‘Trump free zone’ declared by Tower Hamlets Council in call to Downing Street to withdraw invitation

From the East London Advertiser  – the latest nonsense from the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. There’s a lot of problems in Tower Hamlets. You would have thought the council had better things to deliberate upon. 

The American president has been given “a clear message” that he isn’t welcome in London’s East End after Tower Hamlets Council last night voted unanimously to declare “a Trump-free zone”.

“Tower Hamlets is home to one of the country’s most diverse communities,” the motion begins, adding that it “has the highest percentage of Muslim residents in England – 35 per cent compared with the national average of 5 per cent”. 

After several paragraphs of platitudes about “community cohesion” and “diversity”, it says “this Council notes with shock and alarm the decision by Donald Trump, President of the United States, to ‘retweet’ Islamophobic propaganda from the Britain First Twitter account”.

It also bemoans that he has allegedly “bigoted attitude towards women, ethnic minorities and Muslims which has resulted in examples of division and hatred within the USA and beyond” and attacks his “illogical” decision to move the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

The Labour mayor adopted independent councillor Ohid Ahmed’s motion to declare the borough “closed” to Donald Trump at the full council meeting. Members came together across the political spectrum in a rare show of unity to “ban” the president, declaring that he wasn’t welcome in the multi-ethnic East End.

Cllr Ahmed, who is running for mayor in May’s local election, was over the moon as council members from all political groups backed his proposal with a unanimous show of hands. There were no objections or abstentions. That isn’t strictly speaking accurate; Breitbart reports Peter Golds, the leader of the Conservatives group in the council responding via twitter  

tweeted: “In 2015 one of the Tower Hamlets First election candidates tweeted ‘let us support Hitler the Great.’ These people, corruptly elected, have no shame. For the record, our group refused to vote in this farce.”

Cllr Golds, who is Jewish and gay, receives so much abuse from other members of the council and their liggers that they probably don’t acknowledge his right to exist. So his  group’s refusal to vote doesn’t count as an objection or abstention in their eyes. 

Cllr Ahmed said “We have demonstrated a clear leadership on this issue…I hope my campaign has contributed in conveying a clear message to President Trump.

And indeed, just like neighbouring Greenwich where the Labour administration has also declared a similar ‘zone’ which, ironically, now links both sides of the Thames, directly under the flight path to Heathrow should President Trump fly in.

But the Isle of Dogs wasn’t sure the council should waste time debating Trump, or at least one of its Tory Opposition members Andrew Wood, who told the council: “We would much rather debate more urgent issues we should be spending the next half-hour debating, like acid attacks, fire safety, housing and the decline in school standards. Local councillors are elected to deal with local issues. If Donald Trump were to come down and have a curry in Brick Lane, what could we do? Close our air space?”

Cllr Ahmed has written to Prime Minister Theresa May and the US Ambassador requesting the invitation to visit the UK to be withdrawn, but it has been extended and accepted, Cllr Ohid pointed out.