Dukes Avenue traffic

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Dosed on painkillers, I am determined to keep the meeting with Labour Exec member Ray Dodds about the traffic calming in Dukes Avenue and the surrounding area. There has been a new event in that two of the other roads due for pinch points have suddenly risen up out of fear of losing parking spaces and a petition in one of them appears to have universal support for not having the measures.

Everyone wants what they want for their particular problem – which is making it very difficult to hang on to a cohesive scheme of any sort. I am now getting calls from other residents very angry about the petition who do still want the traffic calming. No-one ever said it would be easy!

Another big issue is about lorries. Currently Dukes Avenue residents say they are plagued with lorries coming down their roads and Dodds says there is no real evidence. Council agrees to look at having proper traffic counts done – so at least we can agree on the situation before arguing over what to do about it. Susan (Alexandra ward councillor) and I both feel that no lorries should be able to get along there.

Later see the osteopath who says my back is so bad they cannot manipulate the bone back into place. I have to cancel everything and go and lie down with ice on it until Wednesday morning. So – lie down covered in ice and write my Christmas cards.

HORNSEY LANE – LOCAL COUNCILLORS GIVE FULL BACKING TO COMPROMISE OVER PLANNED PARKING CONTROLS

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Lib Dem councillors in Highgate and Crouch End are backing compromiseplans from local residents over tough new parking controls proposed byHaringey Council. The Council is presently consulting on plans which wouldpaint double yellow lines down much of Hornsey Lane, which has concernedresidents living on a road which already has a shortage of parking.

Lib Dem Leader Neil Williams, who represents Highgate ward, has beenworking with the local residents’ association, the Hornsey LaneAssociation, and local campaigner Ralph Crisp, to see if a sensiblecompromise can be agreed.

The Council had agreed to a request from CllrWilliams to put on hold the implementation of the scheme until alternativeplans could be worked out. Hornsey Lane’s six Lib Dem councillors are nowbacking the alternative plans, which would allow parking to continue onparts of the Lane, but also create new breaks which would allow for thebuild up of traffic bottlenecks to be addressed.

Lib Dem Leader and Highgate councillor Neil Williams comments:

“I hope theCouncil will listen to the views of the residents, who have come up with aworkable plan that will improve traffic flow without unnecessarily takingaway parking places. The road is a bus route and a main road connectingHighgate and Crouch End, so we must ensure traffic can flow -but I thinka balance can be struck.”

Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson Cllr Lynne Featherstone adds:

“John Gordon, Ralph Crisp and the Hornsey Lane Associate deserve much credit forthe hard work they have put in to developing their alternative proposals,and I hope the council will adopt them.”

LIB DEMS CONDEMN CLOSURE OF CHILDREN'S HEALTH CENTRE IN CROUCH END

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Liberal Democrat councillors in Crouch End have unanimously condemned aproposal by Haringey Labour-run Council to close Red Gables Family Centre,which is located in Crouch Hill N8 and provides vital health andwell-being facilities for children and families. The closure would enablethe Council to cut £260, 000 from its budget.

The announcement made at the Social Services and Health Scrutiny Panelcomes just months after the Council announced the closure oftwo day hospitals for people with mental health problems in the area.

Despite Lib Dem Health Spokesperson Cllr Aitken and Crouch End colleagueCllr Peter Floyd voting against the closure on grounds that new children’scentres promised will not be up and running for at least two years, theLabour members forced it through.

There is also fear that the centre, located on a prime site in Crouch Endcould be sold off to a developer for a large capital sum, depriving thewest of Haringey with a much needed facility and leading to yet anotherhigh density housing project in Crouch End. Fellow Crouch End and Lib Demcouncillor Dave Winskill backed the opposition to the closure of RedGables.

Cllr Winskill (Crouch End) comments:

“This is an appalling decision whichis badly managed and has the strong smell of political neglect in thewest. This side of the borough has been crying out for years for decenteducational provision: to create another massive hole for two years in thealready depleted provision is beyond belief.

Cllr Aitken (Crouch End) adds:

“It is yet another closure of vital serviceby Labour. It has been a miserable and uncertain year for vulnerablegroups in Haringey who looked to New Labour to protect them, instead jobsand facilities are to be cut and dedicated staff and carers faceuncertainty. We will continue to fight these closures.”

MYANMAR – QUESTIONS RAISED OVER INVESTMENT POLICY AND HUMAN RIGHTS

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Lib Dem Muswell Hill councillor Jonathan Bloch has expressed deep concernat the investment policies of Haringey Council’s pension fund. Hiscomments come after it came to light that Haringey Council has beeninvesting in American oil giant Unocal which continues to work with theBurmese Government.

The military-run Government of Myanmar (formerly Burma) has an appallinghuman rights record with many international organisations calling forsanctions to be brought against the south-east Asian country.

Cllr Bloch says that he will be seeking urgent clarification from theCouncil over their investment policy and pressing for a review of it ifthe response is unsatisfactory.

Cllr Jonathan Bloch comments:

“It concerns me greatly that those investing on behalf of the Council haveinvested in a company working so closely with a Government that has such aterrible human rights record. It is essential that the Council’s stance onethical investment is clarified. I will be seeking this and acting uponthe response.”

ALEXANDRA: LIB DEMS WELCOME AGREEMENT TO REVIEW DANGEROUS JUNCTION

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Liberal Democrat councillors in Alexandra ward have welcomed the agreement by the Haringey Council to include the hazardous junction at Winton Avenue and Bidwell Gardens, N22 in its review of traffic calming measures in the area. The agreement was confirmed by the Council in response to a letter from Cllr Wayne Hoban asking for urgent action to be taken.

The news comes following months of pressure from Cllr Wayne Hoban who regularly receives complaints from parents who say that they and their children have to run the gauntlet against ‘rat-run’ traffic to enter and exit Albert Road recreation ground and playground.

The London Borough of Haringey and Transport for London will be undertaking a review of the area to identify where traffic calming measures will need to be implemented in conjunction with plans to widen the A406 road.

Cllr Hoban welcomed the news but cautioned that much was still to be done before any improvements would be agreed.

Cllr Wayne Hoban comments:

“I am pleased that the Council have taken this opportunity to investigate a dangerous junction that is used by many children on their way to school and the recreation ground.

“It is a first step, and we will continue to lobby the Council and TfL until safety improvements are made to this junction.”

Minced pies and mulled wine

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Hornsey & Wood Green LibDem mince pies and mulled wine Christmas social. Had I not dislocated a joint in my lower back – it would have been a really nice social. I still went – and was glad that I had as there are so many new faces at our events now as people seem to sense future success and want to join in. Very enjoyable.

Carol concert

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Plenary session of the London Assembly where we grill those stalwarts and London worthies responsible for our well-being in the aftermath of a catastrophic event in London.

London Resilience – the grouping tasked with our safety – is multi-headed and even after the session I am not totally convinced that we know who will lead in the event of an incident.

They say they are in control. They say anything that is not yet in place is on the way to being in place. We (LibDems) suggest that they produce a detailed instruction booklet as they have in New York. The New York one is great. It really makes you feel that you can prepare to the best of your ability and know what you need in your head, in your home and in your area. We should do the same. Happily, for once, the Assembly agrees and we pass a motion to produce one for London.

Latter off to St Martin’s in the Fields for Transport for London’s charity carol service for the transport world. An hour and a half of doing something I wanted to do. I normally don’t manage to get to any of the carol services I am invited to at this time of year due to pressure of work and my kids expecting Christmas on the 25th – no possibility of moving that deadline! But this year I am determined to get to one – and I do. It was not a wonder of the world, but it was nice to stop and have that experience in the run up to Christmas.

Highgate tube works

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Email from Ed Davey’s office cancelling a later meeting because he is ill. I panic, thinking we must have poisoned him last night and phone up his office; no – it’s not food poisoning, just flu. Thank goodness!

Later in the day, the second public meeting on the new Highgate Control Centre for Tubelines. They have moved a fair distance on disguising the building from nearby residents with earth and have got some decent proposals for lighting and the gatehouse. But they have still not answered many questions posed by residents at the first meeting which they promised to do.

This naturally angers the residents – and so ask them to come back to a third public meeting to answer the questions.

Dinner with Ed Davey

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Neil Williams (Leader of the Haringey Council LibDem Group) and I go to meet residents in Ringwood Avenue, Fortis Green, whose houses back on to the proposed development at 79 Creighton Avenue.

I feel pretty confident that this application will hit the dust as the vast part of the development is on Metropolitan Open Land – and I have in writing from Haringey’s Chief Exec the view that the development is too large and the applicants have been told so.

We go and peer at the trees that have been devastated in the area. This needs proper investigation by Haringey Council – and prosecutions if necessary.

In the evening, host a fundraising dinner. Ed Davey MP is the celeb for the evening – and it was quite a lively one. Happily, I don’t do the cooking or a) no one would come (or certainly not a second time) and b) Isabel does – and Isabel can really cook.

Several of the paying attendees were ex-Labour members who have moved across to the LibDems for a mixture of reasons. The overarching reason: more than the war, more than top-up fees etc is the loss of trust in Labour and Blair. I guess it is quite difficult when you have been involved in the Labour party (or any party for that matter) to switch allegiance to the point of campaigning for the new party. But that is the case now – and I often find that the individuals are pretty much natural Lib Dems in reality.

LIB DEMS CONCERN AT LABOUR COUNCIL'S DISCIPLINARY FIGURES

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Liberal Democrat councillors have expressed concern after figures were disclosed that 23 council staff had been dismissed on disciplinary grounds in the last 6 months. The figures are from an analysis of official council information carried out by the Liberal Democrats.

The Liberal Democrats analysed the in-house audit figures presented to Haringey Council’s Audit and Finance Scrutiny Panel in October.The analysis shows that between 1st April and 30th September, 23 members of staff were sacked, with 42 more receiving warnings, eight of which were final written ones.

According to Lib Dem finance spokesperson, Cllr Stephen Gilbert the amount of dismissals and warnings shows the continuing severe problems with many parts of Haringey Council.

Cllr Gilbert comments:

“Despite paying such high Council Tax, residents in Haringey are continuing to receive poor services. The fact that the council has had to sack so many staff on disciplinary grounds just shows how much work there is still to do to get the council into shape.”