We asked Hounslow council leader about election pledges and recent Labour scandals. The Labour leader discussed all things local election from tax to fly-tipping.
Main Priorities
Cllr Rajawat says continuing the work Labour has been doing across the last four years is his top priority for Hounslow. This includes continuing to create opportunities for young people through jobs, apprenticeships and skills. He added: "I think tackling environmental issues like fly-tipping, carrying on doing that, bringing down the cost, making it as easy, but really still signalling that we are very tough for those that choose to be messy in our borough." Another key priority for Cllr Rajawat is an "absolute focus" on growth, which he says will underpin the future economy of the council, and put it in the position to deliver his first two priorities.
Labour's Pledges
Hounslow Labour have pledged to deliver 2,500 new social and affordable homes by 2030 should the party remain in control after May 7. However, Hounslow Labour missed its own promise made at the last election to deliver 1,000 council homes by 2026. When asked what went wrong, and how residents can trust Labour to stick to the new pledge, Cllr Rajawat said: "So whilst we acknowledge that the thousand has been missed and I'm not going to sit here and say to you no you're absolutely wrong... That doesn't mean that we stop aspiring to build more."
In 2022, Hounslow Labour said it would reduce fly-tipping by 25 per cent. However, despite a one-size-fits-all £1,000 fine for fly-tipping in Hounslow, rates increased over a four-year period from 25,000 to 27,000 incidents. Fast forward to 2026, and Cllr Rajawat is promising to clear fly-tipping within 24 hours of a report being made. When asked how residents can trust this pledge, he said: "So there is a distinction there isn't there… It's the number of cases reported versus the collection… What you're highlighting is the deeper problem that is happening across London. You know, it's not isolated to Hounslow."
The manifesto also includes large spending pledges, such as over £150million to improve council estates, and £11million for SEND provision. When asked how the council can afford to deliver this, Cllr Rajawat explained that the fairer funding agreement with the government has allowed space to create these initiatives. However, the fairer funding agreement assumes all councils will increase council tax by the maximum 4.99 per cent each year. Cllr Rajawat told the LDRS it is not certain he would increase by the maximum amount each year. He added: "We will look at local circumstances. We'll look at the economy as we always do before we make that decision [on council tax]."
Hounslow Labour Scandals
In April, the LDRS exclusively revealed that Labour councillor, Farhaan Rehman, had breached the council constitution after he parked a Lamborghini in a disabled parking bay and failed to declare interests in three companies. Despite this, he was re-selected to stand for Labour in Hounslow Heath - something Cllr Rajawat says was entirely out of his hands. Questioning Cllr Rajawat on this decision, he said: "We have to get away from bashing politicians for mistakes that they make. We have to accept that he has made an apology and the residents of Hounslow Heath will make their judgment." He added: "He is a first time councillor, and that's not me trying to make excuses on his behalf, but I know as a brand new councillor, I made a number of mistakes. You just don't understand the system. You want to learn it and learn from it. I know in conversations that I've had with him since, he has learned from it."
Other recent controversies include Hounslow Council being accused of misleading the public over whether any investigations into grooming gangs had occurred in the borough, and a second councillor parking in a disabled bay. The same councillor, Hina Mir, was then suspended by Labour after employing an illegal worker in her home.
