Greens call for renationalisation of all UK railways

 The  UK’s busiest intercity rail route should be taken back into public ownership, after a debacle which provides further proof that all UK railways should be renationalised, the Green Party believes.
 

The Department for Transport announced this morning that it will scrap its decision to award the West Coast mainline franchise to FirstGroup – at a cost of £40m.

Green Party transport spokesman Alan Francis said: ‘This debacle is further evidence that the privatised rail system is not fit for purpose – with passengers having to foot the bill for an increasingly expensive service and, as we have claimed for many years, that the franchise system itself is fatally flawed.’

The 13-year franchise was awarded to FirstGroup ahead of three other firms, including Virgin, which already runs it and will continue to until December 9. 

Mr Francis said: ‘The £40m cost to the taxpayer is to compensate all four firms for their expenses during the failed bidding process. However this is a tiny fraction of the money wasted on the privatised railways every year. Rail privatisation costs passengers and taxpayers £1.2bn per year more than it did in the last years of the nationalised system.’

The DfT‘s announcement came just 24 hours before a High Court challenge against the decision by Virgin Rail was due to begin.

And its decision leaves the franchise’s 31m passengers not knowing who will run the services they rely on from December 10 this year.

Mr Francis added: ‘The Green Party wants the franchise to be run by the government-owned Directly Operated Railways (DOR) from December 10th. DOR already operates the East Coast franchise, after the previous private operator withdrew prematurely, and as other franchises expire they too should be taken over by DOR. That way, we will get back a publicly owned and integrated railway without having to pay millions of pounds compensation to private operators.’

The Green Party stands for the renationalisation of all rail services in the UK, to ensure the best deal for rail users and all taxpayers. 

Since privatisation, public subsidy for rail services has doubled,while fares are higher than in any other country in Europe. 

Rail is vital to the UK’s transport needs, and this latest debacle shows that not only are private companies unable to deliver a cost effective, reliable service to the public, even the system by which franchises are awarded does not work.

Privatisation has failed the UK, and it’s time to bring a vital public service back into public ownership.

Butt blogs on his ambitions for Brent

Brent Council leader Muhammed Butt has posted his first blog as Council leader.  You can comment directly on his posting  which is on the Brent Council website LINK

This is what he has to say:

Welcome to my first blog as Leader of Brent Council.

Over the coming months I will be letting you know about the things we are doing in Brent, the problems we face and the solutions we are working on.

I know that the workings of Government, both national and local, can sometimes seem removed from our lives. The language used and the bureaucracy can make it seem like there is a gap between us.

I want this blog to be part of bridging that gap. Please feel free to email me your comments. I genuinely want to hear your views. It's probably helpful to start by telling you a little about myself and what I stand for. I think it is easier to understand the decisions people make when you understand where they are coming from, and what they are trying to achieve.

I am a Brent boy, born and bred. I was born in Wembley, went to school in the borough and studied at the old Kilburn Polytechnic. I live with my wife and children in the ward I represent, Tokyngton. My children go to school in the borough. I started off as an engineer at BT, and worked my way up to a project manager. I am passionate about Brent people because I am proud to be one.

I got involved in politics by helping out in my community. I started by assisting people with what we call 'casework' - getting potholes fixed in roads and ensuring people have access to the services they need. Realising that it is possible to improve people's lives with hard work and experience changed my life.

I work in politics because I want to make Brent a better place, and absolutely believe it is possible. I have a passionate desire to see three things for Brent and its people.

1. Fairness. The inequality and injustice I see as I travel across our Borough makes me angry. It is unacceptable that a child growing up in Stonebridge will live ten years less, have a household income of £28,000 less per year and are 17 per cent more likely to live in poverty than a child in Queens Park. If we have one duty as parents and as a community it is to guarantee that where you are born does not determine the chances you have in life.

2. Jobs, growth and fair pay. I want all residents to have the opportunities and the tools they need to access work that pays a fair wage. I want to attract more jobs to Brent, guarantee our children leave school with the skills they need to access work and ensure people who are unemployed have the support they need to find work again. I also believe in a fair days pay for a fair days work - work must pay enough for a sustainable and fulfilling life.

3. A strong sense of community. Like you, I know my neighbours and we help each other out, but this is becoming harder in the modern world. People who know their neighbours and look out for each other are happier, healthier and wealthier as a result. The bonds that tie us together as a community are our greatest asset. I want to nurture and strengthen these bonds, so that no one in our community feels isolated or alone. I believe we all - the Council, residents, businesses and charities - have a responsibility to make this happen.

These are the things I believe in and fight for. Of course there are many things that make these difficult to achieve - the struggling economy, huge cuts from national Government, increasing fragmentation of society and our ageing population amongst others.

I will explore these in more detail in future blogs. But I guarantee you every decision we make and every penny we spend is trying to achieve one of the three things above.

These are our ambitions and together we will achieve them.

'Stonebridge The Movie' promo launched

Healthy Chalkhill a step or two nearer

Chalkhill Park

It was the adults who started getting excited about the new Chalkhill Park this week when adult outdoor exercise equipment was installed close to Chalkhill Road.

As children see the park progressing on a daily basis they are now clamouring to know when it will open and already planning when they will be using it.

Is Central Middlesex A&E safe for patients to use?

Saturday's consultation meeting on Shaping a Healthier Future produced some passionate debate and full video coverage can be seen on the Brent Green Party blog HERE

What concerned me most, was the implication that Central Middlesex A&E as it now exists, is so devoid of staff and expertise that it is not safe for patients. Dr Mark Spencer listed a number of services that it could not provide and Dr Kong at one stage seemed to be saying that it was being closed because it was not  safe. When I questioned this  she retreated somewhat, saying it was just the overnight A&E that was unsafe.

Dr Spencer did not retract and later, asked about whether, despite not being in the options, it could remain open, said that if there was sufficient demand via the consultation and it could be done 'safely' then there was a possibility it could remain.

I immediately raised the point that there seemed to be a possibility that patients, individually, referred by schools or by workplaces; could be attending a facility that doctors themselves deemed unsafe. If this was the case it should not be open at all - patients are being put at risk.

I am strongly in favour of a full A&E service at Central Middlesex Hospital and restoration of a 24 hour service. An A&E is essential in an area of great deprivation, criss-crossed by major railway lines and roads and with one of the largest industrial estates in the capital.  It is a major concern if the A&E has already been run down to such an extent that doctors do not consider it safe for patients.

There is till time to comment on Shaping a Healthier Future but you need to act quickly as it closes on Monday October 8th.

Follow this LINK to the document and consulation form

Wembley Connects consultation event this Wednesday

Brent has revamped the Area Consultative Forums which are now known as Brent Connects. The first Wembley event will be on Wednesday at Patidar House, London Road, off Wembley High Road. I now understand that only the Kilburn Connects forum has an 'Any Questions' type panel of officers and councillors. However you can still book a Soapbox (speaking for 3/5 minutes on any subject) by arriving early or doing it on line (see below)

Wednesday's Agenda:

Main presentations:

• Update on the rebranding of Area Consultative Forum
• Waste site stench in parts of Neasden and Wembley - stopping future occurrence
• Civic Centre Consultation (Arts and Culture Programme) - have your say
• Brent's response to Government's Welfare Reform

Here are the details for booking a Soapbox:

How can I have my say?Please fill in the online Soapbox Application Form or email us at consultation@brent.gov.uk
You can also print the form and post to us at the address below:

Consultation Team
Room 25, Brent Town Hall, Forty Lane, Wembley, Middlesex HA9 9HX

You can also hand your completed form to a Council Officer at the beginning of the meeting. You will be invited to speak by the forum chair during the course of the meeting.

What are the rules?In order that everyone gets the same opportunity and that no offence is caused to any member of the forum audience, certain ground rules will apply and we would ask everyone who participates to respect these rules.

They are:

• Soapbox topics or issues discussed must be relevant to the area and its communities
• Equal Opportunities guidelines will be applied and no inappropriate topics or comments will be allowed
• A maximum of three minutes will be allowed for each slot, and the chair will monitor timekeeping
• If appropriate, the council will provide a response either on the night, or in writing at a later date

Coalition plans warehousing for children

Wates' 'repeatable school' template

We may soon be seeing these schools throughout the country if the Coalition gets its way and orders cut-price identical  new schools across the country with smaller classrooms, corridors and halls.

This looks like warehousing or factory farming for children and in the way ideologically reflects the conveyor belt nature of the examination system with its quotas and targets.

Capital Ciry Academy (Norman Foster)

Cleverly the Coalition in its justification takes a populist swipe at some of the grandiose school projects built under Labour, lampoons atriums, denigrates architects and opines that it is good teaching that makes good schools - not buildings.

The Victorians valued education and children more, just look at some of the education castles such as Kensal Rise Primary or St Joseph's in Harlesden, bold statements of the centrality of education to the community, and built to last from hard as iron industrial brick. They are still with us, if the haven't been converted into luxury flats such as those on Dudden Hill, whilethe post-war schools are crumbling.  It was ironic that the recent Brent Education Debate was held at Copland High School with the building's poor physical state there for all to see.

 How long will these 'Ikea' schools last?

Less space in schools, small halls, smaller playgrounds because of school expansion and sold-off playing fields - space is now a political issue.  Smaller school halls will mean that the whole school can no longer meet as a community affecting the social cohesion of the school.  The school won't all be able to meet together following major events such as the death of a pupil or to celebrate the school's achievements.   There won't be space for all the parents to attend a concert or other school performance. Opportunities to let out the space for community events will be reduced because of the hall's low capacity.

I was recently approached by someone who wanted to speak to the pupils at a local school about the scout movement, wanting to recruit more children to the local pack. She asked to come and talk at an assembly. I had to let her know that because of the large number of children and small school hall, she would have to speak to 6 separate assemblies!

Schools with large numbers of pupils but small halls, alongside the requirement for a daily act of worship, mean that mornings are tied up with assemblies (a timetabling nightmare) and the hall is not available for PE, music, drama etc. Some are even more restricted because they are also used as dining rooms.

Perhaps most importantly, good school building may not create good teaching, but they do convey to the children how much society values them.  What message is the Coalition sending to the next generation?

GCSE affair "morally repugnant" senior examiner

The legal action undertaken by Brent Council, other local authorities and many schools,  seeking a judicial review of the GCSE marking fiasco has received unexpected backing from a senior figure in AQA, the examination board.. This report from the BBC:

A senior exam board figure has resigned over the shifting of English GCSE grade boundaries which left thousands of pupils with lower grades than expected. Stephen McKenzie quit the exam board AQA on Wednesday after 16 years as a GCSE English moderator. In his resignation letter Mr McKenzie said the grade boundary shift was "the worst decision ever made by AQA". He said the AQA board’s handling of GCSE boundary changes was "morally repugnant"  He told BBC News: "I could not go on working for them - to be frank AQA English has fallen apart." 

 Mr McKenzie's resignation came as the exam boards and the exam regulator Ofqual were given more time to consider a legal challenge from teaching unions, schools and local authorities asking them to regrade English GCSE papers.  The alliance has written formally to Ofqual and the exam boards AQA and Edexcel challenging the refusal to regrade GCSE English papers in England. They are threatening to seek a judicial review after thousands of pupils scored lower-than-expected results when grade boundaries were raised midway through the year. 

In his resignation letter Mr McKenzie called the handling of the affair "morally repugnant" and "disingenuous". He said that claims that teachers had marked controlled assessments too generously were based on "paltry evidence" and called the moderation of the qualification "poor, stressed and chaotic". He added that AQA had reneged on guidance to schools about the standard needed to achieve a C grade and said that this had hit the most vulnerable part of the student population hardest.

 "We have in this whole sorry business the classic social disaster scenario; mismanagement succeeded by chaos, hurt innocents succeeded by collusion between official bodies to suppress the reality of the disaster.  The various AQA English specifications have as their spine texts - To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men, The Crucible, An Inspector Calls - where ordinary but principled people stand up for social justice at whatever cost. If I see anyone at AQA English do this any time soon, I will reconsider my decision not to work for them. Otherwise I mourn the passing of a once fine institution."

In his letter Mr McKenzie quotes emails from a senior English assessor at AQA who states that the changes to grade boundaries between January and June did "massive damage" and "instantly hit the most vulnerable" pupils. In particular the assessor's emails focus on the raising of the grade C boundary on the lower tier English 

Mr McKenzie, vice principal of Morley Academy in Leeds, says this paper is marketed at the students who would have had to work the hardest to achieve a C or better and who needed the grade to enter apprenticeships, employment or further education. 

Earlier this month letters between another exam board, Edexcel and the regulator Ofqual, were leaked to the Times Educational Supplement. These showed that Ofqual ordered the board to make grade boundary changes against its will just two weeks before the results were published. 

The TES says the Mr McKenzie's resignation letter and the emails reveal "that assessors from AQA, the board with the biggest market share in GCSE English, were just as concerned as their Edexcel counterparts about the grading changes". AQA said it was unable to comment because of pending legal action over GCSE English.

Who would you back,  the principled Stephen McKenzie or Michael Gove?