Cllr Collymore resigns as Deputy Mayor of Brent Council and resigns from other council positions

 Brent Audit and Standards Committee was told tonight that Cllr Collymore has resigned from her position as Deputy Mayor and from her other council positions. This follows the finding that she had breached the Members Code of Conduct in an altercation with a parking warden. See LINK

Members noted the outcome of the investigation bt Debra Norman, Corporate Director of Law and Governance and the sanctions imposed.

Cllr Janice Long remarked that the report made what appeared to be something nasty seem bland, and it was hard to judge without seeing the video footage referred to. Debra Norman said the video was private but had been made available to the leaders of the Labour Group. The complaint was serious but she could imagine worse. She did not want therefore to use the full range of sanctions available to her.

She confirmed that as the decsion had been made under  her delegated powers it would not go the Audit Committee.

I understand that at present Cllr Collymore remains a councillor and a member of the Labour Party.

This is a link to the Officer's Report on the incident. (Also availabe on the link in the first paragraph above). https://democracy.brent.gov.uk/documents/s145017/08.%20Standards%20Update%20Report.pdf

Labour urged to 'get a grip on the unrelenting cladding horror show'

 The cladding crisis has hit properties in Brent (see LINK) and End Our Cladding Scandal  has been in the forefront of the campaign to achieve justice for the occupants of affected buildings along with Brent Cladding Action Group.

End Our Cladding Scandal has recently issued a statement LINK calling for a stronger commitment from Labour on the issue:

Since the Grenfell catastrophe in 2017, we have welcomed the support from Labour MPs – whether that given to individual leaseholders or the Shadow Housing team’s ongoing engagement with our campaign. This included commitments made by Sir Keir Starmer in 2021 and the plan to create a “Building Works Agency” to solve the building safety crisis if Labour was re-elected – a plan which we helped to shape.

In October last year, Labour’s full final policy platform explicitly stated that “Leaseholders should be protected from the costs of remediating cladding and non-cladding defects in all buildings irrespective of circumstances.” Labour’s manifesto now only states that it will “review how to better protect leaseholders from costs and take steps to accelerate the pace of remediation across the country” and that there must be a “renewed focus on ensuring those responsible for the building safety crisis pay to put it right.”

We expected Labour’s manifesto to be high level; however, we are disappointed to not see more than this.

Labour may wish to restore the dream of home ownership to 1.5 million people across the country. But, right now, an estimated 600,000 people are trapped in unsafe flats with their dreams and futures ruined. The pace of remediation remains glacial with millions of leaseholders unable to sell and move on with their lives. Buildings insurance is also still a mess. Last April, Shadow Housing Minister, Matthew Pennycook recognised that ordinary people “have been struggling with the eye-watering cost” for years and that we “need ministers to act decisively to drive those costs down not yet more procrastination and tinkering around the edges.” He said that Labour would “look to quickly establish a risk-pooling scheme with government backing” – will a Labour government back the ABI’s Reinsurance Facility in the first 100 days if it wins the election?

We want, need and deserve to have firm commitments with a clear timeline to fix all buildings, ensure residents are and feel safe, and protect all leaseholders – all of whom are innocent and are still shouldering a desperately unfair burden. We have shown Labour how to do this at a meaningful pace and with visible grip in our manifesto.

The Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 Report will be published on 4^th September and we expect this to spell out how successive governments played a huge part in causing this crisis by focusing on the interests of industry over residents and enabling decades of bad practice across the construction sector. We note that the National Audit Office is due to report on the pace of remediation in Autumn and this should add pressure on the next government to get a grip of this unrelenting horror show.

In recent years, we have worked with the Government, the Health and Safety Executive’s Building Safety Regulator, Homes England, the Leasehold Advisory Service, and many other stakeholders to hold them to account and set out how the building safety crisis can be fixed. Whichever party forms the next government must show the political will to deliver a much fairer and faster end to the building safety crisis. Labour’s manifesto is titled Change – we need details on how they will change the current ineffective approach to making homes safe. Fire won’t wait and neither can we.

Brent councillor Shama Tatler moves into national spotlight as she is parachuted into sacked candidate Faiza Shaheen's seat

 

 

Cllr Shama Tatler is in the spotlight after London Labour announced her as the parliamentary candidate for Chingford and Woodford Green following the unceremonious sacking of long-term candidate Faiza Shaheen by Keir Starmer yesterday. This means that she has been chosen centrally by Labour rather than going through the local democratic selection process.

Faiza Shaheen, a new mother and local had been campaigning in the seat for four years. It remains to be seen whether the Brent Lead Member for Regeneration will benefit from that work. 

Faiza Shaheen said on Twitter:

Really! Wow a Brent councillor with no history here at all. They would rather lose than have a left pro-Palestine candidate. This is offensive to my community.

It appears that Tatler has been parachuted into a bed of nettles amidst the current controversy over a 'Starmerite purge' and allegations of a negative attitude towards ethnic minority and female candidates in the wake of the leadership's treatment of Diane Abbott. Of course Shama Tatler is also ethnic minority and female.

 

There were mixed comments on Twitter with some pointing to Tatler's membership of the JLM as finding favour with Starmer.  LINK  One person accused her of 'trampling' on Faiza Shaheen.

Shama Tatler is on  Labour's NCC the party's disciplinary committee and backed Luke  Akenhurst for the NEC.  I understand that there is currently a conduct complaint against her lodged with the Labour Party.

She previously sought the Labour parliamentary candidate nomination for Watford. This video was part of her campaign.

Meanwhile people are flocking to the support of Faiza Shaheen after her emotional interview on Newsnight last night.

 

Faiza Shaheen's statement on yesterday's events:

 

Following boundary changes, what are the chances of Shama Tatler winning the seat previously held by Ian Duncan Smith for the Conservatives?  The website Electoral Calculus has the projection below but this does not take into account the latest developments and the possibility of an Independent campaign by Faiza Shaheen.

 

LETTER: Tulip Siddiq under fire for opposing RMT strikes. She should support those defending their living standards.

 First published in Camden New Journal LINK

Dear Editor,

AS socialists and trades unionists we were disappointed to see one of our local Labour MPs, Tulip Siddiq, saying, “We didn’t support the [RMT] strikes… because we felt they were very disruptive to the country”.

We wonder what effect Ms Siddiq thinks “non-disruptive” strikes would have. Why else would the Tory government be planning to introduce legislation precisely to stop such “disruption”?

The imbalance of power in our society is such that without the ability to take effective collective action, employers can slash workers’ pay and conditions and summarily sack employees with virtual impunity as at P&O.

The alternative, at a time of soaring inflation, is to accept pay cuts in real terms even as profits rise for many corporations.

The Labour Party was formed by trade unions to further the interests of the working class, not to undermine its efforts to defend and indeed improve its rights and conditions.

We would hope that Tulip Siddiq, like many other MPs, councillors, and ordinary Labour Party members, would recognise this and lend her support for future strikes.

As another MP, Barry Gardiner, said: “The Conservative strategy is clear: blame the victim. The Labour Party response must be even clearer: we will always support the workers’ right to withdraw their labour in order to keep their families warm, fed and secure.”

And in the words of Jon Cruddas, a former adviser to Tony Blair on unions, “the rail strikes are arguably the canary down the coal mine. You cannot dodge this. Labour has to be supportive of those seeking to defend their living standards.”

SIGNATORIES —
Mary Adossides Chair of Brent Trades Council & Greater London Association of Trades Councils; Cath Attlee Unison; Rebekah Ball Unite Community; Michael Barson Secretary Finchley Road & Kilburn Branch Labour Party; George Binette Camden Trades Council Vice-Chair/Former Camden Unison Secretary; Angie Birtill UCU; Katharine Bligh Unite Community Camden; Alex Colas UCU Branch Committee Member Birkbeck; Gerry Downing Assistant Secretary Brent Trades Council & Chair Unite the Union NW London Retired Members; Una Doyle Camden Trades Council Chair/Camden NEU; Bernie Driscoll Joint Branch Secretary UCU College of NW London; Bridget Dunne Unite Community Camden; Graham Durham Secretary Unite the Union NW London Retired Members; Andrew Feinstein former ANC MP; Ian Ferrie GMB Delegate to Hampstead & Kilburn Labour Party; Padraic Finn UCU London Retired Members & BTUC; Pete Firmin CWU Vice-Chair Brent Trades Council; Jonathan Flaxman Doctors in Unite; Tessa van Gelderen GMB Delegate to Hampstead & Kilburn Labour Party; Nick Gowers Camden Trades Council/Aslef St Pancras 199 branch; Rathi Guhadasan BMA; Luke Howard TSSA Chair, TfL Central Branch & Former Trade Union Liaison Officer Hampstead & Kilburn Labour Party; Nick Jones Secretary Brent Trades Council; David Kaye UCU London Retired Members; Richard Kuper UCU; Liz Lindsay UCU Retired Members; Gaynor Lloyd Unite Community; Marie Lynam GMB Delegate to Hampstead & Kilburn Labour Party; Moshe Machover Unite Community Brent; Anthony Molloy Kilburn; Gareth Murphy Branch Secretary Unite Community Camden; Seamus O’Connell TSSA Delegate to Hampstead & Kilburn Labour Party; Nayra Bello O’Shanahan Unite; Mary O’Sullivan NUJ; Diane Pearson Camden Trades Council Delegate/Camden Unison; Simon Pearson Former Camden Labour Councillor/TSSA; Keith Perrin Unite Community; Chris Powell Camden Trades Council/UCU; John Purcell Unite Community; Paul Renny Schools Convenor Haringey Unison; Shezan Renny Haringey NEU Camden Momentum Officer Highgate Branch BAME Officer Holborn & St Pancras Labour Party; Ian Saville UCU & Equity; Martin Sherry RMT THSC London Underground; Sean Taylor Musicians’ Union; John Tymon Camden Unison Retired Members.

A tale of 'Towerblock Tatler' and 'Taylor's Towers' as Shama Tatler makes bid to become Labour parliamentary candidate for Watford

 

As mentioned by Wembley Matters on May 1st LINK Shama Tatler has her eyes on becoming Labour's parliamentary candidate for Watford and so did not stand for the deputy leader of Brent Council's Labour Group.

Today she launched her campaign for the nomination  on twitter with links to a pretty slick campaign website LINK and announced backers including David Lammy MP.

She will find herself in the strange situation where she will be standing for a local Labour Party that has campaigned against the Liberal Democrat Watford Mayor on the basis of the building of tower blocks in the area. They even call them 'Taylor's Towers'.  In Brent of course in her role as Lead Member for Regeneration Shama Tatler has strongly supported the building of tower blocks in Alperton, Wembley, Stonebridge and South Kilburn earning herself the nickname  'Towerblock Tatler.' 

These are examples of the Labour campaign in Watford:

 The image is hard to read so this is it says:

• The Liberal Democrats have taken their eyes off the ball here in Watford and have spectacularly failed to reduce the housing targets for our town.
• They shamelessly blame everyone else for their disastrous decisions which are all of their own making. They've allowed these towers
• UNLIKE neighbouring Three Rivers Council, the Lib Dems here have failed to bring in policies that prevent high developments, but we get more and more Taylor's Towers springing up here, there and everywhere.
• The Liberal Democrat's biggest failure yet is a 24 storey tower block. That's just the start if they get in again. They'll be yet more and more ever higher and higher 'Taylor's Towers.

IS THAT WHAT YOU REALLY WANT?

  You can have some fun substituting Labour for Liberal Democrats, and Brent for Watford and Tatler's Towers for Taylor's Towers and see if it makes sense.

 It will be an interesting selection meeting.  Perhaps they should invite Peter Taylor to be a guest panellist?

On her website Cllr Tatler highlights her 6 years' experience as Cabinet member for Regeneration, Property and Planning and includes an image of South Kilburn but not any tower blocks...

 

 

There's something rotten in the state of Labour when they expel well-known activist and former councillor Graham Durham

 

Graham Durham with Jeremy Corbyn

As a Green Party member you may think that what is going on in the Labour Party should not concern me - let them stew in their own juice... etc.

But when our main Opposition party is being rent asunder by what appears to be an old fashioned purge, when natural justice is ignored and guilt by association deployed, and retrospectively at that,  then everyone must acknowledge the threat to democracy.

It is doubly concerning that these actions characteristic of despotic regimes are being carried out in a party  led by  a former lawyer and Director of Public Prosecutions, Keir Starmer.

Recently Wembley Matters has carried stories about the suspension of Kilburn Labour Party member  Pete Firmin for allowing discussion of a motion calling for the restoration of the whip to Jeremy Corbyn LINK, and the threatened expulsion of Harrow Councillor Pam Fitzpatrick for writing an article for a magazine that was only banned by Labour a year later  LINK

Graham Durham is a long-time Labour and trade union activist, who served decades ago as a Brent Labour councillor. He is well-known in Brent and I have often seen him in action. I do not always agree with him or his tactics but few can doubt his sincere commitment to the Labour Party and the cause of socialism.

However he has now been freed from a period of limbo - the Sword of Damocles hanging over his head for a long timehas fallen - he has been informed of his expulsion. Once again it is applied retrospectively.

This is his own account on Facebook:

The Labour bureaucrats have advised me that I am expelled from the Party for, ‘calling for a leadership challenge to Keir Starmer.’ After 51 years I am sad and angry at the witch-hunt of socialists but at least their politics is clear

 

I have received today notice from the Government and Legal Unit expelling me from the Labour Party (of which I have been a member for 51 years).

 

The Labour bureaucrats state that my defence that the Zoom meeting of Labour In Exile occurred on 27 March 2021 and so I could not know they would proscribe this organisation on 20 July 2021 is irrelevant.

 

Moreover, they have studied a tape of that meeting and claim I said, ‘We should organise a conference to plan a leadership challenge to Starmer.’

 

I did and, although I am angry and upset at this witch-hunt, at least it was for a correct political call I made.

 On a previous occasion when the Labour Party suspended Durham in the midst of NEC elections, effectively excluding him from the ballot,   Brent Central CLP's GC approved a motion which said LINK:

Removing candidates in this way smacks of totalitarian regimes who deal with "opponents" in this way rather than letting the electorate decide.

Many will find the sifting of evidence from recordings of zoom meetings ominous and on a practical level wouldn't Labour Party staff be better deployed helping organise opposition and campaigns against this dreadful government?

It remains to be seen what the reaction from the local party and prominent figures in Brent Labour will be to this turn of events.

Hundreds rally to support of popular Harrow councillor Pamela Fitzpatrick, threated with expulsion by the Labour Party.

 

Pamela Fitzpatrick campaigned to save Belmont Health Centre from closure in 2019 (more HERE)

More than 1,000 people have signed a petition LINK in a single day in support of a popular Harrow Labour councillor.

 

The petition in support of Labour Councillor for Headstone South, Pamela Fitzpatrick, was launched by local Labour members when she was threatened with expulsion from Labour this week. The bizarre reason for expulsion was for giving an interview to a publication (Socialist Appeal) in May 2020, support for which was banned by Labour more than a year later in July 2021.  A similar move  based on of what appears to be retrospective guilt by association, has been made against Pete Firmin of Hampstead and Kilburn Labour Party .

 

The petition attracted a huge response when it was shared on Wednesday 25 August and is still growing. It can be signed HERE .

 

Today  Fitzpatrick announced on Twitter: 

 

In respect of the Labour Party threat to auto exclude me from the party for giving an interview in 2020 to Socialist Appeal. I have now instructed Solicitors who have today written to the Labour party to put them on notice of potential legal proceedings.

 

Elected as a councillor for Headstone South in 2014 and re-elected with an increased majority in 2018,  Pamela also stood to be Labour MP for Harrow East in the 2019 General Election, attracting hundreds of volunteers who came to Harrow from across and beyond London to canvass for her. In an effort to defeat Bob Blackman, the Green Party candidate Emma Wallace stood down and demonstrated her respect for her opponent saying,  ‘Whilst there are a number of differences between the Labour party and the Green Party, we believe Pamela Fitzpatrick is a progressive voice, one that is committed to working with the local Harrow East community and standing up for all their best interests.’

 

Pamela Fitzpatrick was  recently elected to Labour’s Women’s Committee and is well known nationally across the Labour movement. Her interview to Socialist Appeal in May 2020 was given when she stood to be General Secretary for Labour.

 

In addition to her political work, she set up Harrow Law Centre and continues to work there supporting people in often desperate situations.  LINK

 

Cllr Maxine Henson, councillor for Roxbourne ward in South Harrow, said:

 

Pamela is a very caring and hardworking councillor who has done a lot for her community. It would be a great loss for residents and the Labour Party if she were to be expelled.

 

Cllr Fitzpatrick is not the only member at risk from Labour’s recent rule changes banning support for groups deemed to be ‘left’. Respected British director Ken Loach, who has spent decades making films exposing social injustice and campaigning, was also recently controversially expelled by the Labour Party in similar circumstances.

 

THIS IS THE FULL TEXT OF THE PETITION

This petition was started by members of Harrow West Constituency Labour Party (CLP)

We understand that Pamela Fitzpatrick, a member of our CLP and Labour Councillor for the Headstone South ward in the London Borough of Harrow, has been threatened with "auto-exclusion" from membership of the Labour Party by the party's Compliance Unit on the grounds that she is allegedly a supporter of Socialist Appeal, an organisation that was proscribed by Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC) in July 2021.

The Compliance Unit's evidence for Pamela being a "supporter" of Socialist Appeal is, in its entirety, that she gave an interview to Socialist Appeal in May 2020. This is not a valid basis for exclusion, for two reasons.

First, the conduct that may amount to "support" for a proscribed organisation, as defined by the NEC, is clearly set out in the updated Labour Party Complaints Policy (https://labour.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Labour-Party-Complaints-Policy.pdf Pamela is not alleged to have done any of these things listed there. Giving an interview to Socialist Appeal does not amount to any of those things. Therefore the Compliance Unit has provided no evidence that Pamela has supported Socialist Appeal as defined by the NEC.

Second, the interview took place more than a year before the NEC made the decision to proscribe Socialist Appeal. Anything a member is alleged to have done at a time when an organisation is not proscribed cannot possibly be a basis for auto-exclusion on grounds of support for that organisation.

Pamela's conduct did not amount to supporting Socialist Appeal as defined by NEC, and even if it had, it took place at a time when Socialist Appeal was not proscribed. Therefore there are no grounds on which to auto-exclude Pamela from membership of the Labour Party. The Compliance Unit's purported action against her is contrary to Labour Party rules, the decision of the NEC and the principles of natural justice.

In the light of the above, we urge the Compliance Unit to immediately cease its purported action against Pamela and confirm in writing that she will not be auto-excluded from Labour membership.

Bakers' Union will debate disaffiliating from the Labour Party if Ian Hodson is expelled. McDonnell to Labour 'Drop this act of of stupidity'

 

The General Secretary of the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, Sarah Woolley. issued the followed statement today on behalf of the Executive following media rumours that the Labour Party is poised to expel BFAWU's General Secretary.

The statement said:

Today the Labour Party has made a clear statement of intent in its aspiration to repair its relationship with the bosses but seems to be determined to widen the divide between the representatives of labour and those our movement represent.

The recent decision to proscribe organisations is seen as a divisive and a purely factional attack which will do nothing to unite the party or provide any real opportunity for the party to be able to unite to fight and defeat our real enemy The Tory Party.

We have decided to make this statement following recent media speculation in relation to the expulsion of our National President. Our executive have met to discuss the potential of this event occurring, and reaffirmed its position that our National President has only ever conducted himself in line with the policies and the decisions taken by this trade union. 

The executive expressed dismay and anger at the idea the Labour Party should consider expelling the office of our nominated political lead in our organisation, and agreed that a firm response was required should the party take such actions.

The BFAWU executive unanimously agreed a timeline that would coincide with the leaders address to national Labour conference in September should such a situation arise and that from Wednesday 25th August communication to Branches would be initiated and would be formally issuing notification of our intention in preparedness to recall conference to debate the disaffiliation from the Labour party. 

The Executive made it quite clear an attack on one of ours is an attack on all of us and stood in absolute solidarity with our Elected National President. 

It’s also worth remembering that the recent survey of our membership returned a slight majority in favour of disaffiliation.

The feeling is should the decision to debate disaffiliation go ahead it would result in a break with the Labour party for the first time since we helped fund its creation in 1902. But we will not accept bullying from any bosses or a party that seems to be choosing to prefer to be on the bosses side. 

John McDonnell tweeted

Each day brings with it yet another act of ludicrous targeting of respected socialists. Ian Hodson is the sort of working class trade unionist that the Labour Party was created by BFAWU and one of our party’s foundation stones. Message to Labour Drop this act of stupidity.

 

Solidarity with Pete Firmin trapped in a Kafkaesque Labour nightmare

 

 

Readers of Wembley Matters will be familiar with the name Pete Firmin. Pete has written many guest posts for Wembley Matters, mainly focusing on issues on the South Kilburn Estate where he is active on housing and tenancy issues. His last post was only yesterday on problems over getting help regarding the flooding in the Kilburn area.

Pete has been suspended from the Labour Party for some months, although you would think he is just the sort of committed socialist and grassroots activist that the Labour Party should welcome with open arms.

This letter has just been published by the Kilburn Times LINK explaining the background to his suspension by the Labour Party and the Kafkaesque situation that Pete finds himself in. Putting aside political differences (I am a Green Party member) I would like to express solidarity with Pete and Bridget in their predicament.

 

THE LETTER

When will the Labour Party Leadership’s purge of Left wing Labour members end?

 

It is now almost eight months since Pete Firmin (the chair) and Bridget Dunne (the vice-chair) of Hampstead and Kilburn Constituency Labour Party (CLP) were suspended from the Party.

 

Pete and Bridget have been given no opportunity to explain or defend themselves. 

 

Pete and Bridget’s only transgression was allowing Hampstead and Kilburn CLP members to debate a motion opposing the withdrawal of the Whip from Jeremy Corbyn. The Hampstead and Kilburn General Committee meeting in November last year, voted for this motion in solidarity with Jeremy Corbyn. The following day Pete and Bridget were suspended.

 

Pete Firmin was suspended from the Labour Party with Bridget Dunne, eight months ago - in taking disciplinary action against two Party members - action that has never been explained legally or made public - the Labour hierarchy have obviously acted against the principles of natural justice. Their decision was secretive, manifestly sectarian and profoundly undemocratic.

 

Using such draconian methods against individuals who were only carrying out the wishes of the Constituency has damaged not only the morale and fabric of the local Party but Labour’s case for fairness.

 

In all the years I have been a member of Labour (including eight years as a Kilburn ward councillor) I have never known the Party to be so authoritarian and undemocratic. Pete and Bridget are dedicated socialists and trade unionists with over 40 years’ service to the Labour Party between them. These are the very people our party needs if we are to defeat Boris Johnson’s ruthless Tory government. But we won’t defeat them by being every bit as dictatorial. 

 

Over 30 members of Hampstead CLP recently submitted a statement to our MP, Tulip Siddiq asking her to support Pete and Bridget’s immediate reinstatement. I urge Tulip to stand by Pete and Bridget. Sir Keir Starmer should start fighting the Tory government and not Labour party members. He should also restore the Labour whip to Jeremy Corbyn.

 

Angie Birtill, Kilburn, full address supplied

Labour's Annual Women's Conference calls for future Labour Government to re-establish community control of schools through LAs

 A welcome development given Labour's ambivalence over academisation but we can't afford to wait for implementation by a Labour Government - the campaign must begin now.

The Socialist Educational Association (SEA) won a stunning victory at Labour’s Annual Women’s Conference on 27^th June when the Conference agreed that a future Labour government should end the academisation of schools in England and re-establish community control of schools through local authorities and the involvement  of parents, education staff and students.

The SEA’s motion, tabled with Thirsk and Malton Constituency Labour Party, also called for co-ordinated action and resources to challenge sexism and gender-stereotyping in schools and colleges which research from UK Feminista and Ofsted have confirmed is widespread.

Composite Motion: Early Years and EducationDownload

Pam Tatlow, the SEA’s delegate to the Conference, said ‘A fractured, fragmented school system dominated by Multi-Academy Trusts and edicts from the Department of Education will not deliver the progressive agenda that students deserve or the collaborative framework that schools need to tackle the deep-seated and historic problem of sexism in schools.’

James Whiting, General Secretary of the SEA which is the Labour Party’s only education affiliate, said ‘We warmly welcome the support of the Women’s Conference for our “Give us back our Schools” campaign.

The long-standing issues of disadvantage and discrimination that impact on opportunities and life chances of women will not be resolved by the marketisation and privatisation of education or the unaccountable academy system which have been features of the Conservative government’s education agenda for the last decade.

Our call for the return of local authorities and an end to sexism in schools was supported by over 96% of Labour women at the Conference but also by trade unions such as Unison, Unite and GMB which represent thousands of education staff, many of them women.

We hope that Labour ‘s shadow front bench team will now commit to bring schools in England into an integrated, cooperative, transparent and non-selective education system under the aegis of accountable local authorities.’

Brent Central Labour condemn Starmer's stance on school closures and praise Dawn Butler for her support of the NEU and Unison

Spot the Leader of the Opposition
 

Brent Central  Constituency Labour Party last night passed a motion condemning Keir Starmer's position of pressing for schools to stay open as cases rose during the pandemic. Secen members of the CLP voted against the motion on the grounds that the leader of the party should not be publicly attacked. They agreed with the demands of the of the motion. Starmer's failure to hold the government to account was contrasted with the robust efforts of Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid on Good Morning Britain.

The motion:

Brent Central CLP congratulates Dawn Butler and others in supporting the coalition of trade unions – particularly the NEU and UNISON – and other organisations which called for learning to be shifted to remote teaching and learning, and for schools to be physically closed except to key worker children and those deemed vulnerable.

We condemn Keir Starmer's failure to oppose the government stance of keeping all [schools] physically opened, contrary to the scientific evidence that supported closure. This led to millions of primary children attending school on 4 January 2020 before the government was compelled by the weight of scientific evidence, the unions, Labour councils, MPs and wider public pressure to close them. This one day of mixing is likely to have risked teachers, support staff, parents, grandparents and other members of the community to coronavirus.

Currently early years and nursery schools continue to be pressured by the government to stay physically open or lose funding. Brent Central CLP urges Keir Starmer and the Labour Party to now oppose this with utmost urgency, and to demand that the government does not tie funding for early years and nursery schools – Dedicated School Grant (DSG) – to the headcounts of attending students. Staff are being unnecessarily exposed to danger, and parents are already rightly keeping their children away from early years and nursery schools. These settings deserve state support, not threats of punishment.

Dawn Butler joins Labour activists and trade unionists in call for the Labour Party to support closure of schools to curb new Covid virus strain

 OPEN LETTER

Dear Kate Green, Wes Streeting, Keir Starmer & Angela Rayner,

 

The Labour Party was founded and exists to represent working people. Millions of people are now living under Tier 3 or 4 restrictions, in areas where coronavirus cases are either high or very high. We understand that the new strain which has been discovered may be more easily transmissible, but we still do not understand enough about the health impact on different age groups.

 

From the start of this crisis, the Government have failed to provide schools with the adequate resources to enable proper physical distancing, so to say they are safe environments is simply not true. It is now widely accepted that the virus is readily transmitted from children to adults. In the absence of mass testing it is impossible to know those children who are healthy from those who are asymptomatic carriers. 

 

Parents, children, teaching assistants, teachers, caretakers, lunchtime assistants, and office staff are looking to us, the Labour Party, to speak up for them, and to hold this Government to account and to press them to do the right thing. We support the position of the National Education Union. We want you to do the same. 

 

Schools should not re-open on the 4th January save for the children of key workers and vulnerable children. This is about the lives and safety of working people, children and the safety of our communities. Nothing should ever come before that. 

 

Do the right thing. 

 

Yours Sincerely,

Laura Pidcock (Labour NEC)

Nadia Jama (Labour NEC)

Mish Rahman (Labour NEC)

Gemma Bolton (Labour NEC)

Yasmine Dar (Labour NEC)

Ellen Morrison (Labour NEC)

Howard Beckett (Labour NEC)

Ian Murray (Labour NEC)

Andi Fox (Labour NEC)

Len McCluskey (General Secretary, Unite the Union)

Dave Ward (General Secretary, CWU)

Matt Wrack (General Secretary, FBU)

Manuel Cortes (General Secretary, TSSA)

Sarah Woolley (General Secretary, BFAWU)

Andy Kerr (Deputy General Secretary, CWU)

Mick Whelan (General Secretary, ASLEF)

Ronan Burtenshaw (Editor, Tribune)

Jamie Driscoll (Mayor, North of Tyne)

Ian Byrne (MP for West Derby)

Jon Trickett (MP for Hemsworth)

Ian Mearns (MP for Gateshead)

Ian Lavery (MP for Wansbeck)

Richard Burgon (MP for Leeds East)

Kate Osborne (MP for Jarrow)

Claudia Webbe (MP for Leicester East)

Bell Ribeiro Addy (MP for Streatham)

Grahame Morris (MP for Easington)

John McDonnell (MP for Hayes & Harlington)

Dawn Butler (MP for Brent Central)

Zarah Sultana (MP for Coventry South)

Jeremy Corbyn (MP for Islington North)

Rebecca Long Bailey (MP for Salford & Eccles)

Apsana Begum (MP for Poplar and Limehouse)

Nadia Whittome (MP for Nottingham East)

Mary Kelly Foy (MP for City of Durham)

Lloyd Russell Moyle (MP for Brighton Kemptown)

Tahir Ali (MP for Birmingham Hall Green)

Paula Barker (MP for Wavertree)

Rachel Hopkins (MP for Luton South)

Olivia Blake (MP for Sheffield Hallam)

John Hendy (House of Lords)

Christine Blower (House of Lords)

Katy Clark (House of Lords)

Councillor Laura Smith

Councillor Liam Lavery

Red Labour

Don’t Leave, Organise (DLO)

Labour Representation Committee (LRC)

Jewish Voice for Labour (JVL)

Momentum

Campaign for Labour Party Democracy (CLPD)

Socialist Campaign Group of Labour Councillors

Labour Assembly Against Austerity

Kilburn activist suspended by Labour Party

I understand that Pete Firmin, chair of Hampstead and Kilburn Labour Party has been suspended by the party for the crime of defying the edicts from the Party's General Secretary about what Party members are allowed to discuss.    

Pete who lives on the South Kilburn Estate and is a tenant association activist and a member of Brent TUC  has contributed a number of articles to Wembley Matters.

He is a man of principle and integrity and I express my solidarity, across parties, at this challenging time.