Brent Council urged to divest for Palestine as 2,000 signature petition presented

Supporters of the petition gathered outside Brent Civic Centre were joined by some councillors

 The presentation and response

Supporters of the campaign to 'Divest for Palestine' gathered outside Brent Civic Centre yesterday afternoon ahead of the presentation of a 2,000 petition calling on the Council to divest its local government pension fund from any companies deemed complicit in the current attacks on the Palestinian people, Israel's illegal occupation and the apartheid system.

They were joined by a number of Labour councillors and a small pro-Israel Government counter demonstration was joined by Cllr Michael Maurice.

Apart from a battle of loudspeakers the demonstrations were peaceful. 

There was some heckling by the pro-Israel supporters when the petition was presented and more serious disruption when people began to leave after the presentation.

In her response to the Brent and Harrow Palestine Solidarity Campaign petition,  Cllr Mili Patel siad the Council did not 'activelyinvest directly' in UN considered occupied territories nor does it 'actively invest directly' in arms companies.

She has asked the Council's Chief Finance Officer to conduct a full audit of all the Council's allocations in line with the UN's principles for responsible investment.

The phrase 'actively invest directly' recognises that that may be indirect investment via fund managers or the London Collective Investment vehicle.  The need to trace those investments was encapsulated in the similar Camden campaign with their slogan 'Disclose, Divest'.

The response did not include a commitment from Brent Council to work with other London councils in putting pressure on the London CIV.

When the Palestine Solidarity Campaign asked Brent Council recently to list its investment they responded that they were unable to do so.

They did supply details when PSC made a similar request in 2020. These were the top five of their complicit investments at the time and a check on whether they still have such investments would be a starting point:

HSBC £4,663,056

HSBC invests over £830million in, and provides financial services worth up to £19billion for, companies arming Israel. These investments include up to £100million worth of shares in the company Caterpillar, who supply the Israeli army with bulldozers which are weaponised and used to demolish Palestinian communities, build Israel’s illegal settlements and apartheid infrastructure including the apartheid wall and military checkpoints. For more info: https://www.palestinecampaign.org/campaigns/stop-arming-israel/

Barclays £1,252,342

Barclays is a British multinational bank and financial services company. Barclays hold approximately £1,167.6 million of investments in companies that are known to supply the Israeli military. This includes Babcock, BAE and Boeing, Cobham and Rolls Royce. More information available in War on Want’s 2017 ‘Deadly Investments’ report.

BAE Systems  £970,233

According to CAAT, “BAE Systems is the world’s fourth largest arms producer. Its portfolio includes fighter aircraft, warships, tanks, armoured vehicles, artillery, missiles and small arms ammunition. It has military customers in over 100 countries. BAE has a workshare agreement with Lockheed Martin producing the US F-35 stealth combat aircraft. Israel, for example, took delivery of its first F-35 in 2016. According to Investigate, a project by the American Friends Service Committee, BAE has worked in cooperation with Lockheed Martin and Rafael to produce and market the naval Protector drone used to maintain the siege of Gaza along the Mediterranean coast.

Smiths Group £316,811

According to CAAT “Smiths Group is a global technology company with five divisions: John Crane, Smiths Medical, Smiths Detection, Smiths Interconnect and Flex-Tek. Smiths Connectors is part of Smiths Interconnect and comprises Hypertac, IDI and Sabritec brands. Products include connectors used in fighting vehicles, unmanned vehicles and avionics systems.” They have applied for a number of military export licences to Israel.

Rolls Royce £294,535

Rolls-Royce is a British manufacturer that produces military aircraft engines, naval engines and cores for nuclear submarines. Despite arms comprising only 26% of its total sales, it is still the world’s 17th largest Arms trade. In 2014, the year of Israel’s arial bombardment and ground invasion of Gaza, which killed over 2,200 civilians, nearly a quarter of them children, Rolls-Royce was granted export licenses for engines for military aircrafts to Israel.

 

LETTER: Transparency needed on Peppercorn Rents vs Market Rents for Brent Council properties

 Dear Editor,

Following widespread public interest and concern, including on Wembley Matters, regarding the impact of Brent Council's Strategy Review on the voluntary and community sector, I have written (below) to the  appropriate council officer:

I am writing in my capacity as a Councillor concerned about the potentially damaging impact of the new Property Strategy and it’s implementation on the Brent voluntary sector.

The Property Strategy agreed by Cabinet last week indicates that expired rents will be charged based on market values and that Section 25 Notices will be issued as part of the process to achieve this.

As you know your officers started issuing Section 25 Notices to a number of community organisations in Brent and you officers suggested a completely off the wall (some people may say off their heads) figures.

In the case of the East Lane Theatre Club in my Sudbury Ward a new rent of £75,000 Per year has been suggested.

I know of other organisations in Sudbury subject to the same Property Unit approach.

What assurance can you give that this approach will be applied consistently and that community organisations will be treated fairly and equally.

The Leader of the Council has suggested that “ELTC has been in the fortunate position of being able to have space since 1992 for the sun of £1,500 ….and I can assure you that there are many organisations past and present that would love to have been in that position of having had that space”.

He than also claims that “we must start at open market rents”.

He is clearly ignorant of the facts or has not bothered to find out or has not been briefed properly. As you know there a number of organisations in Brent - many occupying larger premises and since before 1992 - that do not pay any rent for properties which belong to Brent Council and for which the Council is the landlord.

As you know one of these properties is The Kiln Theatre (formerly Tricycle Theatre) with a much larger Theatre building of which Brent Council is the freeholder the rent for which is £1 peppercorn.

You have and should be able to publish the full list of all the Brent Council owned buildings where £1 or nominal rent is paid.

Is it the intention of the Corporate Property Policy to review all these subsidised rents too so as to put all  community organisations on the same basis or is it the intention to penalise some with a Market Rent while favouring others with no rent at all?

You will appreciate that will all look very odd to any independent observer who may question the fairness of an approach the aim of which seems to be to deprive long standing organisations of their premises while others continue to receive favoured treatment. 

Perhaps if the Cabinet were informed of this strange situation they may have asked some questions and perhaps even made a different decision.

Because of the public interest in this matter I am publishing this email and will also publish your response.

 

Cllr Paul Lorber

UPDATE: Full road closure for c5 months from October 21st: High Road between Cecil Avenue and the Triangle including the Triangle

 This has been forwarded to me. Unfortunately the web link for further informations does not work and the mobile phone is unavailable. I have emailed for further information and the map. I will update when received.

UPDATE: The website has been updated but has less information than already supplied!

Wembley High Road closure (www.brent.gov.uk/wembleyhighroad )

Significant upgrades are being planned for Wembley High Road. We are working with TfL to coordinate a date for the upgrades to start, as it will impact bus routes and diversions will be required. We will update this webpage with information on when the upgrades will be taking place once this is agreed.  

This is so a much-needed upgrade of the road can take place between Cecil Avenue and The Triangle, completing the transformation of Wembley High Road.

Diversions will be in place and more information will be made available on this webpage.

Warnings re hedgehogs in Autumn and contacts for injured animals

The hedgehog drank some water before being taken to the vet

Following my social media post yesterday regarding an injured hedgehog found at the back of my house, Brent Parks Forum has sent the following information. Suzanne from the Forum took it to a vet but unfortunately it was too badly injured to treat. The hog was very wobbly and staggering in a circle and surrounded by flies when found.

Hedgehogs in Autumn:  

We have had 3 hedgehogs die within 2 weeks that we know of in Brent.   Two died from suspected strimmer use, which seems to have been used under hedges where hedgehogs were hiding/sleeping.  One hedgehog had been run- over in a Brent Parks field (Barham Park). 

If anyone finds a hedgehog in their garden or in a local Brent park or on the street that is staggering, circling in a disorientated manner, also if the hog has flies settling on wounds.  [If you see a lot of little white/cream coloured maggots/eggs there will be a wound].  

There are a few vets that will go the extra mile to save injured hedgehogs.  

1. Hendon Medivet -  89-91 Watford Way, Hendon NW4 4RS   

    Tel: 020 8202 6344  Badly injured Hogs.  

2. Lulubells Rescue - also rehab. of badly injured hogs, if they have

    volunteers.   

    Become a volunteer for Lulubells Rescue  -  Volunteer | Lulubells Rescue

3.  Please call the BHPS (British Hedgehog Preservation Society).

    - 01584 890 801 for further advice and numbers of local carers/rescues.
    If out of hours there is an answerphone, press option 1.  

    [However,  their recommended vets may not be fully prepared to

    rehab badly injured hogs].  

• Pick them up with gloves, wrap in a towel and place in a high sided box.  
• Make sure you take the box inside and leave in a quiet room away from loud noises.  Do NOT leave it outside.
• Provide them with a hot-water bottle (Not scalding hot, just warm) or even better if you have a pet microwavable heat pad.  Allow extra space inside the box to allow them to move away from the heat source if they become too hot.
• Provide water - never milk.   Meaty cat food, not bread or grains.

 

Do check piles of leaves, compost etc before setting fire to them.

31 and 18 storey blocks application for site of CNWL college on Olympic Way

The view across Bridge Road yesterday. The 8 storey CNWL buidling is obscured by a tree

As the proposed buildings will look if approved 

Plans have been published for the development of the site of the College of North West London's Wembley Park site. The development is part of a three phase project which will see Wembley Park and Dudden Hill campuses moving into a new college building further down Olympic Way on the site of the building that was previously the head office of Network Housing. The extensive Dudden Hill (College Green) site will be redeveloped for housing some of which will also be highrise. See those proposals HERE.

The land is owned by United Colleges Group, the result of a merger between CNWL and City Westminster College and property rationalisation has been a strategy from the start. The decision on the Wembley Park and College Green development swill be made by Brent Council Planning Committee. In 2019 Brent Council granted a £50m bridging loan to United Colleges to facilitate the move to a new Wembley Park campus. LINK

 The Hill Group who are managing both applications calim that the Wembley Park site will provide 307 homes in two towers (18 storey and 31 storey) and College Green 1,627 homes. Together comprising 84% of the London Plan requirement of Brent Council. LINK

On the Wembley Park site they state 30% of the 'habitable rooms' will be at social rent and 100% affordable. However, the habitable room measure is a slippery concept and not the same as affordable homes as a percentage of the total. I have asked for clarification as elsewhere there is a reference to shared ownership as affordable - which we know it is not.

As the illustration shows there is a big impact on the view along Olympic Way although the proposal claims it does not interrupt the view of the stadium arch. It is certainly the first thing that will hit you looking from Wembley Park station towards the stadium and much more signicant  than the 8 storey CNWL building.

The Wealdstone Brook flows through the site. The present building is raised from ground level (as is Michaela on the other side of Olympic Way) as flood protection, so it is surprising to find that basements are planned for the new buildings. Retail, cafe or community uses are planned at ground level.

The present college building and Wealdstone Brook

The Wealdstone Brook flows through the site and beneath Olympic Way

The one storey temporary Black Sheep Coffee shop on Olympic Way  has recently been granted an extension to 2026 but the plans retain flexibility with the possibility of opening up the site where it faces Olympic Way if the Black Sheep goes.

The Black Sheep  now and after

 

Vehicle access to the site will be via Wembley Park Drive as at present but the development itself will be car free given its proximity to the station. Readers will note the Wembley Stadium Retail Park buildings on the right of the picture. The Retail Park, McDonalds and Troubadour Theatre (Fountain Studios) are another development site which will comprise 995 housing units in several towers.

On the image, below taken from the 2019 planning application, the CNWL building is bottom left corner. Now substitute an eighteen storey and a 31 storey block to see the scope of that development and the overall context on Bridge Road/Wembley Hill Road.

Finally it is good to see that the application includes a Whole Life Cycle  Carbon Assessment (albeit incomplete) and includes some mitigations to reduce carbon impact. LINK.

So far there have been no public comments on the proposal on the Brent Council Planning Portal Reference 24/1841 LINK

NHS to sell off old Wembley Hospital building in Chaplin Road

 

The NHS Property Services has decided that the old hospital buildings at Wembley Centre for Health in Fairview Avenue/Chaplin Road is surplus to requirements and have put it on the market.

Wembley Hospital was opened in 1928 after some years of planning and fundraising and has an interesting history. You can read more on the website Lost Hospitals of London HERE. The facility has servved residents of the borough well over the years. The sell-off is part of the previous Government's One Public Estate policy that encouraged public bodies to develop underused land. The huge Northwick Park development is our biggest later example combining council, hospital, university and housing association land in one scheme.

Savills the agent state:

Key features

• Unconsented residential development opportunity within the LB of Brent
• Strong transport links with Wembley Central Station and Sudbury Town
• The proposed development site extends to 0.72 hectares (1.78 acres)
• For sale freehold with vacant possession
• The Property benefits from positive pre application engagement
• Offers are invited on a subject to planning basis
• The Pre app consists of a residential scheme of 94 units across 3-7 storeys

Local information

·       The property is located within the administrative boundary of the London Borough of Brent. The site is not located in a Conservation Area and there are no locally listed or statutorily listed buildings within or adjacent to the site. A full planning history of the site is provided in a detailed note in the dataroom, provided by Avison Young.

·       The site has development potential for residential use, but may suit other uses, subject to securing the necessary consents.

·       Tate Hindle have produced a number of residential scheme iterations which have been tested at pre-application stage and with the Quality Review Panel. The schemes presented range from approximately 85 - 100 units in buildings of 3-7 storeys. A further scheme which responds to the comments made by the Quality Review Panel is available in the dataroom.

 

Wembley road closures of up to 11 hours on Saturday for Joshua vs Dubois fight

 

In reponse to comments below I Tweeted TfL but not hopeful:

Krupesh Hirani is the GLA Assembly Member for Brent and Harrow.

Cleaner Greener Harlesden Drop-in Wednesday 18th September Harlesden Library 4.30pm-7.30pm