Cllr Roxanne Mashari (Labour Welsh Harp) has announced that she will stand against Muhammed Butt for leadership of Brent Council at the Labour Group’s AGM on Saturday.
Mashari told the Kilburn Times LINK:
It’s a strictly positive campaign. I’m standing to try and be a unity candidate, build on the progress we’ve made since 2010 and take the council and the borough to the next level.Kishan Parshotam, who co-chaired Brent Youth parliament with Cllr Mashari said:
The scale of the challenges we face, we are going to have to be more transformative in our approach.
There are huge levels of destitution and poverty in the borough which are already too high, consistent in areas like South Kilburn, Stonebridge and Harlesden for decades. We have to change the story of this borough in fundamental areas.
I’m not talking about tinkering around the edges – I’m talking about a real shift in terms of how we operate and how we focus.
This is not about disparaging anyone. It’s not to say we haven’t made progress or Cllr Butt hasn’t done good things. We are in a critical point in time for Brent with service savings to make, the universal credit roll-out, and foodbanks at capacity – now it’s time to take things up a step and be transformative. I want to see Brent be a flagship Labour council in the UK and that’s where I want to take us.
Roxanne has always been a champion for equal rights. She was a fantastic Co-Chair of BYP and helped it go from strength to strength. She would be an admirable, and tenacious, leader of the Council during the next difficult chapter for our borough.
Previous leadership bids by Cllr Nerva and Cllr Pavey have failed to remove Cllr Butt but there is increased disquiet now over his leadership particularly regarding the issues outlined in the article below and decisions such as that regarding the Wembley Stadium steps and meetings with developers.
She would be a much better Council Leader than Tsar Butt. I hope the new Labour intake see sense and oust him before the Tyranny continues
ReplyDeleteI agree! I know a number of existing Labour councillors who are very unhappy with Butt's style of leadership. I hope that they will join with any newly elected Labour councillors to choose a new leader for their party (and probably for Brent) who is more open and trustworthy than the man who has controlled them for the past six years.
DeleteWho isn't more open and trustworthy than the man who has controlled them for the past six years?
DeleteSo why did she support Butt so wholeheartedly in the last leadership contest?
ReplyDeleteWhat a rock & a hard place for us to choose. Mashari is such a divisive character she makes Brexit look like a decision between kittens. I hear there will be a third and better suited candidate for leadership.
ReplyDeletePlease do share??
ReplyDeleteI've always believed in Anyone But Butt.
ReplyDeleteBut this really is devil and deep blue sea territory.
If you think Mashari as new leader will result in an improvement don't hold your breath. Like many of the Councillors she has kept Dictator Butt in his seat of power for far too long, fully supporting policies she now wishes to modify. Personal ambition?
ReplyDelete