'Traditionally Submissive' Muslim Women Hit Back at David Cameron

When is a decision not a decision? Smoke and mirrors at Brent Council

Early days of the campaign to Save the Queensbury

 Guest blog by Ian Elliott

A property developer bought The Queensbury pub in Willesden Green almost four years ago and lodged a plan to build a 10 storey tower block in its place. Save The Queensbury was formed and we convinced Brent Council's planning department to reject the plans. We then represented ourselves at a five day public inquiry when the developer appealed, unsuccessfully and the Inspector spoke highly of the merits of the existing building.

From the start we believed that the building, in a conservation area, should have been protected by being added to Brent's "local list" of buildings. The problem is, we have been left completely confused as to who takes a decision as to what buildings are on the list and have now been stonewalled by decision-makers at Brent Council.

Back in 2012 we were told that there were no plans to review Brent's list, which contains buildings as diverse as the State Ballroom in Kilburn to the bandstand in Queens Park.

In June 2014 a mysterious report appear on Brent's website, rightly adding Kensal Rise library to the list but claiming that The Queensbury had been reviewed but would not be added. Naturally this was a blow so we asked for the assessment to be made public. Brent refused to publish the assessment so we complained to Brent's Chief Executive and asked for this to be looked at by a senior officer, away from those close to the decision. 

Instead we had a reply giving Brent a clean bill of health - from a manager in the same department who we wanted to be investigated as failing to consult with residents. (Bear in mind also that officers in planning have twice recommended that the pub be demolished, in spite of local opposition). Weird, eh?

Fast forward to summer 2015 and Brent consulted on a review of the local list and we, along with dozens of residents, asked for The Queensbury to be listed. Cllr Margaret McLennan, Brent Council’s lead member for housing and development, said: “This consultation is a chance for residents to have their say on the pieces of Brent’s fantastic heritage that are most important to them. I would encourage people to go online and nominate their favourite site of historical interest to be considered for inclusion on the Local List.” So we did.

We thought we were making progress when a report emerged, adding The Queensbury to the local list, later 2015. A decision was promised, in December 2015, but an email from Brent Council reveals that a decision not to proceed was apparently taken by Brent's Cabinet.

We asked for the minutes of that decision, given that it was on a Cabinet agenda for December. No response. No agenda. No minutes. Hang on.... this is getting weirder. Where's the transparency?

The Chair of planning then tells us that a "Policy Coordination Group" would a review the Cabinet decision but that's left us mystified. Of all the 30+ groups and committees listed on Brent's Democracy site, the PCG is not one. So we asked again, only to hear that the Lead Councillor (i.e. the one inviting us to participate in this democracy) will no longer comment or email us on this matter.

At the turn of 2015 we put in a Freedom of Information request to try and clear the smoke around Brent's mysterious PCG and hopefully find out precisely who took a decision not to add The Queensbury (again) and on what basis. 

In law, Brent have to respond to an FoI request, by the first week of February.

We will wait and see if we get transparency and minutes from the mystery PCG. Or at least an explanation as to why The Queensbury was not added, again. Without this, the popular and viable pub in a beautiful conservation area remains vulnerable to demolition.

Scrap the £35k threshold for non-EU citizens settling in the UK

There are so many on-line petitions around these days that I often don't sign them favouring other forms oif political action instead.  I think this one is really important as it not not only tackles someething that is manifestly unfair but will also impact on public services, especially health.

In April (2016) the Home Office and Theresa May are introducing a pay threshold for people to remain here, after already working here for 5 years. This only affects non-EU citizens who earn under £35,000 a year, which unfairly discriminates against charity workers, nurses, students and others.

This ridiculous measure is only going to affect 40,000 people who have already been living and working in the UK for 5 years, contributing to our culture and economy. It will drive more workers from the NHS and people from their families. This empty gesture will barely affect the immigration statistics. It's a waste of time, money and lives.

This is the first time the UK has discriminated against low-earners. £35k is an unreasonably high threshold. The UK will lose thousands of skilled workers.

Sign the petition to the UK Government and Parliament HERE

Meeting with London MPs as education funding cuts threaten London boroughs

The government's intention to move to a National Funding Formula for education and an overall freeze on spending despite rising pupil numbers and increased staffing costs means that London boroughs, including Brent, will face funding cuts in the near future.
Camden NUT has organised a meeting at Portcullis House on February 3rd to which they have invoted Tulip Siddiq MP, who also represents three Brent wards. Keir Starmer has already said he will attend and it would be good if Dawn Butler and Barry Gardiner also committed themselves to listen to the concerns. Brent could face a cut of 8.6% by 2019-20  and subsequent loss of jobs in schools.

This is the invitation letter:

London schools face unprecedented cuts over the next few years. In the Autumn Statement, George Osborne announced that education funding would be frozen despite a significant increase in student numbers and the introduction of a national funding formula. 

If the plans for a national funding formula advocated by many MPs and the f40 group are enacted this  will mean pupils in London schools will have the spending on their education cut dramatically, as  these changes coincide with other cuts in education spending and schools having to pay higher pension and national insurance contributions. 

These changes will be felt most acutely in the most deprived boroughs; however, funding is at risk in every London borough. 

 Overall funding for London schools could be cut by 13% over the next four years.  Schools have never faced cuts of this size before. Education spending has only been cut twice before in the mid-80s and the mid-90s by 4% and 3% respectively. The scale of these cuts will drag schools back to funding levels last seen in the 1990s.  There is a very effective and influential campaign advocating redistributing funding from London and other metropolitan boroughs largely to the shires as a way for those areas to deal with cuts to the education budget. We believe that we need a similarly effec tive campaign to argue that funding should be protected overall; that a national funding formula should properly recognise the true cost of educating large numbers of children from deprived backgrounds; and that the transition to a national funding formula should not force London schools to make significant cuts. 

We have arranged an initial planning meeting for local stakeholders with London MPs in Room R. Portcullis House at 5:30pm on Wednesday 3^rd February.

This is how the new formula would impact on schools in the London Borough of Brent LINK:

Current Individual School Budget 2015-16 £220,485,342
Current Individual School Budget if F40 revised formula applied £217,958,912
F40 budget adjusted for schools inflation 2-19-20 (Source IFS): £206,611,993
Overall budget reduction: £18,873,349
Spending per pupil 2015-16:  £5,371
Spending per pupil 2019-20:  £4,573 (cut of 8.6%)
Loss of teaching jobs 174 (cut of 7%)
Lost of teaching assistant jobs 349 (cut of 27%)

Other London boroughs are even worse off.
  
 Full documentation here: LINK

Brent Central MP and CLP oppose Overground ticket office closures

The proposed closure of Overground ticket offices on the Brent section of the line LINK has been opposed by Brent Central Constituency Labour Party:

Brent Central CLP calls on the London Mayoral Candidate, London Assembly Members and Brent Councillors to oppose Transport for London's proposed ticket office closures, and to ensure that they are properly staffed during opening hours. We congratulate the RMT on their campaign to oppose the proposed ticket office closures, and resolve to support their planned industrial action over the introduction of the Night Tube.

Brent Central MP Dawn Butler has put down an EDM (Early Day Motion) that has been supported by Gareth Thomas MP (Harrow West) and 15 others opposing the closures LINK.

That this House notes that London TravelWatch is required to consult on London Underground's [actually London Overground] proposal to close station ticket offices at Gunnersbury, Harlesden, Harrow and Wealdstone, Kensal Green, Kenton, Kew Gardens, North Wembley, Queen's Park, Stonebridge Park, South Kenton and Wembley Central; is concerned that the proposals are being bought forward despite many of these stations experiencing large increases in passenger numbers; opposes the closure of those stations on the basis that passengers, especially visitors and the elderly or disabled, would not be able to access the full range of tickets and services they need from a ticket machine, would find it harder to obtain advice on ticket and fare options, would suffer delays to their travel due to insufficient numbers of replacement ticket machines, would experience a more congested concourse, would be less confident using a ticket machine and could end up overspending, would be deterred from travel due to the lower staffing levels, and would be travelling on a network which is less safe with CCTV monitored less frequently; and therefore believes that these Tube ticket offices should be kept open.

Schools present Polling Station headache

Time was when voters took for granted that their polling station would be the local school or church hall. A report going to the General Purposes Committee shows that things are no longer as straightforward. The North West London Jewish School had declined its use as a polling station last year citing security concerns. Report to General Purposes Commitee LINK

Now the  Lycee Winston Churchill at the former Brent Town Hall has set unacceptabel conditions and the Ark Franklyn Primary School has declined. I wonder if in the latter case it could be argued that the school is thereby not support 'British Values' regarding democracy?

.        Barnhill Ward: Polling district NBA4 - Huts near the former Town Hall site 
The former Brent Town Hall was long used as a polling place for electors in polling district NBA4 in Barnhill ward. During construction of the Winston Churchill Lycée on the site, the polling place has been two portacabins situated on Greenhill Way. Officers have held discussions on site with staff at the Lycée who are willing for us to use part of the site as a polling place. However they are unwilling for people to gain access to the site without first being checked in by a member of their security staff. 
There is potential for objections to be raised by voters and for queues to build up, particularly in the early evening when the majority of voters turn up to vote. 
    

.        Queen’s Park Ward: Polling Districts HQP3 and HQP5 - Ark Franklyn School (formerly Kensal Rise Primary) 
The Head Teacher has stated that she does not wish the school to be used as a polling station on the grounds of inconvenience for the running of the school. 
While the Returning Officer has the power to use any buildings maintained at public expense, including academy schools, consideration has been given to alternative venues. The loss of the school will however be significant in that, since Moberly Sports and Education Centre in Kilburn Lane became unavailable, the Ark Franklyn school serves 2 polling districts.

.      Kensal Rise Methodist Church on Chamberlayne Road. This venue is situated in an adjacent district (HQP1) and will confuse HQP1 voters many of whom will have to walk past it to their station at Manor School. 


·      There is a similar objection to the hall at the Church of the Transfiguration at the corner of Chamberlayne Road and Wrentham Avenue 


·      Co-use of Manor School with HQP1. However this will mean that there will be five polling stations in the school serving three polling districts. 
In the circumstances, Ark Franklyn school is the only really suitable venue for electors in this area that has been identified. Further discussion will be held with the Head Teacher and the outcome reported to the meeting. 


Bullying at Brent Council - FoI response

The following response to a Freedom of Information request was released earlier this month. It is of interest in the light of the Cara Davani controversy LINK

FOI Request – 4686497

1)    How many employees of your authority  [Brent Council] have made an official complaint of harassment and bullying at work since the 1st April 2009?

15

2)    How many of these complaints were upheld in favour of the complainant?

2

3)    How many of those which were not upheld in favour of the complainant went on to Appeal?

3

4)    How many of those that went to Appeal were found to favour the complainant?

0

5)    How many complaints went on to an Employment Tribunal?

0

6)    How many of these were found to uphold the complaint?

N/A

7)    Out of how many of those allegations (the number given to question 1) did the complainant of bullying claim that the bullies were telling lies?

0

8)    How many staff does your authority have and what is the current population within your authority's area?

There are 2,109 employees as at 31/12/2015

The population of Brent, taken from the GLA short-term population projections for 2015, is an estimated 325,300.

Tell ASDA to look after their staff

The GMB union is fighting proposals by Asda to cut staff free hot drinks and remove vending machines.  Asda are said to have seen falling turnover in the face of competition from Lidl andAldi.

The GMB is the only union to have successfully gained recognition in the Walmart international  empire.   They have launched a petition against the changes. This is their statement:

On 13th January 2016 ASDA informed GMB of their proposal to change the canteen offer within stores. This could result in the closure of the breakfast offer, removal of chilled vending machines and removal of free tea, coffee and toast which is available within its smaller stores.

GMB are aware from speaking to members and colleagues that this is an emotive subject and understand how valuable these facilities are to you as hard working, dedicated colleagues within ASDA. 

We are therefore requesting that you sign the petition so that this can be presented both through the consultation process and Andy Clarke CEO to ensure ‘Your Voice’ is heard on this matter.

Please use the social media buttons to share this petition.

If you are not currently a member and wish to be protected join online at www.gmb.org.uk/join

The petition can be found HERE

These are two views that can be found on the GMB petition website:

Over the 9 years I have worked for Asda I have seen a decline in the company looking after the colleagues I agree times change and cost go up but you need to keep your workforce happy to keep your customers happy and removing colleague canteens is the wrong way to go this is an engine room for colleagues to reboot themselves and chat and get rid of stress eat and drink breakfast is the start of the day our store has a cafe downstairs bacon butties and more are a £1 that's great but can you imagine ten to twenty colleagues queuing up for their breakfast and wasting their break time of 15-20 mins so then making them late going back onto the shop floor and such could also lead to disciplinaries come on there must be costs you can cut elsewhere keep the troops happy mr Clark

I do not work for Asda, but do shop there but may have to start shopping elsewhere if this is the sort of company my shopping spends supports. This is so wrong on so many levels. A good company would look after their workforce and make sure they have hot drinks and food available. Its the staff that makes the company, So come on Asda treat your wonderful staff better.

It is advisable not to engage Asda staff in conversation about the issue as this could result in disciplinary action against them but if you sign the petition they will know they have public support.