Stand up against failure or face Pickles-led improvement

摘要

Is Tower Hamlets the death knell for sector-led regulation? It is a question that was posed to me earlier this week, shortly after communities secretary Eric Pickles announced he was sending a team of consultants to investigate the troubled borough. Tower Hamlets has been a 'problem child' of the sector for a long time. An area with complex social issues and a diverse population, difficult politics and a high turnover of staff at a senior level - all of which have all added to the strains. While opting for a directly-elected mayor in neighbouring Hackney seemed to be the answer to its problems - perhaps because the electorate chose Jules Pipe - if anything, it has exacerbated the issues in Tower Hamlets.