Disabled residents to wait until the end of the year for parking bays

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Disabled residents will have to wait until at least the end of the year to get new parking spaces, it has emerged.

Haringey Council admitted that they will not process applications for disabled bays until the summer due to a review in policy and the average length of time to process a claim is four to six months. The information was revealed in questions tabled by Cllr Martin Newton at the Council’s watchdog committee on 20th April 2009.

Local Liberal Democrats have criticised the delay, saying that local residents should not have to wait. Currently seventy disabled drivers are waiting for Haringey Council to process their applications and only urgent applications will be processed earlier.

Cllr Gail Engert has successfully helped a local resident in Muswell Hill to have a disabled bay installed after forcing Haringey Council to acknowledge her application was urgent.

Cllr Gail Engert, Muswell Hill, comments:

“I am glad that Haringey Council have finally agreed that Mrs Bone needs her disabled bay now rather than after they get their policies in order. I am concerned that seventy other disabled residents may have to wait until the end of the year for the installation of disabled parking bays.”

Lynne Featherstone MP, adds:

“This is completely unacceptable level of service for some of our borough’s most vulnerable residents. Whilst Labour councillors are busy pushing paper in the town hall, local residents with disabilities are going without parking facilities they desperately need to make their life easier. Haringey Council needs to pull its finger out and get this backlog processed as soon as possible.”

Liberal Democrat warning to Labour over elected Mayor

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Liberal Democrats have warned Haringey Council to ensure the public has the fullest possible say over the how the council is run, as Haringey embarks on a major consultation on whether the failing Labour Council should move towards an elected mayor in time for 2010.

The move comes after a stormy meeting at Haringey Council last week, when it became clear that Labour has not planned for a local referendum on the issue, should local residents demand it in the run up to local elections in 2010.

Councils are now under pressure from the Labour government to consult on the issue. Liberal Democrats say they are concerned that Haringey Labour is also paving the way to ignore the views of local residents should they want the change for 2010.

Liberal Democrat councillor Neil Williams comments:

“We have yet to be persuaded of the case for an elected mayor, but we need the fullest possible consultation so that we can engage in debate with local people, as we need to hear what they think.

“That means abiding by the outcome of any consultation, and embracing the concept of a borough-wide referendum on an elected Mayor if that is what local people want. What mustn’t happen is Labour pulling a fast one on the consultation results, and ignoring the outcome. If that happens, there will be enormous trouble ahead.”

Iraqi interpreters – Government set to end help

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I’ve blogged a few times about the fantastic campaigning done by Dan Hardie and others to highlight the dangers faced by Iraqis who had worked with our armed forces in Iraq. I sponsored a meeting in Parliament in 2007 and wrote about it:

Mark and Andrew both gave eye witness accounts of what is going on in Iraq and how those who helped us by translating or other service now are being hunted down and killed. It was graphic, appalling and compelling.

These horrors made the mealy-mouthed, half-arsed announcement by G Brown yesterday to allow those who worked for us for more than 12 months some financial (very low) package to resettle and under agreed circumstances admittance to the UK look completely inadequate.

To me, I longed for Gordon just to say what needed to be said – we have a moral responsibility towards you and you are welcome in our country. That’s what Denmark did. In fact Denmark recognising the danger in which their employees now were – flew them and their families out.

Whatever you think of the Iraq war (and I opposed it) – we should look after those we employed. But even the limited amount the Government was willing to do is now coming to an end. As today’s Times puts it,

The Government has been accused of deserting former Iraqi interpreters who risked their lives for Britain, after announcing that it would close its assistance scheme in a fortnight.

Britain’s treatment of the Iraqis was compared last night with that of the Gurkhas as it emerged that scores of families are still living in fear of being murdered by militias who accuse them of collaborating with the enemy.

MPs from all three parties have described the assistance scheme as deliberately restrictive and called for a review…

Lynne Featherstone, the Liberal Democrat MP, said: “There are going to be people still in danger. The enemy is still out there. It is mean-spirited.”

The Express also has coverage here.

Joan Bakewell on the Equality Bill

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She’s got a rather feisty piece today:

Legislation for change has at any time to confront the natural resistance of those who are happy with the status quo. In times of recession it is even more instinctive for businesses to cling to old, familiar ways — they assume that new legislation means increased red tape: in fact, this Bill often frees businesses to act more independently.

Who can now deny that the legislation of the 1970s that launched society towards a more equal future was a fair set of measures to introduce? It wasn’t long ago that a woman could not open a bank account or raise a mortgage without a male signature on the application. Some were denied access to their company’s pension fund. Now such situations strike us as old-fashioned, even quaint. Young women starting out today would be amazed by such restraints. They approach their future expecting and rejoicing in their equality.

We have seen the times and the law change attitudes. The Equality Bill is the next step, bringing a multitude of small but significant improvements where they will be welcome: preventing gay children from being bullied at school; making religious dietary needs available from meals-on-wheels services; requiring job recruitment to consider flexible and part-time working.

Those who oppose it probably don’t suffer too many disadvantages. The chances are that they are white, male, middle-aged, middle-class and in full-time employment. They may have loud voices but they don’t speak for the rest of us.

You can read the full column here.

Latest Haringey tragedy shows why we need a public inquiry

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Busy Saturday morning, so here’s the story from The Times about the latest heart-wrenching news from Haringey,

The failings of social workers at Haringey Council have again been exposed in a criminal trial.

The local authority, which is still reeling from the criticism it received after its failing in the Baby P case, confirmed the two-year-old rape victim was known to social workers and was on its “at risk” register.

Officials at the North London borough said last night that a Serious Case Review was under way into how the girl could have been raped while in their care…

The Serious Case Review into the care the child received from social workers is being conducted by Graham Badman, chair of the Haringey Local Safeguarding Children Board.

But Lynne Featherstone, Liberal Democrat MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, said that more questions about the performance of the council needed to be answered. “We desperately need a public inquiry to get to the bottom of this,” she said.

Shoddy road surfacing must stop, say Liberal Democrats

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Local roads in Haringey would be better and last longer if Haringey Council stopped “slap-dash” repairs and resurfacing practices. Currently, when resurfacing roads contractors conceal manhole covers with tarmac, making them inaccessible for drain repairs, and making roads weak and prone to damage. Local Liberal Democrats asked, last week, at a meeting of Haringey Council’s watchdog committee for Haringey Council to stop shoddy resurfacing and raise manholes to road surface level.

Cllr Newton, Liberal Democrat Highways and Transport spokesperson, comments:

“This is symptomatic of the slap-dash attitude of the Labour administration. It is nonsense to be resurfacing a road by covering manholes and losing access to the services underneath – and at the same time producing a weak surface that will end up having to have repairs month on month.

“Residents are rightly fed up with a system that plasters over the cracks rather than carrying out a proper job which would make our roads better, safer and, in the long run save Haringey Council money.”

Lynne Featherstone MP, adds:

“It’s ridiculous to be repairing roads but covering over manholes that often leak and you need to dig up again if you need to inspect the drain. Only Haringey Council could do this and think it is right.”

Four sacked at Haringey over death of Baby P

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The BBC reports:

A social worker and three managers have been sacked for failings in the care of Baby P, Haringey Council has said…

Haringey Council said Cecilia Hitchen, the deputy director of children and families, had been dismissed for “loss of trust and confidence” following the damning Ofsted report in December last year.

A council spokesman said social worker Maria Ward, team manager Gillie Christou and head of safeguarding services Clive Preece were sacked for gross misconduct.

The Budget debate: unimpressed with Yvette Cooper

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Yvette Cooper was really poor yesterday when she responded for the Government on the Budget Debate on Work and Pensions. Yes – I caught Mr Deputy Speaker’s eye – after jumping up and down for about five hours in a freezing chamber (air conditioning over kill).

I wanted to tackle four issues: support for Citizens Advice Bureaux who are struggling terms with the huge rise in people needing their help; the need to make the Small Business Rate relief (about £1,200 per year) automatic – as so many businesses fail to get this relief; the issue of help for women in the Budget – given the fine words the Government spoke in a debate just a short time ago about the need to help women in an economic downturn; and lastly – the need to fund (from the money announced in the Budget to guarantee all 18-14 year olds work or training) Martin Bright’s New Deal of the Mind.

You can read my speech here.

I said what I said about Yvette Cooper because when it was her turn, she simply ranted against the Tories – which may be pleasurable and her preferred pastime – but when it came to responding to the points raised by MPs in the debate – she didn’t. Nothing – not a word. Just listed who had spoken. And there were real questions on the Budget debate and real answers needed. So Ms Cooper – you’re off my list.