Tower Hamlets ‘will come to its senses after Rahman mess’ in new election

THE man battling to take Tower Hamlets for Labour today said he believed the borough would “come to its senses” as voters recognised the need to put the “mess” of the Lutfur Rahman years behind them.

John Biggs was speaking the day before residents go to the polls in the re-run mayoral election.

Mr Biggs, who was defeated by Mr Rahman last year before an election court declared the result invalid in April, said he was concerned about possible malpractice tomorrow.

He said: “We’ve heard a few stories through the grapevine but it’s on nothing like the scale it was last year. It is in the nature of the beast that a lot of this stuff, if it is being done, is being done discreetly.”

Detectives are assessing 16 allegations of electoral malpractice, including the har vesting of post al votes, use of “ghost” voters and improper distribution of election literature.

Rabina Khan is backed by Mr Rahman but has campaigned as an independent candidate since his Tower Hamlets First party was disbarred by the election court. There is no suggestion she is responsible for any malpractice.

Mr Biggs, a former council leader, said: “She both wants to claim the credit for things that were done by his administration — and not everything was bad — but also to try and maintain that she is clean, sweet, not associated with it.”

Ms Khan responded: “I wonder if John Biggs would be claiming that I was ‘dominated’ if I was a man — I am my own person, with my own poli c y agenda and I am fighting everyday for the people of Tower Hamlets, that’s what’s important to me and that’s why I came into politics.”