Tag Archives: muswell-hill

Muswell Hill Holocaust Memorial Day

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Young students from Fortismere School came to Muswell Hill Synagogue for Holocaust Memorial Day. Rabbi Mason welcomed them. I spoke to them about the current relevance of the Holocaust – about how hatred and discrimination goes on day in day out – even in our playgrounds. And how, when you hear anyone say something derogatory and disgusting about others – be that about being gay, disabled, black, whatever – if you didn’t speak up then you are complicit. And how important this is – and how – under pressure, a whole nation can change and become frightened into silence virtually.

Then came Joan Salter, whose own children had gone to Fortismere, and whose name was changed long ago by the American family she was placed with after the war. Whenever you hear a Holocaust Survivor’s story – you are moved to tears and you cannot believe man’s inhumanity to man.

Joan’s story was a bit different. For a start – she, her half-sister and both her mother and father survived the Holocaust – just. The tale is one of fear, hiding, danger, hardship, separation and endurance. But shining out in that story of survival really against all odds and a journey from Poland, to Paris, to Belgium, to Spain, to Portugal and to the USA, are those in those countries who risked their lives to shelter, hide, feed or help the individuals in this family.

They did risk their own lives to speak out and say that what Hitler was doing was hideous, evil and despite danger to their own lives, they would not be cowed and frightened and complicit – but stood full square to help those Jews that they could.

A wonderful story – and I have no doubt that the Fortismere students who heard it – will remember the lesson that is taught by the example of this one brave survivor.

A huge thank you to Tamara Broido and the Muswell Hill Holocaust Memorial Day Committee, Rabbi Mason and all who made this really valuable event possible.

Local Liberal Democrats keep up fight against banners

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Businesses have been forced to remove advertising banners from the streets of Muswell Hill, after decisive action by local Liberal Democrats. Concerned that permission had not been granted to place banners on railings in Muswell Hill Broadway and Fortis Green Road, both in a conservation area, Cllr Gail Engert demanded that Haringey Council urges businesses to remove them.

This is the most recent success in the ongoing Liberal Democrat campaign against the unpopular banners in local town centres. In the last four years, local Liberal Democrats have successfully removed banners, including controversial banners advertising Kentucky Fried Chicken in Crouch End.

Cllr Gail Engert (Muswell Hill), comments:

“Many of these banners have been found to breach council planning rules, yet it is left to local residents to tell Haringey Council that this intrusive and often illegal advertising is not needed or wanted in our conservation areas.

“We must make our town centres as attractive to visitors as possible – banners on every lamp post and railing do not provide the welcoming atmosphere most residents want.”

Lynne Featherstone MP adds:

“Local Liberal Democrats will continue to fight against these unpopular and unwanted banners.”

Boost Youth Centre hours, say Liberal Democrats

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Liberal Democrats have called for the opening hours at the Muswell Hill Youth Centre to be increased, to let young people in the area have the same access to youth facilities as in other parts of the borough.

Information on staffing and costs at youth clubs was revealed, in a written response from the Labour Cabinet Member for Children and Young People to Cllr Gail Engert, at the last Full Council meeting on 30th November 2009. It showed that Muswell Hill Youth Club only opens for three hours on weekdays, in contrast to 5.5 hours at the Bruce Grove and Wood Green centres and opens for a total of 720 hours per year, compared to 1320 hours at others.

Cllr Engert has written to Haringey Council to urge that Muswell Hill Youth Centre is opened for longer hours, in line with other centres in the borough.

Cllr Gail Engert, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Children and Young People, comments:

“Giving local young people their own dedicated facility provides a much needed focal point, where they can meet and experiment with arts, sports and creative projects.

“It seems entirely unfair that young people in Muswell Hill have fewer opportunities than those in Wood Green or Bruce Grove, to attend their youth club.

“I will be writing to Haringey Council, to urge them to change this unfair situation.”

Lynne Featherstone MP adds:

“Haringey Council should give an equal opportunity to all young people to go to youth clubs, especially during the winter months, when outside activities are limited.”

Clubs and local people working together

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Muswell Hill. Photo credit: markhillary, FlickrHere’s my latest column for the Muswell Hill Flyer and the Highgate Handbook:

It must be horrible to have drunks vomit over your garden wall, throw estate agents signs into your front porch and to feel threatened if coming home in the dark alone. But that’s the experience of those who live near the clubs at the top of Muswell Hill – and many other places where the alcohol fuelled version of the night-time economy blossoms.

But what can actually be done about it? That really is the big question. It’s one posed by a group of residents who raised with me the constant noise and nuisance caused by drunken souls exiting from establishments near their homes.

There is a right for any of the responsible authorities (police, health and safety, environmental health, fire authority, safeguarding authority) to call for a review of an establishment’s license if there are serious problems of crime and disorder, public nuisance, public safety or protection of children from harm.

If the police are called on a regular basis to stop fights and violence, or serving underage drinkers and so on – then they can call in the license for review and it can be revoked. However, for the drip, drip, drip of local nuisance, vomit, noise, and general disturbance it is very, very difficult to demonstrate that matters are serious enough to justify a review. That’s all the more so when it often isn’t clear which club someone came out of and, in the absence of a police presence, it can be hard to prove the existence and severity of incidents.

The Muswell Hill and Fortis Green Residents’ Association had a public meeting recently at which the Safer Neighbourhood Teams, Haringey’s chief licensing officer, some of the local club owners – and residents – discussed these matters.

My Lib Dem colleague, Cllr Gail Engert speculated that the clubs should put a stamp on customers as they enter their club – so at least it could be established where they had come out of. It was also agreed at the meeting that residents should join the monthly ClubWatch group – which currently is just police and club operators. Working together must be one of the best ways forward.

But the over-arching problem is that since the ending of the requirement for licenses to be renewed each year, residents have lost their annual opportunity to voice their objections and recount their experiences.

I am hopeful that ClubWatch will be the practical and best way forward. But I will be dropping the appropriate Secretary of State a line to point out the very weak position that local people find themselves in and asking what the Government proposes to do to strengthen their hand.

Adjournment Debate on Whittington A & E

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Jeremy Corbyn – MP for Islington North – managed to get an adjournment debate last night on the future of the Whittington – and he very kindly let me speak. For him and I, the most affected constituencies, we are joining forces to ensure that NHS health bosses get the message loud and clear BEFORE decisions are made – that local people are madder than hell at even the suggestion of closure or reduction.

Interestingly, and I will look at Hansard later today, the Minister seemed pretty ticked off with the North London sector and the PCTs and the way they have gone about this. So – hopefully – between an ear-wigging from the minister and the wrath of the local people and MPs we will frighten them off.

They now speak in whispers about how nothing is decided and they are just looking at options. Don’t be fooled – it is quite clear to me that was an option they were considering and without a public rumpus – they would have continued sweetly on that path!

Whittington – it just gets worse………..

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Rumours are emerging that the planned merger of the Whittington and Royal Free Hospitals will not be enough to satisfy NHS bosses and that there may instead be a forced marriage between the Whittington, Royal Free and UCLH Hospitals.

This raises interesting questions, because UCLH is a Foundation Trust. I believe this may mean that the proposed ‘merger’ will be nothing of the sort, but will instead be a take-over by UCLH of the other two hospitals – a wonderful Xmas present for UCLH, which has been dreaming of this for years…. This disaster just goes on and on….”

Meanwhile, lots of denials by NHS bosses about intentions to close or reduce A&E departments at the Whittington and North Mid.

Having now been in elected politics for over ten years – one thing I am sure of – when there are budget cuts demanded and letters showing closure sent out and then denied – is that the sooner and the louder that local people let their views be known the better!

Otherwise – heaven forfend – we could find that none of the options that come to public consultation next September contain anything that bears any relationship to what local people actually want!

Muswell Hill car park plan success

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A busy local car park in Muswell Hill looks set to receive long overdue safety improvements, after a sustained eight year campaign by local Liberal Democrats and residents.

Haringey Council has agreed that plans will be drawn up soon for the car park in Summerland Gardens, behind Marks and Spencer in Muswell Hill Broadway.

The car park is often used by parents and young children as a route to local schools and the Community Centre. The proposed scheme should include an entire pedestrian safety audit of the car park and two-way vehicle access.

In February this year fears for the safety of local families and children using the car park were heightened after Haringey Council agreed that the local Community Centre would provide additional services, meaning that more people would be using the route through the car park. Residents were concerned that, due to the lack of pedestrian access and pavements, the increased number of residents using the area was an accident waiting to happen.

The news that plans are due to be published at the end of November has been welcomed by local Liberal Democrats.

Cllr Gail Engert (Muswell Hill) comments:

“This is great news and testament to persistence by local residents. The increasing concern for the safety of young families using this car park, meant that Haringey Council needed to do something soon. I am glad that they have, after eight years campaigning, finally taken note and I hope plans are forthcoming and are fully funded sooner, rather than later.”

Lynne Featherstone MP adds:

“Finally, after a long fight, it seems that local residents will be safer when using this car park.”

Cllr Martin Newton, Liberal Democrat transport spokesperson, added:

“Fundamental to improving safety for pedestrians in the car park, was to provide a two-way vehicle access. This will help to alleviate daily road rage incidents and will mean that local residents will not have cars exiting the car park, into their streets.”

Whittington and North Mid petitions – huge response!

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I sent out an email to my email list to inform local people (hard copy will follow more widely) of the threat to close or reduce services at the Whittington A & E and about the threat to the North Middlesex A & E too. Both contain petitions for people to sign up to: The Whittington petition is here and the North Mid petition is at http://bit.ly/northmid.

The responses are pouring in. In the first 24 hours, since yesterday afternoon, 745 people have already signed the Whittington petition and 89 the North Mid.

It is already quite clear that local people don’t want to lose their local A & E nor see it reduced. That is why it is so important that local peoples’ views are heard loud and clear NOW. Otherwise when the Health Authority ‘options’ finally come to public consultation – we may find that there are no options that keep the Whittington A & E open and that in reality the decisions have actually been made. That goes for the North Mid too.

I support improved clinical outcomes, obviously, and there are lots of health services that may be better provided by one or other hospital. But A & E is one of the services that needs to be local and 24 hours – that’s the point.

As one constituent wrote to me who works at one of the hospitals (not the Whittington) ‘there is no more logic to an   A & E unit at University College Hospital than the others.  Medical staff will adapt to what is decided.  UCH and RFH could easily become even more specialist than they already are and would flourish without an A & E.  The Whittington on the contrary exists to provide a local and emergency service and is at risk of having its lifeblood sucked away’.

Couldn’t have put it better myself!

Cock-up, conspiracy or incompetence?

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Lynne Featherstone, Cllr Martin Newton and London Assembly Member, Caroline PidgeonHere’s my latest column for the Muswell Hill Flyer and Highgate Handbook:

Finally I managed to get Transport for London (TfL), Haringey Primary Care Trust (part of the NHS) and me together in the same place to bang heads together about the need for better bus links to the new Community Health Centre on the old Hornsey Central Hospital site.

We have this wonderful new facility but, despite the transport issues being raised as a key issue at every public and private meeting (literally for years) by many people, nothing has been properly planned, delivered – or even promised for the future.

And of course now the new Health Centre is here – and operational – but not a new bus in sight. Loads of people joined in my campaign for a new bus to enable them to access the new centre when referred there from wherever they live in Highgate, Crouch End, Muswell Hill, Fortis Green or Alexandra wards by their own GP.

Imagine my shock when TfL said they had no idea that there were services were already being provided (with lots more to come) which would bring people from all over the west of Hornsey & Wood Green to the new facility. TfL seemed to be under the illusion that the only thing happening was that two GP practices had moved in and only they would need transport.

To be honest – I couldn’t believe it!

Given the promises on transport, the supposed discussions on transport – to be sitting there listening to the two key agencies basically saying that there was such a gap in communication that TfL didn’t know that there was an ongoing and expanding need for access to the site from provision of new services on the site was truly shocking.

From this ‘discovery’ TfL have now agreed to take away the issue and look at it properly. At least they now both seem to understand there is a problem with providing a major new health facility with no extra transport provision.

I have been contacted by many local people on the back of our campaign giving examples of problems they have encountered. One example is a team who have already moved into the new facility and whose clients will commonly have reduced mobility – albeit still very capable of getting on a bus if it can deliver them near to the health centre – are concerned about how their patients will get to them.

Another example is that of one local health worker who has contact with people with very differing needs in the borough who wrote to me to say that a number of people she is in contact with through her work have mentioned their concerns about the lack of usable transport links to the new site.

I don’t know what on earth has been going on – but you can bet my language to both the Chair of Haringey PCT and Peter Hendy (Commissioner of Transport in London) will be pretty strong as I bring this smartly to their attention.

Clearly this is a mess – and I just hope that both Haringey PCT and TfL sort it out now they have acknowledged that they haven’t even been looking at the right problem.

Christians engage with politics – quite rightly

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I was invited to St James’ Church, Muswell Hill, to talk to a new group that has formed to engage in a variety of topics – this one being about politics generally – and politics and religion.

In our modern world – new challenges arise as we battle with where the right place is to draw the line between legislating to prevent discrimination – and the freedoms we treasure to believe and practise whichever faith we may follow.

An example would be the relatively recent case of a registrar whose religious beliefs led to her refusing to perform a civil partnership ceremony for a gay couple in Islington. In our modern world – there is no place any longer for conscience or belief (just as with likes or dislikes) for an individual to refuse equal access to public services.

So – when I say the ‘modern world’ throws up new challenges – years ago this dilemma would not have existed because being openly gay itself was illegal. It is a measure of how far we have travelled that to not register a civil partnership is now illegal. I know I came in for a fair amount of chatter on the Internet amongst religious sites for saying, during the committee stage of the Equality Bill, that given these new challenges people would have to basically go into a different job – meaning that if your religious belief is going to make it impossible to carry out your work in the public sector – then that job is not going to be the right one. For those in the job as the world changes – of course – this is a very difficult circle to square – but in the end (and I believe quite rightly) access to public services cannot be anything other than free of religious belief.

So – that bit is relatively simple – perhaps more complex is how far and in what circumstances can or should the state expand beyond where pubic money is spent.

I spoke a bit about politics generally – but also in particular some of the issues that had arisen thus far on the Equality Bill where there is undoubtedly a clash between religious freedoms and state requirements in the dispensing of public services.

One particularly interesting part of the discussion, I thought, was in the Bill there is a part that says of say a Christian Church in terms of employment – it’s OK to discriminate in employing the Vicar and only Christians need apply (pretty obvious) but that employing a youth leader or indeed caretaker that protection would not exist and that employment must be open to all.

The caretaker scenario no-one seemed to mind being a non-discriminatory position but the Youth Leader – people thought should be able to teach and lead in a Christian way – given it was a youth group belonging to the Church. So – I want to throw that over to comment as there is a clash between State and Church on this issue – where principles clash and both have right on their side.