Category Archives: Blog

Haringey's finest

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I went to two events yesterday that epitomise Haringey’s finest: the Haringey Dance Showcase at the Asian Centre and then Young Haringey Heroes awards at the Bernie Grant Centre.

The Dance Showcase was a delight. It was a collaboration across three of our community centres –  the Asian Centre (which hosted), the Irish Centre and the Afro-Caribbean Centre. The performance started with a chair dance with very beautifully clad older ladies in amazing saris who told the story through their hands and movements sitting in chairs and went all the way through to Irish dancing with the most wonderful young girls (pictured) giving us a real Irish flavour. So from Bollywood to belly and from street to Turkish – Haringey’s diversity was danced to us.

In a borough as diverse and multi-cultural as Haringey with 225,000 residents , nearly 200 different languages and over half the population here from a culturally diverse background – this was Haringey at its best.

I went straight onto the Bernie Grant Centre for the Young Haringey Heroes Awards 2010. This was the third year of these awards where we celebrate the achievements of children and young people from Haringey. As always in Haringey – there was an array of performances as well as the awards themselves.

The awards I was there to present was for the Junior Outstanding Progress by a child new to the UK – winner Andre Toth – and then the award for Outstanding Progress by a young person new to the UK where there were joint winners – Andres Ladino and Mohamed Mohamed. These three had all faced the challenges that coming to a new country, new culture, new language and new everything – and had learned English and then helped others to adapt, passed exams with flying colours and generally adapted to this strange new world brilliantly.

Congratulations to all the awards winners – as ever – a very uplifting occasion.

Blame Labour

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The former Labour government withdrew its offer of nearly £9million it had promised Haringey for new primary school buildings. Yes – it was Labour who renegged on the money – not the coalition. I am putting this out there – because locally Labour are trying to say this is down to the coalition. No – it’s not.

PS This is not the money already committed to Rhodes Avenue primary school expansion. But of course – now Labour want to whip that funding away as well.

Section 44

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Yesterday was a good day for civil liberties.

Theresa May came to the Commons to make a statement in response to a decision by the European Court of Human rights that judged that the use of stop and search powers under section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 amounted to a violation of the right to a private life.

Section 44 was already going to be dealt with – so it was a decision welcomed by the coalition government. Alan Johnson, (Labour ex-Home Secretary) said he was shocked that this Home Secretary was not going to appeal the decision. He was pretty much on his own in this view – as other Labour back-benchers stood to commend the government’s actions. But it was a reminder how authoritarian the last government had been.

Having spent five years myself on the Metropolitan Police Authority (2000-2005) and seen the explosion of the use of these powers – I am delighted with the decision. The powers were never meant to be used, for example, to keep the whole of London covered permanently as it was. This meant that during those years anyone could be stopped without reason. Needless to say that resulted in some communities feeling the effects of the powers disproportionately.

The Home Office website describes it thus:

The court said the powers were drawn too broadly – at the time of their initial authorisation and when they are used – and did not have enough safeguards to protect civil liberties. This means that the laws setting out the use of stop and search powers had then to be repealed or amended to bring them in line with European law.

Interim guidance for the police has now been introduced which sets a new suspicion threshold. Officers will no longer be able to search individuals using section 44 powers. Instead they will have to rely on section 43 powers – which require officers to reasonably suspect the person to be a terrorist.

Police may search only vehicles under section 44 of the law, and then only if they have reasonable suspicion of terrorist activity.


The changes will bring the operation of counter-terrorism use of stop and search powers fully into line with the European Court’s judgment, while also ensuring that the public are protected.

Theresa May concluded: ‘The first duty of government is to protect the public. But that duty must never be used as a reason to ride roughshod over our civil liberties. I believe that the interim proposals I have set out today give the police the support they need and protect those ancient rights.’

Hurrah!

Fair Funding for Haringey Schools

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I went with a Haringey deputation to meet with Lord Hill – the Schools Minister last week. In the deputation were: Cllr Lorna Reith (Haringey Executive Member for Children’s Services), David Lammy, Tottenham MP, Peter Lewis, Director of Children’s Services at Haringey and Tony Brockman from Haringey NUT.

This was a timely plea to the Government to push our case for the outcome of the two options in the recently completed consultation on funding formulas for our schools to be the ‘Hybrid’ option. To all those locally who know how long and how hard I and the Liberal Democrats have campaigned against Labour’s long standing unfair funding to Haringey – you know how important this is.

Apart from our usual LibDem petitions and email list – we were at the school gates getting people to respond to the consultation by the then Labour Government on funding. (A consultation they had been forced into by our campaign and others around the country where the unfairness in funding was now putting schools into deficit – and denying the children in those areas the teachers they needed). And clearly – the people in Haringey responded splendidly – with something like 1500 people letting the the new government know exactly how unfair the old Labour funding formula was and how much we need that money in Haringey with all the challenges we have.  It had clearly been noted – the depth and volume of feeling from parents and teachers and all in Haringey!

In Haringey our children get £1300 less per head than neighbouring boroughs like Camden, Islington and Hackney. When I met the previous government Minister on this very outrageous inequality – even he admitted that Haringey with its £1300 diferential was the worst ‘cliffedge’ (difference between close neighbours) in the county.

Obviously – the new coalition government’s ‘pupil premium’ in the coalition agreement – where £2.5 billion will come on stream starting in the second year of government – and where the money follows the pupil with special needs or on free school meals (and which will benefit every single school in Haringey) will be a blessing. However, that will bring us in a lot of money – but equally it will bring money into those boroughs like Camden and Hackney too.

So first off I wanted to make sure that when that money comes on stream from the ‘pupil premium’ – Haringey is first in line for it! However, the meat of this meeting was about the results of the consultation on the funding formula – the funding formula that has for so long underfunded Haringey.

The ‘hybrid’ option will close some of the gap in our funding. We are £35million adrift every single year. The ‘hybrid’ option will move us half way towards closing the gap (estimate only).

We each made the case – very well I thought. And it was well-received. Lord Hill clearly got the message and the timing of this deputation was perfect as the decision is about to be made. He did seem receptive. So the case was well made – and now we have to keep everything crossed that we get our funding!

Standing up for the Voluntary Sector

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I went to a meeting convened by Havco (Haringey Association of Voluntary and Community Organisations) and Haringey’s Community Link Forum (HCLF) last week. The meeting was set up for to consider 1) the development of a Voluntary Sector position paper to go to Haringey Council cabinet meeting and 2) begin to examine the changes that may need to be made by the sector to ensure that it can operate effectively within the new working environment..

Obviously there are cuts by central Government to local government – so let’s accept that this is straight fact – and concentrate then on how those cuts are going to translate on the ground in Haringey. From the £6.2 billion of emergency budget cuts – that knocks on to Haringey at around £3.2 million. Alongside the reductions in grant – there is the removal of ring-fencing, ending of national indicators and cessation of the Comprehensive Area Assessment – basically the central government strictures on local authorities as to how they spend their money or where they remove it from – have been removed.

So – it’s down to this Labour council in Haringey as to where these cuts will be made!

I went to the meeting of the Voluntary Sector because knowing Haringey – and I do know Haringey – they will be looking for soft targets and they will see the Voluntary Sector as a soft target. They won’t want to really do the hard stuff. It is so much easier to cut off the grant at arm’s length where the effect isn’t near to you. So much harder to sack someone from the office you work in – where you see people everyday and would have to bear the anger of being faced with your actions. And I believe there are also quite a few eye watering salaries at the top of the Haringey tree which might bear some pruning too – and a long hard look at the management culture might not go amiss! And don’t even get me started on the wastage that exists………

So Haringey Labour, need to make these cuts very, very carefully – and not go for the soft options. 

But to get onto the main point – it is the Voluntary Sector in Haringey who reach people not reached by statutory services and who provide on value for money terms – definite bangs for bucks. The evening was organised to get the points in place to make the case to Haringey when their cabinet meets on the 13th (I think) – and it is a very strong case.

So here are some of the points they made – all reasons for Haringey to look more carefully at themselves before they lay a finger on the Voluntary Sector.

– they reach the unreachable

– their work is mainly and often the sort of work that protects those people who are the most vulnerable, and in terms of equality and the groups who have protected characteristics, making cuts in this sector will have a direct impact on equality.  

– the VS do a great deal of preventative work and therefore savings culled from the VS may actually cost the council more in the long term

– they are cheaper than statutory services

– they often attract matched funding

– their work often actually stops costs being passed to the statutory sector

There was a whole lot more but that will suffice for the moment. It makes the point that is critical. The Voluntary Sector needs to be supported as far as possible during the retrenchment rather than being an easy target for Haringey Council cuts.

And given that Haringey’s first reaction to the cuts (for example) was to stop free swimming for children and pensioners and blame it on the coalition – we can see which way they are likely to go. However, if you scratch the surface of that move, you will find that actually only a quarter of the cost of swimming was funded by central government – most of it was funded by Haringey.

As my colleague, Cllr Robert Gorrie, Leader of the LibDem group on Haringey Council said: “Simply blaming the government is a shallow and political approach to dealing with what will be the first of many challenging cuts as the government works to put public finances back in some sort of order.”

So – the VS will prepare their position paper for Haringey Council’s cabinet meeting. They finished with some very good points about understanding how these decisions were being made and how they should be communicated. As one woman said – the key point is transparency – maximum transparency – so we can all see how and why and by whom these decisions about cuts are being made. We need to know that they are fair.

Too right we do!

PS: For info – not a single Haringey Labour councillor turned up to the meeting whereas LibDem Cllr Gail Engert was there in her role as Shadow Communities member.

From Pride with Pride

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Just back from the Pride march – what an amazing event – what a wonderful day! 

There is something so empowering, so overwhelming – about marching, expressing – having a demonstrative voice. So much of the time there appears a passivity – as if nothing can be done, nothing can change. But from the Stonewall riots 40 years to today’s Pride march in the London sunshine – every gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans individual that has had the courage to stand up against  prejudice and fight discrimination – has shown the courage and determination that can change and has changed the world.

I spent the first half of the march at the front with Boris Johnson and Nick Herbert – the policing Minister. Then I walked back through the march to find the Liberal Democrat contingent. They had produced fabulous placards for all of us which said ‘Liberal Democrats – Proud to represent you in Haringey, or Hackney or Richmond or Government or London.

And in the LibDem contingent were lots and lots of LibDems from various boroughs – and then there was Brian Paddick (stood for LibDem mayor of London); Caroline Pidgeon (Leader of the LibDem group on the London Assembly); Ros Scott, (LibDem President); Sarah Ludford (LibDem MEP for London). Ed Fordham (LibDem candidate for Hampstead & Highgate); Ed Butcher, (Councillor in Haringey) and many, many, many more – including Steve Gilbert (MP for St Austell  & Newquay).

Then towards 3pm I had to make my way to the stage area in Trafalgar Square where Nick Herbert and I were going to give short speeches.  Dr Christian from ’embarassing bodies’ introduced us.

We had decided to go on together – as a double act – so to speak. Nick spoke first and told of his selection and election – and how the selection committee, when he told them he was gay, had said no probs! Nick got a huge cheer when he opened by saying that he was gay. I couldn’t match that – but nevertheless – also got a good reception when I spoke about ending the ridiculous situation where a man who had consensual sex with another male (over 16) 30 years ago would still have that come up on a criminal record check. It goes. And how it wasn’t right and it wasn’t fair that LGB&T people still felt too frightened to report hate crime – three out of four hate crimes still go unreported and what we are going to do to put in the support to encourage reporting. And how it wasn’t right and it wasn’t fair that children, six out of ten children, experience homophobic bullying at school and how we are going to support teachers in tackling this terrible experience which can scar a child for life.

It was a really beautiful day – and I have come home filled with Pride.

PS Huge thanks to the organisers – fantastically well done!

Marching with Pride

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On Saturday I will be marching with Pride at Pride. I will be spending half of the march as Government together with Nick Herbert, the openly gay Conservative Minister for Policing – and half with DELGA the Liberal Democrat’s LGBT group. While I am with them – Nick Herbert will be with the LGBTory group. I am looking forward to it tremendously.

And to herald Pride tomorrow, today I am going to speak at the TUC’s annual lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans conference in London. The TUC has done phenomenal work in changing the landscape for LGB&T people in the workplace and I am really delighted to be able to go there today to say so.

Whittington A & E revisited

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As I said at the rally to celebrate saving the Whittington A& E – we have to keep this in focus and remain eternally vigilant. The coalition government called a halt to the reconfiguration process (hurrah) virtually as soon as we were in Government but we need to be on the ball.

To this end I met with the Minister, Simon Burns (hospital finance and performance) yesterday to make sure we all know what’s happening. The Minister had brought in all the key players from the Chair of GP commissioning to Rachel Tyndall (who chaired the review and was key at the public meeting I organised during the campaign to save the A&E).

Ok – so the key things are that – phew – the review has started! The Minister assured me (and Cllrs Winskill and Butcher who accompanied me) that unlike under the last government who claimed closing the A&E was a local decision (whereas we know it had nothing to do with local peoples’ wishes) this time it would be genuinely local as the Government edict imposed that as a duty on the North London Sector Review panel. And there are clear lines of accountability.

For the first time I heard with my own ears North London Sector admit that there had been faults in the previous process – which is a start – given the continual denial of all the issues local people raised. The litany was clear: accessibility (no one can get to the Royal Free), the out of hours GP services to take the non-A&E cases that currently go to A&E don’t exist; the Royal Free couldn’t cope with an extra 35,000 people (even if they could get there) and so on and so on, no clinical evidence, etc – all the very good cases local people made.

Watch this space – and if you hear anything too – let me know immediately! 

 

Assessing incapacity

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I would think that everyone wants those who cannot work because they are incapacitated to receive financial support. I would think that everyone wants those who can work but who claim incapacity benefit falsely not to receive that support.

However, the previous Labour government tried to get people off  such allowances and my experience as a local MP from surgery is that the ‘re-assessment’ of people claiming has been variable at best.

We need to be sure that there is no perverse incentive to determine that someone can work when they cannot. We also need to be sure that those carrying out the assessment are good at it.