WALTHAM Forest is second in a league table for the proportion of highest paid council officers who come from ethnic minorities.

Figures released by the GMB union show 24 per cent of the best five per cent of the authority’s earners, excluding education, are classified as coming from minority communities.

Waltham Forest trails only Hackney in the table of all 33 London boroughs, with neighbouring Newham and Tower Hamlets in 17th and 11th place respectively.

According to the latest estimates, up to 44 per cent of the borough’s population are from ethnic minorities.

Kamaljeet Jandu, GMB national equality and inclusion officer, said: “GMB believes that employers should reflect the make up of local communities in their workforces.

“GMB commend those local councils which have achieved this at the highest pay level in their organisations as a commitment to equality and real progress.

“There are lessons here for employers in the public and private sectors who have acknowledged this and made progress.

“GMB believe that appointments and promotion should be based on merit to achieve this objective.”