in a flat which was part of a terraced house in Westfield Gardens, Romford. Crews from Ilford, Dagenham, Hainault and other nearby fire stations attended the blaze. The...
Cable Street: proud of our past, hope for our future
THE 90TH anniversary of the battle of Cable Street was marked on 4th October. It was not just an occasion to be nostalgic – it also marked the subsequent history of immigration and growing Tower Hamlets into a harmonious borough. Now the Council is running two exhibitions to remind us of the past ...
Narrow squeak for residents in Mile End flat fire
FIREFIGHTERS came to the rescue of residents of a block of flats in Mile End last week when they acted quickly to put out a fire on the second floor of the six-storey block. Firefighters came from Poplar, Millwall, Shadwell and Bethnal Green fire stations to tackle the blaze. The first report of the...
Hate speech found on Council Facebook page
TOWER HAMLETS Council has put quite a lot of effort into promoting the events being held by various organisations around the Borough to mark Hate Crime Awareness Week. However, hate speech appears to have crept onto its Facebook page and stayed there – despite the Council’s slogan that Tower Ham...
Fifth man charged with Newham murder
FOUR MEN had already appeared in Court to face murder charges after the death of Masum Miah in Newham. Now a fifth man has also been charged with murder. It was in the early hours of 18th August that reports of a shooting in St Bartholomew’s Road, Newham. The emergency services attended, but the v...
Deputy Mayor leads defence of D7 bus (again)
A FIRM “NO” came from a meeting of Tower Hamlets Council last week – in response to a proposal from Transport for London (TfL) to “restructure” bus routes on the Isle of Dogs. There was unity in the Town Hall as ASPIRE’s Deputy Mayor Cllr Maium Talukdar and Isle of Dogs Conservative coun...
Tower Hamlets Council marks Black History Month
OCTOBER IS Black History Month, and Tower Hamlets Council has put together a programme of free events and activities to celebrate, learn and enjoy – but has the Council been proactive, or is it just compiling listings? Some events are in Council venues, such as “Communities of Liberation: Discov...
Christmas cookies allergens are not in English
A POPULAR duo of Christmas treats have been withdrawn from sale for an unusual reason: the allergens they contain are not listed on the label in English. They have been on sale in Home Bargain stores. The presence of an allergen – such as common ingredients like milk and flour – does not mean th...
Why Malaysia came to Tower Hamlets
LINKS BETWEEN Tower Hamlets and Malaysia took another step forward this week, as H.E. Dato’ Indera Dr Azfar Mohamad Mustafar, High Commissioner of Malaysia, came to visit the Borough. Malaysia is made up of 879 islands – rather more than Tower Hamlets, which has just one. In the 18th century the...
Come on tour with Stop the War
WELFARE NOT WARFARE is the slogan adopted by the Stop The War Coalition to cover a short tour of meetings to build an international movement against war. The meetings will provide an opportunity to hear first hand accounts from a range of activists about actions being taken to end the wars – the m...
Mayor Lutfur Rahman thanks Cup footballers
THE MAYOR’S Football Cup is the highlight of the local football season. The September matches close the summer of amateur games and bring in the new season of competition locally and nationally. It’s a fitting time for Mayor Lutfur Rahman to look back on the competition. He formally congratulate...
Piri Piri Chicken Pot Noodle recalled from sale
A FAVOURITE pot noodle – Piri Piri Chicken Flavour – has been withdrawn from sale by Unilever as it contains milk, which is not declared is the list of ingredients. Milk can cause serious reactions in those who are allergic to it. The affected product comes in a 90g container which shows the bat...
Selling vape to under-18 cost shop over £2,000
IT PRESENTED as a Lemon & Lime flavoured vape, and the shop sold it to a 17 year old customer. However, that vape contained nicotine – and it’s illegal to sell vapes containing nicotine to under-18s. The shop that sold the vape is Al-Haramain Superstore in Whitehorse Lane, E1. The young pers...
Fire leaves Hackney flat badly damaged
WHEN 39 phone calls came into the London Fire Brigade Control Centre, it was clear that the fire was serious. A fire in a flat in a block on Loddiges Road, Hackney, was the problem. Firefighters came from Homerton, Bethnal Green, Whitechapel and other fire stations to tackle the blaze. The first cal...