Tower Hamlets Council is set to introduce a 'Members Pledge' to improve political culture within the council, as part of a wider initiative called the 'Member Experience'.
The 'Member Experience' is based upon four themes:
- Clear, mutual expectations around member roles.
- Developing leadership skills under pressure.
- Supporting Officers to work in a political environment
- Supporting Inclusive Debate
The Standards Advisory Committee met on Wednesday, 3 December 2025, to discuss the Continuous Improvement Plan (CIP) and endorse the proposal to include additional wording in the draft 'Members Pledge', according to the Continuous Improvement Plan update December 2025 report.
The 'Members Pledge' includes a vision statement and six themes, or domains, each with an ambition statement and a list of behaviours to show how that ambition is being met. The six themes are:
- Listening and working together
- Civility and political debate
- Aspirational and future focused
- Transparency and accountability
- 'Residents First' leadership
- Respect and inclusion
According to the Continuous Improvement Plan update December 2025 report, one of the domains, 'Civility and Political debate' was difficult to finalise due to a difference of opinion between members at the workshop. The Centre for Governance and Scrutiny (CfGS) proposed amendments to this domain which build on that provided by Members in the workshop and draw on sector good practice to give a completed domain in a similar format to the other five. The advisory committee endorsed a proposal to replace the original domain with additional material from the Centre for Governance and Scrutiny. The updated wording is available in Appendix 2 for Continuous Improvement Plan update December 2025.
Councillor Iqbal Hossain noted that some members attending seminars said that the political behaviour in Tower Hamlets isn't going to change. He added that there's an expectation of members' behaviour.
