Rokhsana Fiaz will not be a candidate in next year’s council elections, reports Aidan White

Old Town Hall in Stratford and (inset) Rokhsana Fiaz

Newham Labour has announced that Rokhsana Fiaz – the first woman elected mayor of a London borough – will not stand again in May next year.

The news comes after one of the most turbulent years in the recent history of Newham borough.

Confirming the news, Rokhsana Fiaz described the role she has played since her first election in 2018 as “the greatest honour and privilege of my life”.

She outlined a series of achievements in office, including “homes people can afford, more jobs and opportunities, investment for our children and young people and an enduring commitment in helping people lead financially secure lives”.

Newham operates on a directly-elected mayoral model, with the mayor serving as the leader of the council and cabinet. Mayor Fiaz will continue in office until the end of her term next May.

The news of her departure comes after a year when Newham and the Labour administration has faced a series of internal and external shocks.

Faced with an unprecedented crisis in homelessness and social care demands, the council has been grappling with a debt crisis that has taken the borough to the brink of bankruptcy.

Earlier this year it was forced to seek emergency assistance from the government and was granted permission to increase council tax by 9% – well above the national legal limit.

Last October was a low point for Labour when the council was handed a scathing report by the Regulator of Social Housing for “very serious failings,” with thousands of repairs still to be carried out on Newham Council properties and fire safety works that were overdue by more than twelve months.

This led to the resignation of the council, cabinet member for housing services Shaban Mohammed and calls for Fiaz to go as well.

In May the government announced the issuing of a non-statutory best value notice to Newham, which is a formal notification of concerns over how the council is working. The town hall is now working with the government ministry to provide assurance of improvement.

During this time there was also the astonishing spectacle of the mayor herself taking the council to an employment tribunal. She alleged that she had been a victim of race and sex discrimination in 2022. This case was settled last December when she withdrew the claim. The details of what happened are unclear, but the council, having denied the mayor’s claims, did agree to pay more than £30,000 towards her legal costs.

And there was more controversy in July, when Abi Gbago, the Newham chief executive, was awarded a payout of more than £230,000 after suddenly resigning less than two years into the job.

Council members were called to a closed meeting and asked to vote on her substantial payout. She was replaced by Paul Martin, who is the sixth chief executive to take on the job since Rokhsana Fiaz was elected. Four have been interim posts and two permanent.

In the statement announcing she was standing down Rokhsana Fiaz said: “I have loved the opportunity to make our borough fairer, more tolerant, greener and healthier, more democratic and more prosperous for all.

“I’ve always done so with passion and an unshakeable spirit of progress for the people we serve, in collaboration with them and committed colleagues at the Council.

“I wish the next Labour candidate for the Mayor of Newham every success next May, and in continuing Newham’s incredible journey for the benefit of our people and communities.”

Labour’s candidate in next year’s election has not been formally announced but online speculation suggests it will be former councillor Forhad Hussain.

Green Party Councillor Areeq Chowdhury, who last year called on Fiaz to resign over the shocking report from the housing regulator, commended her for her years of service to Newham. However, he said that for the remainder of her term the Greens would continue to challenge Labour over their “numerous and significant failures”.

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