Liberal Democrats reveal school funding black hole

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Figures revealed by Haringey Liberal Democrats have uncovered the shocking cost of private funding to Haringey’s local schools. In answers to questions posed by Lib Dem Cllr Gail Engert, Haringey Council confirmed that Haringey’s secondary schools would be liable for Private Finance Initiative (PFI) back payments totalling over £2 million.

The extra payments follow the review of PFI contracts that will also see schools facing increased annual charges of around £1 million on top of the back payments. Lib Dems are concerned that the increase in the pressure on schools budget may harm the service that schools are providing to children in Haringey.

Cllr Gail Engert, Haringey Liberal Democrat Children and Young People Spokesperson comments:

“I am totally shocked by these figures. In combination they are around £3 million which is the equivalent of the salary costs of around 85 teachers. Education funding is at best tight but now as schools face these enormous back payments and increased annual charges we may see school’s struggling to provide for Haringey’s young people.”

Lynne Featherstone, MP for Hornsey and Wood Green adds:

“The PFI chickens are coming home to roost. The cost of these appallingly negotiated contracts must be met by the Government or Haringey Council who are entirely responsible for setting them up in the first place. The schools must not be made to pay for Labour’s mistakes.”

Council Tax – Haringey Council collecting £1.5million less than London average

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Figures released by the Government last week reveal that Haringey Council collects a lower proportion of Council Tax than most London Boroughs.

In a comparative group of Outer London Boroughs only three councils were worse than Haringey’s performance of 93.8%. Haringey Liberal Democrats have criticised the performance saying that Haringey Council could have £1.5m more to be spent on vital services for residents if the collection rate matched the average.

Collection rates for Non Domestic Rates were also below average for London Boroughs and have got worse over the last twelve months.

Liberal Democrats highlight that Labour’s failure to ensure effective financial management and control is not restricted to collecting Council Tax. The proportion of rent collected on Haringey Council properties fell by one percent to 96.5%. That fall means an additional £600,000 of uncollected rent last year making a total of more than £2m uncollected rent.

Cllr Robert Gorrie, Lib Dem Finance Spokesperson comments:

“Labour continually uses the tight financial constraints as an excuse for lack of funds but consistently fail to collect the funds they are already due. Both for the Council and Homes for Haringey these are large sums of money that should be being effectively collected and invested in improving the services that residents expect and that that the majority pay for.”

Parkland Walk, the local police and Bounds Green School

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Lynne Featherstone trying out a bike at St Ann's police stationBucketing down, so I was not expecting a huge turn out for my litter pick along Parkland Walk. Not a complete washout however, as five very stalwart people turn up to do the honours. As it really is bucketing – we decide that today isn’t the day to do this as so much of the path is under water because of poor drainage. Now that is something that it would be worth spending Transport for London’s funding on improving the walk.

It is such a shame at this time of year when everyone has their fetes and summer fairs and street parties that the weather is so cruel.

But go ahead they do. So after Parkland Walk, I go on to the Open Day at St Ann’s Police Station where it is always fun as the station opens itself up to local people. A great example of the police trying to work productively with the local community – better police-resident relations means fewer crimes and more criminals caught.

Lynne Featherstone meeting one of the dogs at St Ann's police stationDespite the weather there is a good showing of people – and I get to be friends with one of the police dogs and ride (well sit on) a police bike.

All good fun!

And then on to the last wet outing of the day – to Bounds Green School (now with Junior and Infants with a single Head) for their summer fete.

The playground activities are somewhat hampered by the weather – but inside the stalls are doing a great trade. Last year I helped serve the hot food – this year I am on the lucky dip stall.

Lynne Featherstone with William Wawn at Bounds Green School's summer feteI don’t know whether that is demotion or promotion – but we did a roaring trade. 50p a go – and tickets ending with 0 or 5 – every one a winner!

I am pictured with William Wawn – the new Head of the two schools. It was very buzzy – and with a jazz band playing – the weather didn’t spoil the fun at all!

And then it was back home to stay out of the rain for a while!

Not wanted by Haringey

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Advice surgery all morning – but the backdrop of the day is the bomb in Haymarket. Predictable really I guess – if you think about the timing. Fantastic that it was spotted before it went off. But it is a horrid sense that our well-being can be instantly threatened and our lives put on guard again – just like that.

Lesser matters – but a while back, I had a letter from Haringey Council asking if I would present an award for the Better Haringey Awards tonight which I said I would be happy to do. Because it clashed with my daughters ‘A’ level art show – I asked my office to telephone before the event to ask if I could present an award in the second half of the award ceremony – giving me an hour at her show and an hour at the awards. On telephoning, my Head of Office was told that this wasn’t an event for MPs. It was a Council event and MPs weren’t wanted. Nice! Labour Haringey clearly hasn’t caught up with the new Prime Minister’s desire to work with all the talents!

Evening – get a call from Ming about my future – but can’t tell yet!

Winning in Reading

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Off Lynne Featherstone MP with Gareth Epps and other Reading Liberal Democratsto Reading to exhort Liberal Democrats there to win the seat! Really enthusiastic group – and well ahead of where we started in Hornsey & Wood Green. Looking back – it is extraordinary to think we started with just a very few people determined that Labour should not go on treating local residents with such contempt. So – I expect good things of Reading as they know what needs to be done – and have a very, very good core team.

Gordon’s Cabinet is the main political business of the day – with the biggest surprise being the first woman Home Secretary with Jacqui’s elevation. Good luck to her. Have always believed that job would be excellent for a woman; sorry for prejudice on this – but less bluster and ego and macho sabre-rattling are to be hoped for. A particular relief after John Reid – who I felt generally made matters worse and heightened the difference and public expectation by his bullish pronouncements.

As to the rest of the Cabinet – pretty tame and quite dull. Certainly a Cabinet of more intellect than the last Blair cabinet – but sense the extension of the Chancellor’s modus operandi – dullness and sobriety will rule. Will this be good or bad? In a world where Paris Hilton dominates the airwaves on release from prison – we will see how long it takes for media needs to win the day. The only thing being, that the media may just not cover politics at all – if it becomes pure drudgery.

Raphat Mughal

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With Raphat Mughal and some of the people being trainedVisited our local community women’s training group this morning. Run by Raphat Mughal who is like an unstoppable mother hen fighting every step of the way to get grants for one thing or another to improve the facilities for women from our communities.

Today there were two classes going – early steps in bringing women from their homes into the wider world and giving them language and other skills so that they can help their children with their homework (sometimes quite an issue), or so they can themselves begin accessing work opportunities and so on.

Today I am there because they have managed to get an award of around £5,000 for computers. But now they are stymied because they need to build some benches for them to go on and for someone to pay for the materials, the work and then to wire up and install the computers. Until they can get some help to do this – the award money cannot be put to the good use it is intended for. So – if anyone out there can help with this – let me know.

Goodbye Tony, hello Gordon

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So the long goodbye is finally over. Tony has faced the final curtain. ‘Well – no – actually. Not final. Not me. You know me – I’m Tony. I’m going to do something more important than being Prime Minister – I’m going to be part of the quartet – well I guess that’s a quintet then!’ (Please read aloud using a Rory Bremner version of Tony Blair voice.)

‘That is that. The End.’

It was a good ending. You have to hand to TB. He is so much more appealing than GB! I thought his last Prime Minister’s Questions was quintessential Blair – witty, sharp, super-quick and well delivered. Sotto voce ending. And I was moved by the occasion – but then I cry at Coronation Street. It is, however, quite something to witness first hand the end of an extraordinary premiership – more extraordinary ‘cos most of us think he made an unforgivable error in Iraq, he trashed any trust the public might have had in politicians, he set a terrible example of standards in public life – but he delivered peace in Northern Ireland, was brave in regard to Sierra Leone and Kosovo – but could have been, so, so much more.

As for his new role as Peace Envoy for the Quartet in the Middle East – well – he isn’t the obvious choice in terms of all sides putting their faith in him – but on the other hand – he has clearly phenomenal skills in this arena. And it will take phenomenal skill to deliver peace. It’s funny really – I wrote to Tony not long after I was elected and berated him over Iraq, then suggested to him that if he wanted to make any sort of amends he should use his time more fruitfully in office – and better devote the rest of his time to sorting out the Middle East. Clearly persuaded by my missive – albeit after leaving office – that is what he is going to do!

It fits really. He must bear a weight of either such guilt over those who died because of his decisions (although he believes he was right) but whether guilt or not in his mind – his only redemption (and I use the word because of its meaning to TB not me) would be to succeed in delivering a viable state for Palestine and permanent security for Israel. So – whilst as I say – he isn’t an obvious unbiased player in this arena – sometimes it can take someone involved and passionate – whether for or against – to bring people together.

I wish him every success.

So Camelot dies with Blair. And now the dark and icy hand of Mordor is spreading through the land as the new Wizard’s deathly grip circles our lives. Not encouraged by GB’s first speech outside of No 10. Starched, formal, uncomfortable and termed with phrases to send chills throughout the public services. Change this. Change that. Yes – the country wants a change – a change from being lied to, cheated, manipulated and strategised. But Gordon isn’t change. He was there all the time – and if you didn’t argue for change then – we won’t believe you now. You did, after all, sign the cheques; support the war; flip-flop on tuition fees and privatise our tube spending millions on consultants rather than services.

More mundane, I know, but went straight from Parliament to Haringey Police Consultative Group meeting. That calmed me down!

Alexander Litvinenko: latest news

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At last some new news on the report from the contractors contracted by Haringey Council to measure the levels of Pollonium 210 in the Litvinenko House and recommend what further work will be needed to clean said house.

No – the report is not yet handed to the tribunal and the lawyers for the other side – as it is being finalised and reviewed by the key agencies in charge of our safety. The one thing that is public at this point in time is that the Health Protection Agency has said that there is no risk to any of the neighbours by virtue of what is in the house.

Good news. I hope, however, that the report is soon submitted (expected to happen in another week) and that then the remediation work and who is to pay for it can be agreed and carried out. That is what everyone wants and needs to happen.

Quentin Davies

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Second day of the Finance Bill which Julia Goldsworthy is nobly leading on for us. But the big hoo ha today – Quentin Davies’ defection from Tory benches to Labour. I don’t really know him – other than he has been in the House for 20 odd years. His letter – damning the Tories to hell – is not what Cameron will have wanted on the eve of Gordon’s accession! Spitting and blood are the words that spring to mind.

Not hugely surprised that the Lib Dems have not become his natural home as haven’t truly witnessed a liberal tendency of any kind in his utterances in the House. Politics sure has its moments of high drama. It is quite something to swap parties after twenty years. I try to imagine what it must be like to be so fed up with my own party that I would do such a thing. We all have our frustrations, politically speaking, but this is way out of the natural order of things. I mean, why not wait and simply step down rather than wreak this damage? Not that I am hugely discomforted by seeing the Tories dropping in public esteem – to which no doubt this will contribute. It does feel a bit like a come uppance!

Local MP helps launch Deaf Job Club

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Lynne Featherstone MP helped launch the Renate Campbell Deaf Job Club last Friday at the Winkworth Centre in Wood Green. The aim of the club is to help deaf people gain practical skills, such as CV writing and interview techniques.

Commenting Lynne Featherstone says:

“The ability to work and provide for yourself and your family is a fundamental human right.We should therefore be rightly shocked that unemployment is about four times higher for deaf people than for the hearing.

“In our community we are fortunate to have the Renate Campbell Trust here to help right this wrong, with the support of the Big Lottery Fund. The help and support provided is vitally important to help local deaf people overcome the difficulties and exclusion that lead to joblessness.

“I warmly congratulate the centre and the people who have made this happen.”