Results tagged “tim archer”

Political foes Jim Fitzpatrick and Tim Archer have united to urge voters to reject reforms to the electoral system next week.

On May 5, the country will be called to the ballot box to give their view on whether the Alternative Vote system should be adopted for the general election.

Travelling home from work recently, I reached Canary Wharf at 8pm. There were still large numbers of people passing through the station and the stop for buses to the Island was crowded.

This brings me to the Island Hoppa, a daytime circular service which has been running since September 2009.

By Tim Archer

The election to decide who will be Tower Hamlets' first executive mayor is almost upon us. Voters go to the polls on October 21 to decide who should run the council and its £1billion a year budget.

For many it's been a bunch of politicians arguing amongst themselves.

By Tim Archer

Given its size and unique geographical form, coupled with its proximity to the economic hub that is Canary Wharf, I've long campaigned for the Isle of Dogs to have its own full time police station.

It's what the vast majority of residents tell me they want.

A sculpture by Henry Moore owned by Tower Hamlets Council is set to be moved to Canary Wharf.

"Draped Seated Woman", produced by the sculptor in 1957, is worth millions of pounds but has been on loan to the Yorkshire Sculpture Park since 1997.

By Tim Archer

Like it or not, in May this year, the residents of Tower Hamlets voted to introduce a directly-elected Mayor.

Elections will be held on October 21 to decide who will be the first ever executive Mayor of Tower Hamlets, and given the £1billion cheque book that comes with the job.

By Tim Archer

The ramifications of last week's Budget will be felt for quite some time to come. The new Government has rightly prioritised reining in the budget deficit.

If the deficit had been left unchecked the financial crisis would have spiralled out of control.

By Tim Archer

Tower Hamlets Town Hall has re-opened for business after the local elections and there is the feel of a new school term about the place.

The new Labour administration in the Town Hall has wasted no time at all in pushing out the scare stories that the new Government in Westminster will spell disaster for Tower Hamlets.

MP Jim Fitzpatrick has put aside his opposition towards an elected mayor in Tower Hamlets and said Labour is now focused on winning the key vote.

Mr Fitzpatrick had previously criticised the idea saying it would "destabilise" the council structure.

Jim Fitzpatrick said his success in winning the Poplar and Limehouse seat was down to hard work from him and his team.

The Labour MP fought off the rising popularity of Tory candidate Tim Archer and aggressive attacks from foe George Galloway to secure a surprisingly comfortable win in Thursday's general election.

Labour's Jim Fitzpatrick has hung onto his Parliamentary seat and beat Respect's George Galloway into third in the process.

Mr Fitzpatrick polled 18,679 votes, while Conservative candidate Tim Archer came second with 12,649. Mr Galloway received 8,160 votes.

George Galloway waged a war on banks in Canary Wharf during a heated pre-election debate this week.

Respect's leader and candidate for Poplar and Limehouse said anti-social behaviour orders should be given to bankers and that business rates from the estate should go to the poorer areas of Tower Hamlets.

Home Secretary Alan Johnson visited the Isle of Dogs Police Station this morning.

Mr Johnson joined Canning Town and Poplar MP Jim Fitzpatrick to meet Island residents to discuss the Safer Neighbourhood teams involvement in Operation Fusion to crack down on crime and anti-social behaviour on the Island.

By Tim Archer

A budget has to balance sooner or later; black holes cannot be financed forever and they cannot be ignored. It's therefore interesting that the Labour-run council chose to overlook the fact that its books contain a £54million gap. Putting that into context, council tax in Tower Hamlets would have to rise by almost 30 per cent a year for the next three years just to plug that gap.

There is a school of thought which demands that public authorities divest themselves of all interests that could be considered peripheral, frivolous or beyond the ken of bureaucrats.

Anything from Christmas lights to Town Hall portraits should go in some kind of Cromwellian austerity drive, paring down council tax to fund just the routine basics.

Tower Hamlets owns a sculpture worth millions, designed by a world-famous artist.
Sadly, you have to trundle more than 200 miles north to see it.

Avant-garde Yorkshire-born sculptor Henry Moore created Draped Seated Woman for the borough in 1957 while working on a commission for the Unesco headquarters in Paris.

By Tim Archer

It must be an election year as the Labour-run Tower Hamlets Council has proposed to freeze Council Tax.

Coincidentally, the last time Council Tax was frozen in Tower Hamlets was in 2006, also an election year.

Jim Thornton wants you to think independently.

The property manager and former Conservative broke away from the Blues in 2007, and wants Poplar and Limehouse voters to consider alternatives to the party machines this summer.

By Tim Archer

To fix the problems of pollution and congestion, Tower Hamlets Council introduced the concept of all new homes being built as "car-free".

The theory goes that if you ban people from applying for parking permits and prevent developers building parking spaces, residents abandon their cars and use public transport.

By Tim Archer

Christmas is an important time for celebrating with family, friends and colleagues.

But it is also a time when we remember those less fortunate than ourselves and those who are no longer with us. It's been poignant, therefore, that this week I have attended the unveiling of two new plaques.