Shining a light on Brent Central nomination struggle

Let your little light shine.... (Source Waltham Forest Guardian)

Dawn Butler and Zaffar van Kalwala were selected as female and male Brent Central Labour parliamentary candidates last night giving them the first two wards to nominate.

Labour insiders suggest that not too much should be read into this as Tokyngton and Stonebridge, along with Harlesden, are the pair's strongest wards and the six other wards may come up with a more mixed result.

Willesden Green will nominate tonight where Bernard Collier is also standing as a councillor. Harlesden and Kensal Green are on Monday; Dollis Hill Tuesday, Mapesbury Wednesday and Dudden Hill and Welsh Harp on Thursday.

Meanwhile Patrick Vernon went on a mini-offensive today posting backing from  the Unison London Region and Lord Herman Ousley. He also issued a statement on the Central Middlesex A&E closure.

Vernon claims that the failure to scrutinise and challenge the NHS over recent years meant that Central Middlesex A&E was easier to close than Ealing or Lewisham. LINK

A name I was not familiar with has also emerged. Dr Tony Breslin has his own public policy company LINK and has this to say about his suitability for the position of MP:

· A Labour Party member for 32 years, originally in Manor Ward, in what is now Brent Central
· A Harlesden resident throughout my childhood and youth, and during the early years of my
career, with a range of enduring local friendships and connections, and the kind of rich local
knowledge that derives from being “Made in Harlesden”
· A seasoned political campaigner on issues as diverse as eldercare, mental health, educational
reform and youth participation
· A confident media performer, with radio, TV and print experience, who is ready to handle the
spotlight that will fall on Brent Central as the election approaches
· A teacher by profession and an experienced charity leader who has influenced and helped to
develop policy nationally in fields as diverse as education, participation and community
cohesion
· Confident about re-winning this seat for Labour and willing and able to put in the hard work that will be required to do so
· Ready to play an effective role in Parliament as a champion for all of the people of Brent
Central

Some local Labour Party members, after the expenses scandal, are get to have a 'clean candidate' with no skeletons in the cupboard. They have not been impressed by revelations that Liaquat Ali  MBE ran into trouble, when a councillor in Waltham Forest,  with his 'house of lights' (photo above) for which he had not received planning permission. He was the cabinet member for communities at the time. He was ordered to reduce the size of the structure by council officers. LINK  Earlier, in 2008, the Daily Mail headlined his fine, from Waltham Forest Council, for the unauthorised  absence from school of his daughter who he took on Hajj.LINK

The Council said:

Waltham Forest Council does not condone removing young people unnecessarily from education during term time. This disrupts their learning and may lead to young people missing vital lessons.The Council will seek to punish those responsible regardless of status or position within the local community.

Liaquat Ali was a magistrate until 2007 when he stepped down to become Mayor.

Anti-fascists far outnumber BNP in Westminster demonstrations today

BNP demonstration opposite parliament

When I arrived at around noon to today's unity demonstration against the BNP's attempt top stir up racial hatred in the wake of Woolwich,  only 20 or so BNP members were present and 2 hours later there were still below 100. Anti-fascist demonstrations far out-numbered them and it was heartening to see how many were spirited young people determined to show the BNP that they would be resisted..

When I left the ant-fascist demonstration was in two parts with the first, mainly young,  arrivals clustered around  BNP but separated from them by a line of police. The later arrivals, who included many trades unionists, were separated from the others by police vans.

I spoke to an officer just before I left who said that the police were trying to negotiate with the BNP and anti-fascists for each to march in a different direction - but so far there was stalemate.

The end of the public sector ethos and democratic accountability in Barnet as Capita take over

From Barnet Unison

Yesterday staff were told at a series of briefings that Capita Symonds is the preferred bidder to deliver a whole range of Council Regulatory services to Barnet residents and businesses.

 The services to be handed over to Capita include the following:

Trading Standards & Licensing, Land Charges, Planning & Development, Building Control & Structures, Environmental Health, Highways Strategy, Highways Network Management, Highways Traffic & Development, Highways Transport & Regeneration, Strategic Planning & Regeneration, Hendon Cemetery & Crematoria

Barnet Council has a number of statutory responsibilities to monitor the private sector in order to ensure the health and safety of their residents. The recent high- profile national public-health scandal about the use of Horsemeat in processed foods emphasises that private companies do not adequately monitor their own activities, leaving the public at risk. If Barnet Council is allowed to privatise these services, it will set a dangerous precedent for other councils.

Barnet Council has been promoting itself as an innovator for the future of public services by adopting the Commissioning Council model. In the last 12 months the Council has overseen a significant number of services outsourced to other providers. The full list of services are HERE.

John Burgess UNISON Branch Secretary said:

Barnet Council is making a huge mistake in handing over these critical services to the private sector. It is not just about the risks this brings but what it means in term of democratic accountability. Next year we have the local elections in May 2014. What options will there be for the electorate if all the council spend is tied up into complex contracts? As for all the remaining staff the message is stark: no matter how loyal you are, no matter how hard you work political dogma is dictating all services are to be outsourced. Today a number of our members have chosen to wear black armbands/ black clothing as a sign of the demise of the public sector ethos in Barnet Council.

Poem: For the People

Unison commissioned Tony Walsh, poet in residence at the Glastonbury Festival, to write a poem for the public services. His poem FOR THE PEOPLE can be found HERE

Claremont Well On the Way to Academy Conversion

It appears that the governing body of Claremont High School has moved further along the academy road than I had realised. The Additional Governing Body meeting of February 9th heard representations from the education unions, which mainly focused on changes in pay and conditions and school governance.  The issue of the impact on other schools and the Brent education budget as a whole does not appear to have been addressed

After the union representatives left the governing body went on to discuss conversion to an academy in more detail.  The governors decided not to enter into an open debate between the school leadership and the leadership, in front of staff,  with both taking questions from the staff, as this would give the impression that 'the staff would be voting for or against the conversion and effectively making the decision'.

On salaries and conditions of service,  governors were told that there was no intention to move away from national agreements but no 100% guarantee could be given that this would not happen in the future. It was pointed out that the school had already lost staff to a local academy because they were offered better salaries and conditions: 'the market force is already in evidence and teachers are taking an active part in it'.

Addressing financial aspects Mr Malloy, headteacher, told governors that on initial calculations the school was facing a deficit out-turn of £179,000. When cuts had been made but staffing levels maintained the deficit would be £53,000. He went on to claim that if the school converted to academy status it would receive an additional £657,000 top-sliced from the Brent schools' budget.  In addition there would be a £25,000 one-off start-up grant.  There is no record of any discussion about the impact on other schools. Indeed earlier in the meeting the governors agreed  that they could not predict or influence the government's agenda  and 'their only focus is Claremont High and what is best for the future of the school'.

The governors considered a paper on the next steps in the conversion process that had been drawn up by a firm of lawyers experienced in advising schools converting to academy status. The governing body agreed to delegate authority to a committee to work with the legal team on employment, finances, Trust and articles. Legal fees were expected to be between £12,000 and £13,000.

Governors decided to defer decisions about membership of the Academy Trust until roles and responsibilities were clearer and advice had been sought on the levels of liability members would have. The first meeting of the Trust was scheduled for March 10th when the governing body meets. This meeting would decide on membership.  It was suggested that the funding agreement might be ready by March 10th, to be implemented by April 1st 2011.

Since the governing body meeting, governors have been circulated with Articles of Association of  Claremont High School Academy Trust and were asked to send comments in by last Friday so that it could be registered with Company's House yesterday or today.

Tomorrow's meeting at Kenton Methodist Church should be very interesting!

Documentation on Claremont's Academy Conversion can be found on the school's website HERE