Over 300 Post Offices lost in London

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I was in The Evening Standard yesterday with a story about the number of Post Offices London has lost over the last few years under Labour – it’s the same old, same old story of Labour (and the Tories before them) letting our local communities get run down and lose out on key local services:

Opposition MPs said post offices were the “lifeblood” of communities as they helped other small shops and businesses to thrive. They warned the situation is likely to get worse as ministers are planning another 2,500 closures across the country, of which as many as 150 could be in the capital.
Liberal Democrat MP Lynne Featherstone said: “It is unacceptable that the Government has allowed post office numbers to dwindle so drastically in the last few years. It must act to protect them immediately.”

Ally Pally – Trustees kept in the dark, say Liberal Democrats

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The Lib Dems have welcomed the resignation of Labour’s Finance boss, Cllr Charles Adje, from the Chairmanship of the Ally Pally Trading Company following weeks of pressure from the opposition party – but have condemned attempts by the Labour trustees to pack the body (which has a total of four councillors) with a third Labour councillor, a move that was successfully resisted by the Lib Dems at this week’s board meeting.

Charles Adje had attempted to carry on as Chair despite also being the Haringey Council’s Finance boss – exactly the sort of conflict of interest over Alexandra Palace for which Haringey Council had been condemned previously by the government’s Treasury Solicitor, say Lib Dems.

Following the meeting, Labour has now also agreed to take legal advice over Liberal Democrat demands that an additional Lib Dem trustee is appointed to the Trading Company board. The matter is vitally important because Pally bosses, in a brazen attempt to keep the affairs of the Palace a secret, have failed to tell the Trustees on what terms the developers, Firoka, are currently occupying the building, given the failure to complete on the lease that has resulted from the recent High court decision and the earlier expiry of Firoka’s temporary licence to operate.

While they have failed to provide this information despite months of asking, Lib Dems say this would have to be provided to the Trading Company Board. However, the now-removed Chair of the Trading Company Board has refused recent requests to hold a meeting and, the body is now without a chair or a fourth board member.

Lib Dems are suspicious that Labour is trying to stop the appointment of a second Lib Dem board member, as this would effectively prevent Labour from blocking a meeting of the body.

Lib Dem Ally Pally spokesperson, Cllr Bob Hare comments:

“It is an absurd situation that according to Labour, the Trustees are apparently not entitled to know on what terms Firoka are occupying the building. Given our duties as Trustees, this just cannot go on. Any attempts to fix the membership of the Palace Trading Company will be resisted, as we must have fairness and proportionality. I suspect it is yet another utterly cynical attempt to keep embarrassing information from getting to Trustees and to prevent them from doing their job, and it must not be allowed to continue.”

Is it ok to label people as ethnic minorities?

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My latest column for Asian Voice picks up on my experience at a recent Youth Question Time in Haringey:

One of the Labour panellists was talking about ‘ethnic minorities’ and a young black boy (name of Justin I believe) shot up his hand and said he was fed up with being labelled; fed up with being always thought of as ethnic minority; felt it put him in a box. He wanted to be taken as him – as a person.

You can read the full piece here.

I am a person!

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I recently attended a Youth Question Time in Haringey. A large proportion, if not an actual majority, of the young people attending were non-white. Apart from the fact that the audience at times appeared a lot brighter and more lively than we politicians on the panel (three Labour, one Lib Dem – me – and one police officer), what struck me incredibly forcefully was the real sense of fed upness among the audience with being labelled ‘ethnic-minorities’.

One of the Labour panellists was talking about ‘ethnic minorities’ and a young black boy (name of Justin I believe) shot up his hand and said he was fed up with being labelled; fed up with being always thought of as ethnic minority; felt it put him in a box. He wanted to be taken as him – as a person.

I have to say that the Labour panellists appeared a bit taken aback – after all Haringey Council (Labour) has spent years cultivating separateness and shoring up the ‘ethnic’ vote by keeping and feeding the separation – encouraging dependency – or divide and rule!

One Labour panellist put forward in response the view that you do need some special funding for vulnerable ethnic groups (women in this case) to help them access public services and so on – which is fair enough and a valid point – albeit it didn’t address the bigger question.

But what I found so interesting – thrilling actually – was the welling up of ‘I am a person first and foremost’ and hurrah I say! That is what we need our young people to feel – that they are valuable as individuals – not just as block votes.

A girl in the audience followed the same tack. After some debate about how to deal with poor educational attainment amongst ‘ethnic minorities’ this girl (black) said basically that she was fed up with hearing about the non-achievers – what could we offer to those who were really clever and able. Hurrah again!

So – you can see from the way this discussion was going – that these young people were incredibly bright and forceful, bursting with energy, brains, talents and enthusiasm – and most important of all in my book – confidence! Of course, there was an element of self-selection in terms of which kids get involved in Youth Council, Youth Parliament and so on. Nevertheless – I came away from that meeting with more food for thought than most of the ones I attend with adults.

And I guess – in that hall – is the nitty gritty of the issue at the heart of our society. How do we keep our incredibly important cultural or religious differences – and yet be part of mainstream society? There are difficult questions for us all in this. Realistically, Church Schools are not going to disappear – and there seem to be more and more state-funded faith schools being demanded – but I am not a great fan of separation. On the whole – I’m with Justin! I have always thought that human beings have more in common than they have apart. That culture and faith is for the home and the family – and the rest be that school or work – should be neutral. Of course -within that neutral areaobviously those with religious or cultural needs in terms of what is worn or expected in terms of behaviour must be free.

So -removing barriers and fighting discrimination remain a real issue – but perhaps these young people are telling us something important. If you treat me as if I am just a colour of skin or an ethnic group- then you limit my aspiration, you dictate my place in life and you perpetuate the stereotype.

Therein lies a lesson for all us politicians!

(c) Lynne Featherstone, 2007

Why are the good guys so often the fall guys?

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Today’s Daily Mail has picked up on figures I’ve unearthed about the huge numbers of uninsured cars on the roads.

As they quoted me saying: “[The Government’s] policies for pursuing uninsured drivers have been a total failure and it is about time they accepted the facts and took action. As with most crime, it is inevitably the law-abiding public that end up footing the bill with uninsured drivers costing us on average £30 more in premiums. I get really, really angry that it is always the good guys who are the fall guys.”

Government's death sentence to Iraqi employees

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Commenting on the Written Ministerial Statement on IRAQ: ASSISTANCE TO LOCALLY EMPLOYED STAFF, Liberal Democrat Shadow International Development Secretary, Lynne Featherstone MP said:

“British forces lives have dependant on the intelligence and work of these Iraqis- the least we can do is repay the favour.

“The Government is treating these people like they are applying for means tested benefit- not like people who are fleeing for their lives.

“The 12 months service eligibility criteria is ridiculous. Assessed risk, rather than length of service, should be the main criterion for granting asylum or resettlement packages. The death squads in Iraq don’t stop to ask how long interpreters served for us, so why are we?

“To exclude those who worked for British authorities before 2005 and for less than 12 months is unforgivable. This is simply not good enough.

Government has fallen asleep at the wheel

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Disturbing figures, unearthed today by Liberal Democrat MP Lynne Featherstone, show that there are now over 2.1 million uninsured vehicles on our roads; this is a rise of 100,000 in just one year and now amounts to 6.5% of the total UK vehicle fleet These figures show that the Department of Transport has grossly underestimated the scale and severity of the problem and their attempts to tackle it have failed miserably.

Ms Featherstone, MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, is calling for a crackdown on this crime as figures from the Association of British Insurers show that uninsured drivers are six times more likely to be driving a non road-worthy vehicle, and ten times more likely to have been convicted of drink driving. As with most crime it is inevitably the law-abiding public that end up footing the bill with uninsured drivers costing us on average £30 more in premiums.

Ms Featherstone said:

“The Government has obviously fallen asleep at the wheel on this one.

“Action must be taken to put a stop to this dangerous and illegal practice. These criminals are costing the taxpayer and endangering lives; they must be taken off the roads immediately.

“The fact that there are 100,000 more uninsured drivers on our roads than last year is completely unacceptable. It’s government without due care and attention; their policies for pursuing uninsured drivers have been a total failure and it’s about time they accepted the facts and took action”

China, Sudan and Darfur

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At Chinese EmbassyI went together with Mark Lancaster (Tory No 2 in International Development and a serving soldier) to the Chinese Embassy to have a meeting with Professor Zhao Yongren, Counsellor Political Section and Parliamentary Affairs Officer and Dr. Zhang Lirong, Chief Political Section.

We were presenting a letter signed by 100 MPs asking China to help further with ending the genocide in Darfur.

China has clearly been instrumental in promoting modest progress over Darfur but it must continue to use its considerable influence in Sudan to promote the cause of peace and development. It particular, it could send clearer messages to the Sudanese Government by using its diplomatic, military, humanitarian, and economic ties to greater effect.

So the good news so far: the Chinese Government joined in the unanimous UN Security Council (UNSC) vote to authorise, under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, deployment of 26,000 peacekeeping troops and civilian police to Darfur (the joint African Union-United Nations Peacekeeping force). China’s appointment of a Government Special Representative on the Darfur issue, Liu Guijin, played a key role in gaining the Government of Sudan’s acceptance to the peacekeeping force – breaking a long held deadlock. China has sent some 300 engineers to Darfur to back up the UNAMID peacekeeping mission as part of the heavy support package.

But not everything in the garden is rosy and there are still mixed messages coming out of China. Reports indicate that China worked behind the scenes to significantly weaken the terms of UNSC Resolution 1769 (e.g. removing the ‘ability to disarm militia’ mandate for the peacekeeping force). China hasn’t been pressing properly for those indicted by the International Criminal Court to be handed over. Also, two recently released studies by well-respected organizations have fuelled concerns that weapons from China are being used against the people of Darfur, and that China is not doing enough to prevent such usage. Further, in the spring of 2007, China indicated its desire to further its military relationship with Sudan “in every sphere.”

China has extended some humanitarian aid to the people of Darfur in 2007 but such aid has been far less than the new support it has provided to the government of Sudan. A striking example was provided during President Hu’s February visit to Khartoum, during which he announced several new economic aid packages to Sudan, including an interest-free loan to construct a Presidential Palace. The sums involved were dramatically larger than the modest amount of new humanitarian aid provided.

Trade between the two countries more than doubled in the first half of 2007. China also continues to sign new accords, such as oil development agreements, that strengthen economic ties between the two countries.

The words of Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing in March are rather worrying in fact: “Our assistance is free of any political pressure and helps resolve specific problems, a good demonstration of China’s peaceful development road and constructive role in the world”; in other words, ‘we’re not going to exert as much pressure as we could’. Not good!

The specific asks we put forward at the meeting today were that China should:

  • Use its position as a leading member of both the Security Council and the G-77 to push for the swift recruitment and deployment of the peacekeeping mission authorized by UNSCR 1769.
  • Contribute helicopters and heavy transport vehicles to the UNAMID mission to help fill the gaps in these areas (this applies to whole international community).
  • Review the sale of arms and military cooperation with Sudan until atrocities have stopped, and a stable peace has been built; and encourage the Government of Sudan to disarm militias and hold the perpetrators of war crimes to account.
  • Continue to work harmoniously with other countries to strengthen the political peace process led by the African Union and United Nations envoys, and to pressure all parties to participate fully and unconditionally in peace talks.
  • Provide greater humanitarian assistance to Darfuri civilians.
  • Make clear to Sudan that if it obstructs progress towards peace or peacekeeping, this will damage Chinese-Sudanese relations— possibly including trade and investment ties.

The meeting was a little frosty. The Chinese were unhappy that the media had got hold of the story that we were doing this today. But as I explained – in a democracy this is a positive thing. When one hundred MPs feel strongly enough to take this action and China is willing as at this meeting to enter a dialogue – that is news – and it is good news.

So – a start has been made of engagement. China is so hugely influential with Khartoum and such an important superpower it has to be right to try and form partnerships and engagement. In terms of the meeting – views were exchanged – and that in itself is progress. I am optimistic that at our next meeting – we will make progress. It is important to start the journey – but the destination is still zillions of miles away.

Last stop of the day – 18 Doughty Street TV a good robust debate around Saudi, Scotland and Immigration!

Highgate – Liberal Democrats welcome action on Jacksons Lane funding

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Highgate Lib Dems have welcomed Haringey Council’s decision to take action over the pursuit of vital grant funding for the much loved Jackson’s Lane Centre. The development, which follows pressure from the Centre and local Lib Dem councillors to grant a long lease, means that grant funding can be pursued from the Government’s Community Asset Fund.

In an email to local Lib Dem councillor Bob Hare, Haringey Council has agreed in principle to the long lease that is needed to pursue the funding. This means a funding bid from the Centre can go ahead. The Community Asset fund, which is a lottery fund, offers up to £1 million for each of up to two venues per borough. It is aimed at community buildings owned by councils, and applications are intended to support refurbishment and upgrading.

Lib Dem councillors have been pointing out that the Highgate venue is an ideal applicant for funding, as it is in dire need of investment and it would not readily qualify under other schemes designed to help areas with high levels of deprivation.

Lib Dem Councillor Bob Hare comments:

“It is a relief that Haringey Council has taken action that will remove a barrier to this source of funding for the Centre. Haringey does owe the Centre more attention, given that the Labour Council has been allowed the structure of the building to become run down. Major investment is needed to give the centre the boost, and give Highgate residents the facility they deserve.

“Now this barrier has been removed, we all wish Jacksons Lane every success with their application for refurbishment funding.”