I understand that Tory councillor Michael Maurice commandeered the Tory Group's office office at the Civic Centre yesterday evening to offer Reform's Brent West Candidate, Ian Collier and his eight or so supporters tea and biscuits ahead of the Full Council meeting. Apparently, using his electronic tag, he then escorted them from the 4th floor into the 3rd floor Council Chamber where they were able to occupy the front row of the Public Gallery before admittance of the general public who had been queueing outside.
From that position the group were able to applaud every utterance of Cllr Maurice and Ian Collier and barrack Palestine supporters.
Ian Collier, a former Conservative supporter, describes himself on LinkedIn as a retired actuary and investment banker but claimed to be a representative of the people of Brent when he presented his petition opposing the Brent-Nablus Twinning. In fact in the Brent West General Election he came 6th out of six candidates with 4.98% of the vote, losing his deposit.
Presenting the petition Collier spoke about 'We British people' opposing sectarianism and divisiveness but then said that the names on his petition were 'almost entirely English sounding names, Jewish sounding, Hindu, Sikh, Jain sounding - an array of the richness of Brent's ethnic groups. There is one group that is missing, there are hardly any Muslim sounding names on the petition.'
He claimed that this indicated that the twinning had caused division and then in a statement that did not appear to help heal division, and amid cries of 'lies', 'rubbish' and 'that is a slur', said it was 'being pushed that the twinning arrangement is no more than a sham to transfer funds and resources to a proscribed organisation.'
He went on to say, 'Let's assume that this is not the case' but then suggested that the setting up of a Community Interest Company as part of the project was acknowledged to be 'far less regulated than a charity.'
Before his main response, Cllr Butt, leader of the council, said on the lack of Muslim names that his and other Muslim councillors' names had been added as signatories wihout their consent. (They had been removed after the petitioners had drawn attention to the matter).
Adopting an emolliative tone he said the council had been working with the petition organisers to resolve any misunderstandings and it was important that their voices be heard. He recognised that the petitioners cared deeply about the borough and its shared values and he emphasised that Brent is 'deeply proud' to be the home of a vibrant Jewish community with roots that go back generations.
He said the borough was a place of many cultured and faiths and it was the Council's to make sure every resident feels safe and heard.
He went on, 'I'm personally aware of the anxieties raised and we are not ignoring them. I will be meeting with representatives of the Jewish community to hear their concerns and my door will be open to meet with the petitioners.'
Cllr Butt continued, 'I'm qute clear and Cllr Afzal (supporter of the twinning) agrees with me that if the twinning is to be a success it must be about peace, cultural exchange and mutual understanding...Brent has always attempted to build bridges where we can.'
He said that the Council had been in contact with the Nablus local government following the petition, and would ensure that the concerns were addressed if they had not already been answered. He said that utlimately the aim is to builld relationships that support, not divide, and it will be the responsibility of the Brent Nablus Twinning association to do just that.
The issue came back with a Conservative motion about the process of approving twinning arrangements later on the agenda, although Cllr Maurice managed a contribution that got applause from the Reform supporters. Later another Tory got a dig in by quoting Cllr Nerva's words opposing the twinning to Cllr Butt.
I think Cllr Maurice's colleagues will not be entirely at ease with his flirtation with Reform and this may cause problems ahead of the 2026 local elections and some Labour councillors may feel that Cllr Butt should have objected strongly to some of Collier's more extreme comments and unevidenced allegations.
PS Challenged on the checking of names on petitions Brent Council said there had been random checks but now new more robust checking procedures will be adopted,
41 comments:
I have Just heard about the proposed twinning with Nablus. Nor widely publicised. Too late to signal the 'Say No' petition. Brent Council needs to take into account the views of All residents. Especially at a time of War in the Middle East. Why are Brent Council coming their residents to taking sides? How Dare They? We are for peace and diplomacy.
How dare Brent Council propose such a twinning on behalf of all residents?
DIsgusting behaviour display at meeting last night by Collier and Maurice. Their speeches were littered with arrogance and anti-Muslim hate speech that was unchallenged by the chair. There was a Great turnout in support of the twinning with Nablus by people of diverse faiths, ethnicities and ages, reflecting the great diversity of Brent.
If anyone has issue with the publicity of both petitions thats for the council to look into. The original petition was poorly advertised too and we heard of it by chance.
The democratic process took place, approved by the council almost unanimously and thorough analysis done by the council. Collier (Reform) and Maurice (Tory) are both trying to derail the process and have brought in outside help to do so. Both Reform and Tories were thoroughly trounced by Brent in the GE last year so I doubt whether the majority of Brent residents support the views of these bigoted parties. Theyre just trouble makers, causing conflict when none existed.
The twinning is about educational and cultural exchange not taking sides on anything. Dundee is twinned with Nablus since the 80's and theyve had a wonderful experience. Look it up. Several UK cities have twinning relationships with Israeli cities. Examples include Bournemouth twinned with Netanya, Hackney, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Portsmouth with Haifa, and Barnet with Ramat Gan. Additionally, Borehamwood and Elstree are considering twinning with Shoham. so whats the problem with twinning with Nablus? unless there are other reasons?
There is no war there is a genocide. Very different to war.
There is no war there is a genocide. Brent is not saying every person in brent agreed. Why do people who are not proactive in their community think they have a right to criticise after not paying attention and making a difference when the opportunity was offered ????
To all those that oppose the twinning of Brent with a Palestinian town, do you also publicly oppose the numerous British towns and boroughs that are twinned with Israeli and other towns? Or do you only show animosity against Palestinian twinning? If you are inconsistent, is it because of an undercurrent of racism and islamaphobia in your motives?
Exactly
Good point!
I find all this political posturing from both the left and right completely detached from the reality we’re facing. Just last night someone was shot in Neasden, and the day before, there was a stabbing in Willesden, on top of countless others this month.
How does twinning Brent with a town in Palestine actually help local residents? It doesn’t make us any safer, more prosperous, or bring communities together.
It’s nothing more than virtue signalling, aimed at appealing to either left-leaning Muslim Labour voters or antagonising right-wing Zionist and anti-Muslim groups. Meanwhile, real issues go unaddressed.
I think the actions of Israel in Gaza are abhorrent and should be rightly condemned, but we have serious issues here in Brent. All this twinning nonsense does is waste time and energy. I am sure there are some very self-satisfied people on both sides of the aisle, but this kind of thing is exactly why so many people have become apathetic about politics and politicians.
I’m not aware of a particularly large Palestinian community in Brent, though there have certainly been significant Jewish communities here and in other parts of London. To me, twinning should reflect local connections rather than serve as a political gesture. If the aim is to strengthen ties based on community links, then twinning with a town in Pakistan, India, or even Romania would arguably make more sense given the demographics of Brent.
The war is of defence, it is hamas and iran who have called for the genocide of Israel
End towns twinning?
All Brent are saying is give Nablus a chance.
You don’t need to be Palestinian to be against genocide you just have to be human. All surveys show that the majority of the British public of all faiths & backgrounds, including many Jewish people, support Palestine, so reflected in Brent’s community too!
The Jewish community in Brent is 1.1 % actually, the Muslim community is 21% of the population FYI from the Census. After Christians, Muslims are largest faith group followed by Hindus,
Nationally, in UK jews constitute 0.5 % of the population so I very much doubt that there are large numbers in all the cities that are twinned with Israeli cities.
Any suggestions that there is a Tory/Reform pact in Brent are a pack of lies. Councillor Maurice was just confused.
Did anyone cause all this fuss when Muslims were slaughtering Muslims is Syria and where are all the 21% of Muslims in Brent raising their voices to oppose the record number of executions going on in Saudi Arabia or now in Iran. Where are the Muslim Voices opposing the killings by Muslim terrorist organisations slaughtering innocent people across Niger and other African countries?
Palestinian Hamas slaughtered 1200 innocent people and Palestinians rejoiced. They started the war and now they cry because they are paying the price for this.
Martin Francis is pro Palestinian and there is lack of balance in what is published here. The use of the word Genocide is provocative and used by ignorant people who are too ashamed to call out Muslim murders going on all across the world.
Was it not Muslims who killed innocent people in London 20 years ago? So much for a peaceful religion.
The huge local support for the twinning was clear at the hearing on 7 July. While the Reform & Tories claim to care about equality and diversity they continue indulging in dogwhistle politics & anti-Palestinian smears. Their support in the room was tiny. In contrast, support for Palestine and twinning with Nablus was large and diverse. The local support shown in the room demonstrated what Brent residents support.
How many people withhold their religion and ethnicity in the census??? We certainly do!!!
So don't think you have all the data on who's living in Brent.
Brent Council llll
I have seen and heard a lot of people in support of this twinning agreement in Brent, I doubt reform will be able to stop it
The Say No To Brent Twinning with Nablus was apolitical. I heard that Brent has a £92 million deficit. We have pot holes, some street markings are non-existent yet Brent wants to spend money it hasn’t got on twinning with a town that would not welcome many of its residents. The comments here display the divisiveness of this twinning decision.
I agree.
I agree!
This twinning was not adequately publicised and many residents had no idea of the consultation. This was twinning was passed on an undemocratic basis. It should be reexamine.
Reform or the Tories might not be able to stop it (although they will exploit it for votes) but the National/Regional Labour Party might as they realise how much trouble Brent Labour Councillors are causing.
National Labour Party already stopped the previous Labour Motion when Muslim Councillors called for dis-investment in Israeli Companies about a year ago,
Why do you think that the London Region Labour Party have taken over the selection process for Labour candidates in the May 2026 election? There will be a cull and no doubt loads of Labour defections and resignations.
None of this has anything to do about services for Brent residents but that is what happens when there is nothing better to put forward in Council Meetings which are pointless when power is handed to just a small clique led by Councillor Butt and his family.
Reply to 10 July 2025 at 00:26 It was made clear at the Council Meeting that the costs associated with the twinning would be funds raised by the twinning association - not council funds. Although i suppose the Mayor may treat a visitor from Nablus to tea and biscuits!
The majority of Brent Residents were unaware through lack of publicity. We had no say. Totally undemocratic.
Most residents were not aware due to lack of publicity. This was bulldozed through quickly by à narrow interest group. With very little consultation. Most Brent Residents are horrified and would like the decision reexamined.
re comment at 10 July 2025 at 12:31 I have received half a dozen with similar wording all possibly from the same person. Perhaps resubmitted because the comment did not appear instantly. There is an approval process (see guidelines) that may take a little time depending on what I am doing (this morning I was having my hair cut!). Anyway the point has been made. While I am at it can commenters if they are posting 'I agree' or similar please say which comment they are referring to as I have done here - otherwise there is no way of knowing which of the 24 plus comments are being agreed with! Thanks everyone for taking the time to comment - there are more responses here than on the local paper website.
By the way. the Twinning proposal was covered on this blog back in November 2024: https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2024/11/labour-group-call-on-brent-council-to.html
There were police around the Civic Centre on Monday (presumably as a result of a request from the Council). This costs money - so who paid for that? If the Police have to waste their time outside the Civic Centre they cannot do their job of fighting crime. There are costs and nothing like this is ever "free" and the Twinning Association set up by a Labour Councillor has not yet offered to pay or raised any money to do so.
Re 10 July 2025 at 13:59 To reiterate, the twinning has received no council money. No demonstration was planned by supporters of twinning. Perhaps police intelligence was ready for a demonstration by Reform. When I arrived there were barriers up but no people and a couple of officers ready to call it a day.
On a positive note this may challenge stereotypes about Nablus: Nablus also has a school, which was founded in 1904. St. Joseph School was acquired by the Latin Patriarchate in 1998 and has always been recognized for its high academic standard. Today, with its 46 teachers, the school teaches kindergarten to 12th grade or Tawjihi, transmitting a message of Faith in respect of each, without religious or social discrimination. The students are divided into 22 classes, two classes per level from 1st to 10th grade, a class for 11th grade, and a class for 12th grade.
In addition to the school program requested by the Palestinian Authority, additional courses in French and music are offered. Even if Christian students represent only 10% of the students, special importance is given to the catechism.
The motto of the Schools of the Latin Patriarchate is: “May they know You”, this is portrayed perfectly in the St. Joseph School where everyone is welcomed without exception: Christians, Muslims, and Samaritans. This is one of the school’s missions: to transmit justice and to foster links between these three religions, in a spirit of openness and respect.
👍🏽
They know it’s got massive support so they’re playing sectarian politics & trying to cause division in Btent!
Underhand means
A very worthy city to twin with ❤️
It did not have massive support. Residents were muted through poor publicity and limited consultation.
Will this school or the Nablus authorities welcome Jewish Councillors and our Gay Mayor and his husband?
I need to respond to this blog by Martin Francis.
The petition was supposed to be apolitical, on our leaflets, there was no mention of any political groups or allegiances, no names and no imprint.
Myself and others tried in vain to find people to lead this petition, but no one wanted to and as I’m a Councillor, I thought it wrong to be the lead petitioner.
Most of the Jewish community are absolutely scared of reprisals, Ian is the only person we could find to raise their head above the parapet.
On the day of the Council meeting, we specifically did not want any protest or demonstrations, yet the sight of pro Palestinian supporters scared most of the petitioners and those that came to support of.
What you didn’t know was that earlier in the day, I asked the Council if we could have a separate room for the petitioners but we were were told no, they can wait in the public areas. This being unacceptable, I took them for a while to our office to provide a safe and secure haven for them. They were not offered tea or biscuits and when it was time for our pre-meet they were told they’d have to leave the office and find somewhere else to sit. I did not guide them to front row seats, I couldn’t have, I was in our office with my colleagues.
I disn’t say anything that could be considered islamophobic, but I did point out that our petition was on the official Brent website and was totally above board.
I also said that as soon as the petitioners saw the names of several Labour councillors, we knew they wouldn’t have signed and reported it to Brent immediately. I did suggest that the person or persons that added these names probably did so in order to sabotage the petition.
I am not against twinning with a city on the West Bank of the River Jordan, just not one that harbours terrorists and where Hamas occupy 47% of the Council seats. Had Cllr Afzal chosen to twin with Bethlehem, there would not have been any problem.
I hope this clears up some of the confusion and myths surrounding last Mondays Full Council meeting
Cllr Michael Maurice
Well put Cllr Maurice. As one of the party who accompanied you and a floating voter to boot, I trust that Martin Francis will alter his headlines.
Reply to Cllr Maurice (15th July 15.00) Received by email:
Dear Cllr Maurice,
We would also like to respond to some of the claims you have made.
Firstly, we are surprised to learn that the ‘Say No to Nablus’ petition is “apolitical.” UK Lawyers for Israel, a profoundly political organisation that champions an Apartheid state, may disagree, and they are openly boasting about their involvement in the petition: https://www.uklfi.com/brent-pushes-on-with-nablus-twinning-in-the-face-of-massive-resident-opposition
It is telling that you struggled to find someone to front the petition, as one would assume that if anti-twinning sentiment in Brent was so strong, more members of the community would have stepped forward. In fact, your comment seems to suggest that rather than being resident-led, your petition was led by yourself, a councillor. And choosing to reach out to Ian Collier, current Reform activist and former candidate, has certainly made the petition’s stated concerns around inclusion seem questionable. This was even before Collier’s Islamophobic rhetoric during his presentation at Full Council, where he singled out Muslims from the rest of Brent’s communities.
It is also very important to note that, despite your characterisation, supporters of Palestine are not ‘scary,’ unless, that is, you find the British public frightening. Millions of ordinary people across the UK, outraged by the mass killing and starvation of women and children, have marched and campaigned in solidarity with the Palestinian people for over 20 months. Solidarity with Palestine and outrage at the actions of Israel is not a marginal position in British society, but the norm. Polling data recently collected by Opinium shows that the British public supports a full arms embargo on Israel by more than 4 to 1: https://palestinecampaign.org/polling-reveals-huge-public-support-for-arms-embargo/
However you choose to spin it, it was no doubt undemocratic that anti-twinning supporters gained entry to the hall before the general public were let in at 17:30. However they may have arrived at the front row seats in the public gallery, they certainly didn’t get there through the main entrance, which is where residents had been patiently queuing since 17:00.
Finally, as we know you are well aware, Hamas does not “occupy 47% of the Council seats” in the Nablus Governorate; it is controlled by Fatah, and Hamas has no seats.
Regards,
Brent & Harrow PSC
Ian Collier was NOT the first choice, but we contacted loads of people and NO ONE wanted to lead it, not because they were against it but because they are scared of reprisals, indeed Ian’s wife had the tyres slashed on her car. As a Councillor, I thought it would be wrong to lead a petition, - any petition. You saw how Cllr Matt Kelcher berated Cllr Lorber on presenting a petition.
The supporters of Palestine may not be scary at all, but there is a perception that they are, indeed one of the petitioners to stop the twinning was absolutely petrified of them.
I wonder if those ‘millions’ of people across the UK were outraged at the murder of 1400 Israeli civilians on October 7th, including Vivian Silver, a woman who dedicated her life to helping Palestinians but who was still murdered by Hamas.
The invasion of Israel by Hamas together with the murder of 1400 civilians and over 250 people taken hostage was an act of way and the declaration of such. Israel has the right to defend itself, period. Israel’s aim is NOT to destroy the Palestinian people but to destroy Hamas and is no different from the need of the Allies to destroy the Nazis.
We have always said ‘Free Palestine from Hamas’ when Palestinians are rid of Hamas, they can continue their lives in freedom.
Hamas operates as a dictatorship, anyone including Palestinians who oppose it are eliminated. It is the same type of dictatorship that defined the Nazis, Benito Mussolini, General Frank’s, Pol Pot, Idi Amin and other brutalists like them.
There are 15 Council seats on Nablus’s Council, 8 are for Fatah, 7 by Hamas. Fatah indeed does control the city but Hamas still has an input.
No matter what you say, Government advice is still: Do not travel to Nablus & Jenin unless it is absolutely essential.
Neither you or any Palestine supporters have shown concern for the hostages, still imprisoned under horrific conditions by Hamas in Gaza. You show no concern for the Druze community being slaughtered in Syria, which Israel is desperately trying to protect, or Muslims being murdered in the Sudan, or the Uyghur Muslims being persecuted in China. Why is that? You obviously don’t care about them which leads me to believe that you, the PSC and other such pro-Palestinian organisations are doing it to promote their anti-Semitic views.
Finally if the Anti twinning supporters did gain access to the hall earlier, it had nothing whatsoever to do with me.
If you are unhappy with the fact that they gained entrance to the hall earlier you should raise it with Council officials.
Cllr Michael Maurice
Thank you for sharing your perspective. I understand the frustration around the many urgent issues we’re facing locally, particularly the rise in violent crime, which absolutely deserves serious attention and investment.
However with respect, I would encourage a bit of fact-checking before drawing conclusions about the value or purpose of initiatives like town twinning. Such actions are not symbolic gestures alone, they are often rooted in longstanding commitments to human rights, solidarity and international cooperation, all of which reflect Brent’s diverse and globally minded community.
Moreover, it’s important to understand how local government funding works. Twinning with a town in Palestine does not divert resources away from vital services in Brent, nor does it reduce safety on our streets. A short course or reading on public sector finance might help clarify how these decisions are made and how budgets are allocated.
Accusing others of virtue signalling can sometimes obscure the deeper motivations behind community led calls for justice. What is being asked for is a clear moral stance, one that aligns with the values many Brent residents hold dear. Addressing global injustice and local safety are not mutually exclusive; we must do both.
Post a Comment