"Tower Hamlets Council risks being stuck in a cycle of government intervention due to "significant weaknesses" in the way it is run, an auditor has warned. External auditor EY outlined 10 issues at the council, which is controlled by Luftur Rahman's Aspire Party, including "significant turnover" of senior management and the management of social housing. The council's chief executive Stephen Halsey said they welcomed the report and were acting upon its recommendations, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service."
"Mr Halsey said the council's efforts to recruit a new CFO were hampered by a "competitive" employment market. Other weaknesses identified in the report included procurement and management of contracts, and how the council conducts internal investigations. The report was presented to the council's audit committee on Wednesday, following EY's audit in the 2024-25 financial year. It gave the council a C3 grade, the second worst out of four possible marks."
EY identified ten governance issues at Tower Hamlets Council and assigned a C3 grade for 2024–25. Identified weaknesses include significant senior management turnover, slow replacement of the former chief finance officer, delayed referral to the Regulator for Social Housing after bringing housing management in-house, procurement and contract management failures, and shortcomings in internal investigations. The council cites a competitive employment market for difficulties recruiting a new CFO and defends the referral timeframe. Many issues have persisted for years, improvement pace has not matched the scale of the challenge, and urgent sustained action is needed to prevent potential government intervention.
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