What a whip means

Posted on by

Tablets working – I can breathe. Go up to Westminster to have lunch with Politics Show chap. Just about survive, cancel rest of appointments and go home and work at home for rest of day and evening. Luckily the debate in Parliament was a two line whip, was reduced to one and in the end there was no vote at all.

(The number of “lines” on a whip indicates how important it is that you are present for a vote. There are so many votes in Parliament it is impossible to be present for every single one and still do all the other things needed and expected of an MP. A “three line whip” means it is essential to be there; two and one are of decreasing importance.)

LIB DEMS WELCOME ROAD SWEEPING IMPROVEMENTS

Posted on by

Local Liberal Democrats have welcomed the news that an extra £500,000 is to be added to the road sweeping budget from next year. This is seen as a significant step following many years of campaigning by local Lib Dems on environmental issues like road sweeping. The money has been allocated to cover extra sweeps on 50% of the borough’s roads.

Cllr Susan Oatway, Lib Dem Transport Spokesperson, comments:

“Money to increase the frequency of road sweeping is overdue but welcome. The cleanliness of some roads in the London Borough of Haringey is still totally unacceptable despite repeated requests for improvements from residents and local Lib Dem councillors. Labour have known for years that some roads are simply not kept clean by the current sweeping schedule and it has taken them a very long time to act.”

Local councillor and MP Lynne Featherstone adds:

“The environment has been a key priority for our Lib Dem group since before the last election. Labour are belatedly beginning to realise we are right, and trying to make up for four decades of inaction on the state of Haringey’s streets.”

LIB DEMS WELCOME BELATED SUPPORT FOR ARCHWAY ROAD PLAN

Posted on by

Lib Dem councillor Bob Hare has welcomed assurances from Haringey Council at last week’s Muswell Hill Area Assembly that they would at last make efforts to address the issues raised by the Archway Road Neighbourhood Plan, almost ten years after it was first drawn up and agreed with Haringey Council.

Residents, members of the Hornsey Society and local Lib Dem councillors heard this response from the Council representatives following a briefing from Transport for London (TfL) that accused the Labour-run council of not pursuing TfL’s offers of funding for improvement projects to the extent that neighbouring Lib Dem-run Islington had.

The red-faced Labour councillors responsible for environment and regeneration confirmed that they would endeavour to address some of the concerns and issues raised by the Archway Road Plan including better pedestrian crossing provisions outside Highgate Tube Station, improved pavements, proper regulation of planning, and improvements to shop facades.

Liberal Democrat Cllr Bob Hare has been involved in the campaign to get the Council to invest in the Neighbourhood Plan since he became a Councillor in 2002. He says that the Council’s offer to look for funding for these projects is welcomed but well overdue.

Cllr Hare comments:

“I am pleased that Haringey Council has finally accepted that Archway Road needs investment. For too long it has been overlooked and I hope that the Area Assembly has shamed them into acting.”

CROUCH END – LIB DEMS WANT BILLBOARD EYESORE DOWN BY CHRISTMAS

Posted on by

Lib Dem councillors in Crouch End have succeeded in fighting the erection of a 48-sheet poster site on Crouch Hall Road and now want to see it removed by Christmas.

The calls came last month after councillors discovered that the poster site had been erected illegally some years ago and the company responsible for it were now seeking retrospective planning permission.

Crouch End Councillors David Winskill and Ron Aitken wrote to Haringey Council objecting to the poster site, which is situated in Crouch Hall Roadjust 50 yards from the Grade Two listedClockTower .

Councillors Aitken and Winskill said that the sign was an eyesore and damaged the character and appearance of the Crouch End conservation area

Last week, Haringey Council reported that it would be refusing the belated application. Since then, Cllr Winskill has requested the Council’s enforcement team gets in touch with the site operator and demand its removal.

They are both delighted with the news but want Haringey Council to ensure that the illegal billboard is removed swiftly. They also want to see the Council doing more to monitor and enforce the removal of illegal poster sites in the borough.

Cllr Winskill (Crouch End) comments:

“Crouch End is a conservation area and this is a complete eyesore. We want it taken down by Christmas and myself and Cllr Aitken will keep on the case until it is removed.”

Cllr Aitken (Crouch End) adds:

“This is one of a number of billboards that have appeared in the borough without planning permission. It is time the Council started getting tough on businesses when they show a disregard for local planning rules.”

COUNCIL DOUBLES PUBLICITY BUDGET

Posted on by

Labour-run Haringey Council has revealed that it is planning to double its publicity budget for its ‘Better Haringey’ scheme to a massive £400,000.

The Lib Dem opposition have expressed their concern at the doubling of this publicity budget, which effectively reduces the amount of money available for frontline services.

Cllr Bob Hare, Lib Dem Environment Spokesperson comments:

“Some of this money is necessary, for example publicity to encourage recycling and providing the leaflets with instructions is very useful. But there is so much work still to do on environmental issues in Haringey. Publicity for the Council is not the best use of £400,000. Local residents would much rather see the money spent directly on areas like recycling, street sweeping, rubbish collection, graffiti and sport and other activities for kids, to name just a few.”

Cllr Neil Williams, Lib Dem Leader and Highgate Councillor comments:

“At £200,000 the current budget for Labour’s Better Haringey publicity is already a very significant. To suddenly double this to £400,000 is not acceptable. At this rate, there is a real risk that residents will see more posters than improvements.”

CLIMATE CHANGE CAMPAIGNERS THANK LYNNE

Posted on by

The Sustainable Energy Partnership, which represents all the major environmental and ‘fuel poverty’ NGOs has today written thanking Lynne Featherstone MP for being present in Parliament on Friday 11th November to support two vitally important Bills dealing with climate change and fuel poverty – The Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Bill and the Management of Energy in Buildings Bill.

Both of these Bills were debated in parliament on Friday, and Lynne Featherstone MP helped the former Bill to pass its second reading.

Partnership Organiser Ron Bailey said:

‘The Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Bill is a vital measure. Emissions of CO2 continue to increase and rising energy prices will mean that even more people will suffer from cold homes and fuel poverty this winter. This Bill contains practical measures to deal with both problems.

‘We appreciate that it is difficult for MPs to be in parliament on a Friday, so we are especially grateful to Lynne Featherstone MP for being in the House. This is exactly the example that MPs need to set – action not just fine words. We thank Lynne Featherstone MP for making this commitment to the environment and to ending fuel poverty.’

Sunday

Posted on by

We had a Lib Dem away day – not very far away as it was in Highgate! I spent the morning with the key activists who will take on the council elections in May. We have high hopes of winning enough seats to take control. But I’m not going to say what we discussed for obvious reasons!

Ended up Sunday night at the Whittington with a chest infection. Camidoc is a brilliant service (that’s why we need our local one back at the old Hornsey Hospital site when it is finally redeveloped). Picked up prescriptions from chemist and went home finally about 10pm feeling pretty rough.

Labour and civil liberties

Posted on by

I go to speak at the Liberal Democrat London Region Conference. I, Susan Kramer MP and Sarah Ludford MEP are on a panel answering questions from the attendees. However, the earlier debate is heated and running overtime and Shami Chakrabarti, the Director of Liberty has already arrived and is timed for 4.30pm – so I suggest to my co-panellists that we cut our session from an hour down to just half an hour. So that’s what we did.

Shami did a truly star turn. She has a phenomenal use of the English vocabulary – and a delivery that is very winning in manner. And of course, she is delivering music to Lib Dem ears – the civil liberties agenda. Her job must be a constant delight – to fight the good fight – and get paid for it! I think she is an excellent proponent and a real champion of this agenda.

She slides through all the terrible thefts we have witnessed since Labour came to power. From Control Orders, to ID cards, to proposals to remove trial by jury, to religious hatred legislation (removing free speech), to banning behaviour as a substitute for real cure, to the terror laws and the extension of detention without charge, to retention of DNA records on a national police database regardless of guilt or innocence – to name just a few. These are not just the ones that Shami brought up – but they are what has become a litany of loss. Shami finished with the shameful move to accept evidence got by torture. One wonders where it will end and just how far this will go.

Alexandra Park School

Posted on by

As ever – nearly four hours of surgery at Wood Green library. It never ceases to amaze me how much of a mess the benefits system is.

I rush out at the end to get to Alexandra Park School where I am addressing and taking questions from their school Parliament.

I am very keen on engaging young people in the political process – and so keen to not come over as too boring! There is a terrific turnout – and I whip through the ‘my day’ and ‘why we are the main opposition’ points that they have asked me to address in my speech and then take half an hour of questions.

I was much encouraged by their enthusiasm and intelligence. There is a clear ‘Stop the War’ influence in the hall – alongside a very knowledgeable body on the terror laws and ID cards. Several of the students and teachers come afterwards to ask questions that the debate runs out of time for – and I really enjoy staying and talking more directly. I think there are several would-be politicians in the making there!

Onward to a meeting with someone who doesn’t turn up – and then onward again to my last meeting with Chief Superintendent Bloomfield – the local police commander who is leaving next week to go to New Scotland Yard to head up the London-wide Safer Neighbourhoods Team.

I am very sad to see him go – as I think he has been a really successful and much respected local commander who has achieved real results, knows all the communities and is a very wise man! I also meet his successor who moves to us from Enfield – and who I am sure will continue the good work as he was previously on the borough and knows it well. I run through a raft of small issues brought to me by constituents from pavement cycling to ‘yobs hanging around’ to policing in Highgate.

We also discuss the recent police car accident which was fatal for a pedestrian, tragically, and is now the subject of a full investigation. We range over the use (ever increasing and successful) of volunteers in the borough and the 90 days terror suspect detention – now 28 days. I am sad to see him go – but wish him well!

Last call of the day is to Jacksons Lane Community Centre – who are celebrating their 30th anniversary. It is unimaginable now that Jacksons Lane didn’t always exist – but I am old enough to remember the early campaign and set up that created it – and all credit to those like Melian Mansfield, Chris Hindley, Nicky Gavron and others who made it happen. Tonight’s celebration is champagne, speeches and then watching a production called ‘Motions in Time’ by Daryl Beeton – an actor with a disability – and Jacksons Lane has led the way in its work making disabled actors a parity in the profession.

I meet the relatively new Director of Jacksons Lane and suggest that we set up a meeting for a more appropriate time to discuss how I can best support them in the coming times when they will undoubtedly need to raise funding to repair and renew the fabric of the old church. The production is great fun – very enjoyable – and then it is home.

Global warming

Posted on by

Firstly I went to the Environment Audit Select Committee (of which I am a member) to question the Government’s scientific adviser Sir David King.

My questions to him were on his seeming approval of the higher of two carbon emissions figures. Without getting to technical – best scientific evidence is that 550 parts of carbon dioxide per million parts of air would lead to a 2 centigrade rise in our temperature and that is the target that was set.

New evidence seems to point to the necessity of lowering that figure below 400 parts. I want to know why Sir David is seemingly setting his approval to the perhaps more politically possible higher target rather than one that would scientifically be necessary to save the world – literally. He disagrees and states that it should be 275 parts to save the world and tells the committee that he has been misrepresented in the media (don’t we all know that feeling).

So here on record he makes it quite clear that we are in trouble. It really is a depressing Doomsday scenario. I suppose the only cheering point is that there does seem to be a growing that there is a catastrophe awaiting and although hardly anyone has quite yet panicked – post-New Orleans and the tsunami, there is greater attentiveness to the issues.

At 2.30pm I go to Westminster Hall again and this time I am on the front bench for a debate on the rehabilitation of prisoners – which is part of my own portfolio. It is a debate secured on the Home Affairs Select Committee report – whose findings are pretty much pure Liberal Democrat policy. And all three parties croon together in admiration for schemes that avoid putting women into prison for minor offences with short sentences – which means they can lose their home and their children and so causing damage far out of proportion to the original offence. We croon together about restorative justice and community sentences.

We all agree that this is not being soft on crime – but much tougher than simply locking people up. I am able to expound my favourite theory about what sort of individual you produce if you shut someone in a room, give them no attention, skills or education to equip them for coming out of the room. Will you have a well-developer individual capable of taking their place in society, not reverting to crime and not being dependent on the state? I rest my case, m’lord!

Of course, the Minister just responded about how wonderful the Government are and how well they are doing!