Category Archives: Blog

How we fail to help abused women

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I blogged previously about the Amnesty / Southall Black Sisters report into the plight of refugee women and illegal immigrants who are victims of domestic violence but who are trapped in abusive situations because benefits rules prevent them running away – a classic and tragic case of bureaucratic rules gone wrong.

Well – this week Southall Black Sisters held a protest at Parliament:

Hundreds of women protested outside Parliament today to bring attention to the immigration law that provides “no safety net to vulnerable women”.

Southall Black Sisters, human rights groups and other organisations from around the country began the day with a silent protest outside Portcullis House wearing masks and black clothes to expose the injustice of women who are turned away from their local authority because of the no recourse to funds requirement.

The demonstration follows a series of reports on the rule that prevents women who have travelled to the UK legally, with a work, spousal or student visa, from accessing state benefits or social housing if they experience violence or abuse by their partners…

Hornsey and Wood Green MP, Lynne Featherstone, of the Liberal Democrats, said: “With no real or secure support from the Government, these women face a bleak choice between destitution or continued dependence on their abuser. The devil and the deep blue sea doesn’t quite describe what a grim choice this is.”

Ken Livingstone recycles his Alexandra Palace promises

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Well, well – Ken Livingstone has been at it again – recycling old, broken promises just as election day nears. In this case – he’s making the same comments about Alexandra Palace that he made four years ago – and then didn’t act on in the four years since.

As the news release from my colleague Monica Whyte (candidate for the Enfield & Haringey London Assembly seat) says:

Local Liberal Democrats have exposed Ken Livingstone’s cynical bid for votes over Ally Pally, admidst Haringey Labour’s catastrophic mismanagement of the cherished building.

The Lib Dems are reminding local residents that his promises this week comes four years after Labour’s Mayor made a similar bid for votes at the last Mayoral election – since which he has done absolutely nothing to help as local Labour bosses have wasted further millions in a disastrous attempt to dispose of the site.

When the last Mayoral election was days away, Ken Livingstone told local newspaper the Hornsey Journal that the Ally Pally was a “regional resource” and a “huge financial burden” for the people of Haringey – and suggested that extra funding could be made available to it from the Mayor’s budget (Hornsey Journal, 3rd June 2004).

In the past four years however, he has done nothing to help, while the local Labour Council has orchestrated a disastrous attempt to flog the building to a developer through a failed lease that has been thrown out by the High Court – leaving local taxpayers with another multi-million pound bill on top of the £50 million already squandered.

Local GLA candidate and Haringey Lib Dem councillor Monica Whyte commented: “Ken Livingstone’s empty promises to save the Ally Pally from the clutches of Haringey Labour would be great if they were true – but this just shows that he will say anything for a few votes in this area.”

“He said he’d help save the Ally Pally last time and what did he do? Absolutely nothing. Instead, Lib Dems have had to battle another fiasco of mismanagement over the Firoka deal, which has cost local residents further millions.

“Local residents will not be fooled by Ken a second time round!”

Gordon Brown plays true to type

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And so, Gordon’s answer to the 10p tax rate rebellion is … to announce a review that’ll report in a few months time.

It seems that has been his answer to most major problems over the last decade and more – set up a review, put off a decision. As I wrote just before he became Prime Minister:

On far too many [issues] – such as pensions, the NHS and climate change – his response has been to set up long-term commissions under outsiders to tell him what to do. We have all had to suffer from lack of action whilst he has inched towards a conclusion.

Now, I’m no objector to careful consideration of issues, getting in advice, or preparing the ground carefully – but reviews need to be a means to making an effective, timely decision – and not a means to prevaricate. This slow moving, hugely cautious approach could – like his shying away from public leadership – be caught out very badly if he is in Number 10.

It looks like Gordon Brown is staying true to type!

10p tax rate debated in Parliament

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Bravura performance by Jeremy Browne! The Finance Bill Second Reading in the Commons today was mainly of note because of the ruck over Gordon Brown’s abolition of the 10p rate of tax. Much predictable hand-wringing on the Labour benches by MPs who had not even noticed that the least able to afford it were going to be done over by last year’s Budget. But have to say that Jeremy just enjoyed himself rotten – and I would say that despite Labour and Tories being the butt of the majority of his speech. He was so funny and witty that all sides could not help but laugh – even at their own expense. You’ll have to read in Hansard if you’re keen when it’s up tomorrow.

UPDATE: You can read highlights of Jeremy’s speech here.

The real lesson of the 10p tax rate fiasco

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HM Treasury signIt’d be easy to simply point fingers at all those Labour MPs who cheered when Gordon Brown delivered his last budget (the one that scheduled the abolition of the 10p income tax rate for this year) and then stayed silent in the intervening year until finally, at the last gasp, speaking up on the issue.

But there’s a larger point underlying all this – beyond the failure of MPs to speak up for so long. It’s the whole way we do our budgets and our politics. Gordon Brown slipped out the announcement of the abolition of the 10p rate on the quiet, obscured – he hoped – by the fanfare he gave to a cut in the basic rate of income tax. He nearly got away with this sleight of hand at the time – David Cameron failed to spot it in his Budget debate response, though Ming Campbell did then pick up on the point.

And what sort of way of setting a major tax rate which affects millions is that? No prior public debate or discussion about the shape of the tax system. Instead try to slip it out in secret and hope people don’t notice. Why shouldn’t the creation or abolition of tax rates be discussed and debated fully in public?

Well, that’s not what you want if you’re a secretive control freak (surprise!) – but behaving like that’s the way you make mistakes, thinking that you and you alone have all the wisdom on a matter and unimpeachable judgement. Of course, if you’re flawless and always right – why would that matter? Let’s hope Gordon’s noticed by now that he and his government aren’t…

Things are changing for our Monarchy

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Buckingham PalaceLooks like the beginning of the end of male primogeniture – hurrah! The Sunday Times put the story on its front page and ran an editorial on the subject today.

So what’s the story all about? The rules about who becomes our Monarch discriminate against women – and skip over women to men. Now – that’s the sort of crude discrimination that we should have left behind years ago (as have many other monarchies, which have changed their rules to remove this old-fashioned sexism). So a little while back I referred to the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights the pushing back of Lady Louise (daughter of Prince Edward) from 8th to 9th in line to the Throne when her baby brother was born.

It took a while to get a reply – but when I did – it began to move things on. The letter agrees that this is discrimination (more or less) but that it has no powers under the 1975 Sex Discrimination Act. However, it also says that they are going to look at the Single Equalities Act as a vehicle for change and that we will meet and talk the way through.

In subsequent conversation with the Commission, I had said that I would table an amendment to the Act which I would expect to have cross party support – but that if the Commission could persuade the Government to bring it forward in the Act in the first place that would be even better. The Commission has now owned it and support it. As I said – how could the new equalities body do anything else?

So today I read in the Sunday Times that Vera Baird, the Solicitor General, agrees and it will (hopefully) happen – presumably in the Act. And so – if this ridiculous anachronism finally is buried – at least I will have done something for equality during my sojourn.

It’s not equal pay and it doesn’t address women’s pensions or carers’ allowances or improving rape convictions – all of which are desperately important and need priority. However, the screaming message of male primogeniture in accession to the throne has been that men are better than women. So good riddance to that!

UPDATES: Scotland on Sunday has also covered the story – as you can read here – whilst The Telegraph coverage is here.

Is a private US firm about to take over a key part of our health services?

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Sorry about the short notice but I’ve just discovered that our local Health Service is consulting about out-of-hours GP services – and we only have until Friday to respond.

Our out-of-hours services are the people who provide help when we are at our sickest. They are the doctors who come and look after us when we call them out in the dead of night or who we can go to – currently Camidoc. Without them, every time we got ill in the middle of the night we’d have to drag our sickly selves to A&E – which is not what A&E was intended for, waiting for hours before receiving treatment and wasting thousands of pounds in taxpayers money – or worse still – go without treatment and get really really sick.

So why are they consulting? Well that’s a very good question. Currently our out-of-hours service is provided by Camidoc, and most people agree they do a good job. I’ve met with them myself and that was certainly my impression. They are local and they know the area well. However Camden, Islington, Haringey and Hackney & City Primary Care Trusts (the people that run our NHS) have clubbed together to see if they can get a better deal by tendering the service again – and seeing if anyone else wants to bid for it.

Whilst it is right to try and get the best service for local people, the situation now is that literally anybody can apply to run the service. In Camden, United Health – the largest American for-profit healthcare provider – have just caused uproar by winning the contract to run three GPs surgeries and they may well bid to run our out-of-hours service.

Now I’ve always thought the NHS was my party’s greatest achievement (it was the brainchild of a Liberal – William Beveridge) and I’ve always thought it works best when it’s run for the greater good – not for profit.

But there are practical arguments against a private takeover as well. Camidoc is run by doctors who know the area well. Under Camidoc you may well know the doctor treating you – and even if you don’t you can certainly be sure that they know your area and how to find your house. When you’re at your illest and most vulnerable you’re probably not going to be best able to give directions over the phone to a faceless, nameless doctor who has never been to Haringey before.

So please respond to the consultation straight away – and certainly before Friday night. It is right to have an open tender – and you may not have the same view of Camidoc that I do – but if you are very worried about private American-style for-profit organisations taking over this important service then please take this opportunity to say so.

The easiest way to respond is to email PALS@camdenpct.nhs.uk and you can find out more about the consultation and read the documentation at http://doctorsinthenight.notlong.com