A brief digression from black cabs into the place of market forces

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London black cabGlad to see Brian Paddick launch his ten-point plan for London’s black cabs today (and to see the good BBC coverage!).

Black cabs are important in themselves – and some of the measures in the plan, such as rephasing of traffic lights – would directly benefit many other people too. But there is also a wider point here, which is one about a general approach to changing the world (if that isn’t too grand a phrase!).

Influencing how the black cab trade performs isn’t just important in its own right, but – given their key role in transport overall – it has all sorts of knock-on effects, including on the minicab market and also on people’s willingness to use public transport (people often more willing if you know that late at night you can get a safe and reasonably priced cab back).

It’s this attitude of working with one part of the market which you can influence, and then letting the effects of doing that ripple out into all sorts of others corners of activity which I think we need to see more of.

Too often the political debate is polarised between market forces – good or bad. Well – my view is that wishing market forces weren’t there is a bit like wishing that English weather didn’t feature rain. The point isn’t to wish them away – or to think that they are always right and never to be touched – but rather to exploit them for desirable ends by guiding them through influencing the rules under which the market operates.

For example – opening up information to consumers about the health impacts of different foods on sale in supermarkets can and is having – via the power of consumer choice and the market forces which come with that – a huge impact, without having to get government into regulating the contents of your or mine lunch tomorrow. We far more of this sort of nimble government – exploiting market forces and letting their power push us, as individuals and as a society, into more rather than less desirable directions.

Highgate by-election – Lib Dem Rachel Allison is local choice

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Local Liberal Democrats last night selected popular Highgate resident Rachel Allison to be their candidate in the Highgate by election set for 6th March

Rachel Allison is intimately involved with the life of Highgate. She has lived in Claremont Road, Highgate for twelve years – and 19 in the borough.Her children attend St Michaels Primary, and she has recently been appointed as a Governor of Blanche Neville, another Highgate School.

A regular user, with her family, of the Jacksons Lane community centre, Rachel Allison is pledged to join the high profile Lib Dem campaign, being run by her Lib Dem colleague and local MP Lynne Featherstone, and Lib Dem Leader and Highgate councillor Neil Williams, to ensure fair resources for the Centre.

Also a regular user of Highgate Library, Rachel knows just how important these community services are for local people.

Rachel cares passionately about the environment. She has an allotment on Shepherds Hill, and is a member of Friends of the Earth, and the Organic Association.

With a hugely varied career and range of talents, Rachel has worked as a freelance copywriter and video producer – but her skills don’t end there. She has recently created a cold sore remedy!

Rachel Allison comments:

“I’m absolutely thrilled to have been selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Highgate and I am hugely looking forward to the forthcoming campaign. The Liberal Democrats have done a fantastic job, both in keeping in constant touch with local residents, and in challenging Labour on the council – and I’m pleased to be working with this winning team.

“In Highgate I am looking forward to working with local councillors Bob Hare and Neil Williams on the issues that matter to Highgate and Archway residents, protecting the unique local environment, regenerating the Archway Road, and securing the future of Jacksons Lane.

“Crime and the fear of crime are also important issues for local residents. Having been the victim of a burglary only last week, I know how soul-destroying this can be. We need to work closely with our local police team and campaign for an enhanced police presence in the Highgate area.”

Liberal Democrat group leader and Highgate ward councillor, Neil Williams, comments:

“I’m thrilled that Rachel has been selected. She is enormously capable and talented and would be a fantastic councillor for Highgate. We are all looking forward to working with her on her campaign.”

Rachel Allison selected to fight by-election

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Although I couldn’t attend the hustings (parliamentary debate and votes on the Lisbon Treaty), I am delighted to say that we have selected a fantastic candidate to fight the Highgate ward by-election.

Rachel Allison is our choice to be the next councillor for Highgate and Archway. She is a worker, with a passion and a knowledge for the local area and the drive and determination to make a difference for local people on the council.

Rachel is intimately involved with the life of Highgate and Archway. She has lived in Claremont Road, Highgate for twelve years – having first moved to Haringey in 1986. Her children attend St Michael’s Primary, and she has recently been appointed as a Governor of Blanche Neville, another Highgate school.

Rachel cares passionately about the environment – double points for that as it is a crucial issue for myself too! She has an allotment on Shepherds Hill, drives a hybrid car and is a member of Friends of the Earth and the Organic Association.

With a hugely varied career and range of talents, Rachel has worked as a freelance video producer and copywriter – but her skills don’t end there. She has recently created a cold sore remedy!

So – off we go. It’s fantastic to have such an amazing candidate step forward for the area. Lots of doors to knock on and leaflets to deliver through till polling day!

Liberal Democrats attack financial mismanagement

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Financial mismanagement is to blame for a near £2 million overspend on a project to expand two schools in the London Borough of Haringey, according to the Liberal Democrats.

In addition to being massively over budget, the projects at Coleridge and Tetherdown primary schools are both behind schedule. The funding crisis was revealed in documents released for Haringey Council’s Cabinet on Tuesday 22nd Jan 2008.

The Liberal Democrats have raised concerns over Haringey Council’s ability to manage projects of this scale, particularly as Building Schools for the Future (BSF), due to start this year, involves a much greater sum of money. The project aims to upgrade facilities at Haringey’s secondary schools and build a new secondary school at a total cost of around £200 million. Similar overspends on this project could see Haringey Council trying to fill a £20 million black hole.

Councillor Gail Engert, Lib Dem Children, Schools and Families spokesperson, comments:

“This should send alarm bells ringing for the people of Haringey who time after time see their taxes badly managed by Haringey Council. If residents cannot trust Haringey Council to keep to a budget these two small projects, how can we trust them with a scheme due to cost £200 million?”

Residents left waiting on decision over North Road parking

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People living in North Road, Highgate are still waiting to find out whether their street will be included in parking controls – months after Haringey Council completed a consultation and a year after inclusion was planned by Haringey Council.

When questioned by the Liberal Democrats at the Full Council meeting last Monday (21.1.08) about why this had taken so long, Labour parking boss Cllr Brian Hayley did not seem to know.

Cllr Neil Williams (Highgate ward) comments:

“I don’t know what’s more ridiculous, that it can take HaringeyCouncil half a year to review the findings of a consultation or that they don’t know why it is taking so long.

“Some residents in North Road have only been excluded from the CPZ through a cock-up in the first place. They should not be left waiting any longer. I expect Haringey Council to take action and get this completed. Completing a consultation involving part of one street in Haringey is hardly the most complex thing Haringey Council has to deal with on a daily basis, so why are they making such a meal of it?”

And Ethnic Mutual makes it five police investigations

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Today’s Independent brings news that the fate of money given to Ethnic Mutual is now the subject of a police investigation – bringing to five the number of bodies funded by the GLA / London Development Agency which are being investigated by the police over allegations of financial irregularities.

And – once again – the LDA’s press operation doesn’t seem to be telling us an accurate story:

In a statement, an LDA spokesman said: “We referred Ethnic Mutual to the police last year and they are now investigating it.” But this was contradicted by the Metropolitan Police yesterday, who said that Ethnic Mutual had only been referred to them this month.

As our Mayor, Ken Livingstone has a responsibility to ensure that our money is spent well and wisely. So far from his reaction to the mounting pile of allegations, that seems to come very low down his list of priorities – if indeed he has actually got his head round the fact that there are real, substantive questions about misuse of money, which simply mouthing off about “right wing smears” doesn’t address at all.

The £1.9 billion bill that could haunt Gordon Brown

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Tube trainAs if the £50 billion plus pumped into saving Northern Rock wasn’t enough, this week brought more bad news for Gordon Brown’s record of prudence.

The Commons Transport Committee published a report into the collapse of Metronet (and good to see Brian Paddick getting into that story too – read more here). Metronet was one of the private contractors foisted on London’s tube at the insistence of Gordon Brown and his inner circle, who were determined to part-privatise the tube network come what may.

The result? A badly thought out, badly implemented and hugely expensive scheme. Just setting up the deal cost huge amounts of money – putting together mindbogglingly complicated contracts and running up extra borrowing costs. In 2004 the National Audit Office put the cost put introducing part-privatisation at approaching £1 billion – yes billion: £455 million in legal etc costs in drawing up the scheme and £450 million in extra borrowing costs.

So – Metronet collapsed,upgrade and maintenance work in doubt and a huge bill floating around that someone will have to pick up. Not exactly a proud track-record for Labour when it comes to London’s public services!

The Westminster Hour: Sunday, 10pm

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Appearing on Radio 4's The Westminster Hour with Carolyn QuinnI’m back on The Westminster Hour this Sunday: Radio 4, 10pm.

If you miss the show you’ll be able to listen again on their website.

If you want to get advanced notice of my media appearances like this one, you can use the media events service at Flock Together. You’ve got three choices:

  1. Using this feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/LiberalDemocratsMediaAppearances, or
  2. By email: register at FlockTogether and pick “Media appearances” as one of the categories of events you want to be emailed about. (If you are an existing Flock Together user you can also change your preferences – login and then click “Edit your preferences” in the left-hand menu; you need to tick “Media Appearances” under “Email options”), or
  3. On the web: take a look at the dedicated Flock Together page.

Action for Kids visit

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Fantastic to have this exemplar charity – which recently celebrated its fifteenth birthday – operating here in Hornsey & Wood Green.

It now covers about seventeen boroughs and young people with a variety of challenges come there to work. They feel loved and supported and develop skills that can really help them. In that encouraging atmosphere they have even seen miracles – as when someone who hadn’t spoken for years started to speak again. They also supply specialist equipment, chairs and so on to those who need it.

Now the real problem for Action for Kids is that they are totally a charity. And do you know – the councils that send kids there don’t pay a penny. They want to find a way of charging and I don’t blame them. They work totally off of charitable donations – but with some basic funding could expand their operation – which is clearly in demand and excellent.

And really scandalously – the Government will pay businesses £80 per day to take young people like this – and businesses refer them on so that they spend the day free at Action for Kids – but the businesses keep the dosh. Disgusting!

Channel 4 political awards

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They are being broadcast tomorrow night (Sunday), but were recorded during the week. So on Wednesday it was a matter of dashing off from a meeting with Nick Clegg and Brian Eno (who has agreed to advise the party on youth issues) to the recording – which was enjoyable.

Having been nominated just after arriving at Parliament in the Rising Stars category (only done once per Parliament) and lost to Michael Gove, I can tell you that it is far more pleasant sitting there not having been nominated and therefore not having to have a camera stuck in your nose when they announce the winner – when just like the Oscars you clap wildly and ensure fixed grin remains on face.

Always a really well-attended do with lots of the great and the good and celebs. Cheeky Girls – needless to say with Lembit in tow, Jeremy Irons and Angela Rippon – to name but a few. I sat next to Michael Cockrell who confessed to having omitted making any of his documentaries about Lib Dems since the year dot. I offered to remedy this omission by sending him some ideas – and I will do Michael!