tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post3359806129569902733..comments2024-03-28T09:45:17.708+00:00Comments on WEMBLEY MATTERS: EXCLUSIVE: Rokesby Place – Brent's possible planning malpractice exposed Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-11233622774116218572022-09-09T16:52:28.306+01:002022-09-09T16:52:28.306+01:00Dear Anonymous (9 September at 13:23),
Thank you ...Dear Anonymous (9 September at 13:23),<br /><br />Thank you for your comment. I agree with you entirely that we need honesty from Brent Council, but they have a duty to give us more than that.<br /><br />Ever since 1995, the "Seven Principles of Conduct in Public Life" have applied to all elected officers (such as MPs and local councillors) and all people who work in public services, such as our local Council. They are a key part of Brent's "Members' Code of Conduct", and the code of conduct which all employees of Brent Council have to sign-up to.<br /><br />Here is a reminder of what those Seven Principles are (copied from Brent's "Members' Code of Conduct"), so that you, or any other resident, can remind Cabinet members, other councillors or Senior Officers of them, should you feel they are not upholding these proper standards:-<br /><br />1. Selflessness - You should serve only the public interest and should never <br />improperly confer an advantage or disadvantage on any person.<br /><br />2. Integrity - You should not place yourself in situations where your integrity may be questioned, should not behave improperly and should on all occasions avoid the appearance of such behaviour.<br /><br />3. Objectivity - You should make decisions on merit, including when making <br />appointments, awarding contracts, or recommending individuals for rewards or benefits.<br /><br />4. Accountability - You should be accountable to the public for your actions and the manner in which you carry out your responsibilities, and should co-operate fully and honestly with any scrutiny appropriate to your particular office.<br /><br />5. Openness - You should be as open as possible about your actions and those of the Council, and should be prepared to give reasons for those actions.<br /><br />6. Honesty - You should be truthful in your Council work and avoid creating situations where your honesty may be called into question.<br /><br />7. Leadership - You should promote and support these principles by leadership, and by example, and should act in a way that secures or preserves public confidence.<br />Philip Granthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08216646114377430489noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-38801963550424835292022-09-09T13:23:25.527+01:002022-09-09T13:23:25.527+01:00Mr Grant you have gone above and beyond our expect...Mr Grant you have gone above and beyond our expectations. As a Brent Council resident I applaud you for your insightful email to the CEO to Mr Carolyn Downs . I really feel that your experience is an asset in so many ways in voicing the concerns of many of the Brent Residents. We will be seriously impacted by this Infill in areas of social housing . Brent are careful with choosing their words and at most very vague...they never give straight answers.<br /><br />They always have something to hide and are behaving in a reckless manner.They are least bothered about addressing serious concerns of residents and the impact of natural light, urban greening or disabled parking to name afew areas that willbe impacted by the infill projects around the borough not to mention the damage to existing trees.<br /><br />I am sure I speak for many Brent residents who appreciate your time efforts and your knowledge .I really do hope that Brent Residents stand strong on this absolutely unreasonable development plans in Brent.<br /><br />Thank you once again for drawing attention to community and I urge Brent residents to stand united in insisting on clarity and honesty from Brent at every stage of their plans . We need honesty !Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-91631548233375170602022-09-07T14:53:05.485+01:002022-09-07T14:53:05.485+01:00I'm grateful for some kind comments about me a...I'm grateful for some kind comments about me above, thank you, but don't claim to be amazing, or worthy of any "gong" from Her Majesty!<br /><br />I am lucky enough to have some "investigations" experience from my working life, and to be retired so that I have some spare time which I can devote to things such as trying to understand why the rent level on this planning application was changed from Social Rent to LAR.<br /><br />While I'm prepared to devote time to matters, especially on heritage and housing, which attract my interest, I can't champion every cause that Brent residents want me to (as some of you will know when I've had to say "No" to your requests). <br /><br />There are many more people in the community who could take up matters which they don't think are right with the Council, and I do believe that standing up for what you believe is right is important. <br /><br />If you feel that there is something you would like to take up, hopefully reading how I put together Freedom of Information Act requests or how I try to set things out carefully, with reasons and evidence, but also with courtesy, in letters such as my open letter to Carolyn Downs, will prove helpful to you.<br /><br />In this particular case, it was fairly simple to draft an FoI request. The change must have occurred between the date the application was submitted and the date of the Planning Committee meeting. There had to be some evidence for it, so I could identify who any communications would have to have been between, and ask for information about those and any documentary evidence of them.<br /><br />It was what that evidence showed which was so shocking. Once a Brent Council planning application has been submitted, there is supposed to be no direct contact between the Council Officers on the Planning and Project sides. Here there had been, and it involved interference over one of the details of the planning application! That goes directly against procedures which are supposed to be in place, which are meant to ensure that the Council's own applications are not given unfair preferential treatment.<br /><br />The correspondence between the agent Brent had appointed to handle its Rokesby Place planning application and the Planning Officer (or Officers? - I could not be sure who the emails had been copied to), was very worrying too. It certainly mirrored the lack of impartiality shown at the Planning Committee meeting.<br /><br />When something has gone wrong like that, it needs to be called-out, and that is what I have done here. I've written to Brent's Chief Executive, and made suggestions for how it needs to be put right; and I've also put the evidence and my letter "in the public domain", so that I can expect a proper answer and you will know what that is.<br /><br />Basically, it is all about holding the Council to account (somebody has to do that, because in recent years our elected councillors don't seem to have been able to do that themselves!), and trying to ensure that the local community is treated fairly in its dealings with the decision-makers at the Civic Centre.Philip Granthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08216646114377430489noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-21480929667334084732022-09-07T12:05:31.201+01:002022-09-07T12:05:31.201+01:00The London Borough of BentThe London Borough of BentAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-48273244464615556512022-09-07T09:14:14.875+01:002022-09-07T09:14:14.875+01:00Thank you to the reader who submitted a comment ye...Thank you to the reader who submitted a comment yesterday calling for Brent Council to be put in 'Special Measures' as a consequence of the content of Philip's article. As the main comment went further than the article itself in describing officer and councillor conduct and motivation I decided not to publish re potential legal issues. Apologies. Martin Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02194641151012303116noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-22799822074450271932022-09-06T21:31:49.733+01:002022-09-06T21:31:49.733+01:00A very big thank you to Mr Phillip Grant in pursui...A very big thank you to Mr Phillip Grant in pursuing this issue and putting in a very comprehensive complaint to Caroline Downs, Brent Council CEO . Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-31043185065748330752022-09-06T20:39:49.907+01:002022-09-06T20:39:49.907+01:00Philip Grant local hero. Should get recognition fr...Philip Grant local hero. Should get recognition from the queen over all these do nothing councillorsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-74360783713622696482022-09-06T05:03:58.412+01:002022-09-06T05:03:58.412+01:00Outstanding work!Outstanding work!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-30498061726000576802022-09-05T20:25:53.268+01:002022-09-05T20:25:53.268+01:00G. Lee writes:
Hearty thanks to Philip for his d...G. Lee writes: <br /><br />Hearty thanks to Philip for his diligence and dogged determination to uphold the truth amid a very murky and underhand scenario ! Looks like they were in the final instance trying to fudge the issue of Social rent by claiming it was 'more or less' the same as London Affordable rent...Given the vast amount of development that has gone on, and is still going on in Brent over the past 5 years or so Brent Citizens are right to be wondering whether this has been entirely in the best interests of the community, whether officers and / or Councillors have been 100% scrupulous in their dealings with developers and whether all the actions that have prompted these massive developments around the Borough have been entirely LEGAL !<br />Martin Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02194641151012303116noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129943063330427887.post-85385089342074687382022-09-05T16:02:18.287+01:002022-09-05T16:02:18.287+01:00Philip Grant is amazing. Brent Council is sad. Philip Grant is amazing. Brent Council is sad. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com