Will Brent Labour Group bite back over last year's Council Tax decision?

I confess I am guilty of neglecting fellow blogger and ex-councillor James Powney's writings and I missed a posting last week  LINK on the likely Council Tax rise.

In his piece James Powney draws attention to the situation last year when the Executive over-ruled the vote of the Labour Group for an increase just below the referendum trigger.  He hints that this may affect Cllr Butt's leadership position at the AGM in May :

I hear that Brent Council is likely to go for a Council Tax rise this year.  This has seemed to me to be the only sensible course for some time.  The rise will still only make a modest contribution to protecting Council services but it is better than nothing.

It also helps to protect the longer term finances of the Council.  Each year the Council Tax has been frozen, the base revenue of the Council has been reduced not just in this year but for future years.  With the government talking about abolishing central government grant altogether, a continued freeze would simply run the Council into the ground.

One might ask why Cllr Butt has been so bitterly opposed to a rise for so long.  Even to the extent of ignoring the vote of the Labour Group altogether, which was such an undemocratic measure that I am sure no previous Labour Group would have stood it.  I wonder whether it will come back to bite him in May.

Certainly, his reasons can not have been to protect vulnerable residents, since he was fully behind the Council Tax Support Scheme which inevitably hits those least able to pay.  Indeed the rise for those residents in the first year was so large it would have been impossible to raise the Council Tax by that much across the tax base as a whole. 

See the powerful 'India's Daughter' at Preston Library on Sunday and discuss it with producer

India's Daughter from Leslee Udwin on Vimeo.

India's daughter will be shown at the Preston Community Hub (the old Preston Library) on Sunday evening. Doors open 7pm and the film starts at 7.30pm. Riddhi Jha associate producer  of this powerful and influential film will be present to talk about the film and answer questions.

INDIA’s DAUGHTER is the story of the short life, brutal gang rape and murder in Delhi in December 2012 of an exceptional and inspiring young woman. The rape of the 23 year old medical student by 6 men on a moving bus, and her death, sparked unprecedented protests and riot throughout India and led to the first glimmers of a change of mindset.

Interwoven into the story line are the lives, values and mindsets of the rapists whom the film makers have had exclusive and unprecedented access to interview before they hang. 

The film examines the culture of rape and violence against women that exists in India and throughout the world and makes an optimistic and impassioned plea for change.

Public support for Junior Doctors outside Northwick Park Hospital

Junior doctors strike in the UK from Husain Akhtar on Vimeo.

Quintain gobbles up another chunk of Wembley as Fountain Studios sold off

Fountain Studios, Wembley Park Road

Local landmark Fountain Studios has been sold to Quintain for £16m. The studios have been used for Britain's Got Talent and the X Factor and excited queues of fans, some on step ladders to see over the fence, are a familiar sight in Wembley.

In the year to the end of September,  Fountain made a loss of £300k on sales of £5.3m, around 4% of the parent company, Avesco's, turnover.

It is likely that the Studios will eventually close with the loss of local jobs, although it is reported that a leaseback agreement has been agreed for a unspecified period. Presumably that will enable the Studios to fulfill any contracts already signed.  Local businesses, including restaurants and pubs, will also lose out with the loss of custom from the production audiences.

Quintain is likely to build housing on the site with some retail on the lines of the ALTO development further down the road.  Given the location and Quintain's aims to maximise profits these are highly unlkely to be social housing.

Quintain itself was taken over the Texan Lone Star Real Estate last year for £745m.

The Green Party will support Plane Stupid activists at Willesden Magistrates' Court on Monday

 Image from Zed Books LINK

The 13 members of activist group Plane Stupid accused of "aggravated trespass" during a protest at Heathrow Airport in July last year have the full support of the Green Party of England and Wales.

The trial of the activists, who occupied the northern runway of Heathrow, begins at Willesden Magistrates’ Court on Monday January 18th. Natalie Bennett, Leader of the Green Party, Dr Shahrar Ali, Deputy Leader of the Green Party, and Sian Berry, Green Party candidate for Mayor of London, will all attend a demonstration outside the court to underline the Party’s solidarity with the non-violent climate activists.

Speaking ahead of the trial, Natalie Bennett said:

Our party applauds the determination of the Heathrow 13. We stand up for the activists just as they are standing up for our planet.

Bigger airports make no climate sense. The UK cannot make its contribution to cutting carbon emissions whilst expanding its airports and increasing emissions from aviation.

If this government is in any way serious about delivering climate-sensitive policies then airport expansion plans must be immediately shelved and other measures - including encouraging short-haul flight passengers on to existing rail services and introducing a frequent flyer tax - must be explored.

Shahrar Ali, a long-time supporter of the activists and a Green Party candidiate on the GLA List said:

We stand in solidarity with the activists who, like the Green Party, recognise that urgent action is needed to protect us all from the threat of climate change. Endless growth of our aviation capacity is incompatible with the UK meeting its climate change commitments. 

If airport expansion gets the go-ahead at Heathrow, local residents will suffer enormously from increasing noise and air pollution, the ‘silent killer’ of thousands of Londoners each year.”
London has already breached annual pollution limits for 2016 LINK. A report commissioned by Mayor Boris Johnson last year found that nearly 9,500 people die prematurely each year because of the capital’s dirty air LINK.


The demonstration starts at 9am.

UPDATE: Muhammed Butt confirms 4% rise in Brent Council Tax

At a very poorly attended Budget Consultation meeting at Brent Civic Centre this evening Brent Council leader Muhammed Butt confirmed that he would be seeking an annual 4% Council Tax rise over the next 3 years  This would have raised an additional £20m by the end of the period.

In the first year this would be an increase of £42 a year (81pence a week) for Band D householders.

Questioned on the Council Tax Benefit scheme and whether it would be reviewed to protect vulnerable people from the impact of the increase he said that a review would take place but it would not be completed in time for this year's increase.

Cllr Pavey asked about using the reserves to preserve services said that he was undertaking a considered review looking at what could be done with the reserves via an investment strategy that would deliver useful financial benefit.

Questioned about maximising revenue from the Civic Centre and Willesden Green Library Cllr Michael Pavey conceded that the council historically had not been very good at raising revenue. The new 'Civic Enterprise' approach marked a genuine change that along with procurement savings could, if successful, contribute 25% towards closing the gap in the council budget.

Brent CEO Carolyn Downs responding to a question about the restricted opening hours of the Willesden Green Library and the danger that it would fail as a cultural centre,  admitted that Brent Council at present did not have the expertise to market it. The council were seeking to recruit someone with an arts and cultural background and  social enterprise experience to be a commercial director to raise revenue. She said that she was familiar with the argument that the restricted opening hours limited use of the Library/Cultural Centre.

Conrad Hall commenting on raising revenue through the Civic Centre said that the council was looking at the possibility of renting out a third floor of the Centre on a commercial basis.

He said that the projected savings were not yet enough to balance the budget by 2018-19 but successful revenue could help reach that target.

Cllr Butt said that the council workforce had been reduced from 2,900 to under 2,300 and that the propsoed cuts had redundancy implications. Answering a question about the number of highly paid managers in the council Carolyn Downs said that there had been a substantial reduction in managers. Those that remained had been allocated extra roles and responsibilities. The council was now operating efficiently with a smaller worker force and slimmer management.

Asked to report on his meeting with a junior minister at the Department of Communities and Local Government, Muhammed Butt outlined the areas that they had covered in the 30 minute meeting. These included the disproportionate extent of the cuts imposed on  Brent, the steps the borough was taking to deliver additional housing, the loss of the Revenue Support Grant by 2020, the loss of two year's worth of the New Homes Bonus, and the fact that funding for new schools was just for buildings and not for furniture, equipment and IT.

The minister said that the government did not intend to change anything: 'That's how much they care about the people of Brent."

Commenting on the meeting Cllr Pavey said. 'It was the biggest waste of half an hour I have ever spent!"

They had spoken to a subservient junior minister who was subservient to a senior minister who was subservient to the Treasury.

Asked about 'Red Lines'  LINK Cllr Pavey said it was an unashamed Labour Party attempt to unify Labour Councils in order to put pressure on the government to change its economic policy. Brent had been a founding member.

Their initial focus had been about the impact of the cuts on young people who had been first hit when they were at primary school and were now being hit as youth.  In February the campaign would centre around Adult Social Care and the injustice people were suffering under the capitalist system.

He finished by saying that other parties were welcome to join amidst jokes about the 'Green Line'.

A member of the audience, supported by friends, made several contributions detailing the impact of cuts and declining services on him as a deaf and almost blind person. He also called for more training of council staff in British Sign Language and catering for residents with those needs.  As the signer relayed his concerns the silent Conference Hall found itself facing the profound reality of the cuts. Both officers and councillors offered to communicate with him about the issues he had raised.

There were only 3 members of the public present at the beginning of the meeting, compared with 6 Brent officers in the audience. By the end of the meeting, which finished an hour early, there were 6 members of the public, 6 officers in the audience and Conrad Hall, Michael Pavey, Carolyn Dows and Muhammed Butt on the platform.

UPDATE

In a report going to the General Purposes Committee Conrad Hall updates the 'Council Tax Base' - the basis on which the Tax itself will be calculated:

The proposed council tax base for 2016/17 of 89,254 represents an increase of 6,455 over the figure for 2015/16. This will form part of the overall calculation of the Council’s budget. The increase is due to a combination of factors: a significant reduction in the total claimed for Council Tax Support (which pushes up the taxbase figure) new properties coming in to rating (including the allowance for 2,000 additional properties in the next year), and the increase in the collection level assumption of 1.0%. It is unlikely that there will be a similarly large increase in subsequent years. The increase in the assumed collection percentage will be a one-off, and it is unlikely that CTS will fall much further.

DON'T FORGET YOU CAN VOTE ON THE PROPOSED RISE (SEE SIDE PANEL) OR COMMENT BELOW.

VOTE ON WHETHER BRENT COUNCIL SHOULD INCREASE COUNCIL TAX

Please see the side panel to take part in this poll.

You can add a reason for your vote as a comment below this posting.

'Straight Outta Syria' young rappers tell it how it is

From 'A World At School'
 

Samir, Abdulrahman and Mohamed are brothers who share a passion for music.  We can help share their story, their talent, and their potential.

But without education, the potential of hundreds of thousands of talented young Syrian children, refugees of the conflict, risks being lost.

Their potential needs your support: back our petition LINK  to secure the funding necessary to get 1 million Syrian refugee children into school - and back their futures.

Sign today and we’ll take your message to world leaders at the the Syrian Donors Conference in London in February.

Every child has potential - and every child deserves the chance to realise it. 

To world leaders: 

Please do what’s needed to ensure that Syrian refugee children can go to school, fulfil their potential, and build a peaceful future for themselves and their country. Give Syrian children hope.