PRIVATE TENANTS DEMAND: Decent, Secure, Affordable Homes For All

I have received the message below from London Private Tenants. Census data released last week showed a significant rise in the number of Brent residents living in the private rented sector. Brent Council leader Muhammed Butt has pledged action to improve the standard of homes in the sector but tenants also want to see the reintroduction of rent controls and increased security of tenure.

Join us on Tuesday 18th December at City Hall (GLA HQ) to stand up for the rights of private tenants to decent, affordable, secure homes.

When: 9am to 10am  - City Hall, The Queen's Walk, London SE1 2AA   [To help organise, meet 8:45am @ Cafe Fratelli, nearby]

We will be demanding that rent controls are brought back, local housing allowance (LHA) is increased with inflation, secure tenancies are reintroduced and greater protection and support is given to private tenants.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
On Tuesday 18th Dec the London Assembly Housing and Regeneration Committee are holding their last meeting as part of the review of London's Private Rented Sector. The theme of this meeting is 'tenant and landlord rights' and the purpose of the review is to 'evaluate different options for achieving higher property standards, greater security and more affordable tenancies'.

Tenants have been given little voice in the process so far, so come and join other private tenants and supporters to make our demands known and put pressure on those attending to stand up for private tenants.

Bring banners, Santa hats, placards, lots of noise ..and warm clothing...

Carol singing!
Tenants have adapted some classic carols to the theme of housing and will be singing on the day, so come ready with your best singing voice

The meeting
This is a public meeting and some of us are planning to go in, we want to make the presence of tenants and supporters felt, so please join us. At the start, we'll be presenting our 'Dear Santa' scrapbook to the Chair of the Committee, Len Duvall.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Private Tenants Demands...
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Affordability

Bring Rents Down!
Housing is a basic necessity, like food and water. Actions to maximize rental income at the detriment of tenants show this has been forgotten. Rent controls do exist on pre-1989 tenancies and we demand these controls be introduced to all tenancies.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Remove all bogus Letting Agents 'fees' for tenants!
Letting Agents provide a service to Landlords and charge them for doing so - they should not take further 'fees' from tenants. Agency 'fees', reference 'checks', admin 'fees' and leaving 'fees' are all costs that have been created in recent years by and for Letting Agents to increase their profits and exploit the basic need to have a home.

Length of Tenure
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Bring Back Secure Tenancies!
Until 1988 most tenancies were secure. Today, private tenants are given a six month tenancy with few rights. Across London, people are being evicted by landlords who know they can charge extortionate rents for substandard properties. Tenants should be able to live in their chosen community and home, near schools, friends and family, as long as they wish. Housing should not be a business like selling cars or renting holiday homes. Bringing back rent control will force rents down to affordable levels.

Tenant and Landlord Rights

Decent Standards!
Less than half of private rented homes meet the Decent Homes Standard. Many homes in London are in an appalling, dangerous condition and it is often children, the elderly and vulnerable adults who are worse affected. The link between poor housing and the health, wellbeing and life chances of tenants is striking. 

Tenant Empowerment!
The GLA should ensure that empowering tenants is central to the policy recommendations that come out of this review. Presently, landlords have many rights, and tenants have very few. This balance of power needs to be shifted so that tenants are empowered to enforce their right to be involved in all decision-making about their housing, from rent to maintenance to length of tenancy. The GLA should ensure that the voice of private tenants is heard at all levels of policy making. There is a tradition of landlords being thoroughly consulted in discussions about the private rented sector but tenants being ignored. The London Assembly has the power to see this change.

Private Tenants in London are mobilising! Why not get involved with a group near you? Or set one up of your own.

- Housing for the 99% .,.. housingforthe99@gmail.com
- Hackney Housing Action Group...hackneyhousinggroup@gmail.com
- Digs - Hackney Private Renters Group.. hello@hackneyrenters.org
- Haringey Housing Action Group... housing-action@haringey.org.uk

A £1m opportunity and challenge for Wembley Central

The £1m plus grant to improve the Wembey Central area is good news.  Attempts at reviving the area have had only limited success with the Cooperative Society closing its new Central Square store only a short time after its opening.

There are are now a number of closed shops and much office accommodation remains unoccupied with more to come when Brent council buildings are vacated next year. Current vacant spaces in the Wembley area can be seen on the Coming Soon website HERE

As a teacher in the area though, I was most aware of the poor and over-crowded housing with some of the worse short-term accommodation above the shops on the High Road.

The £1m comes from the Big Local programme funded by the national lottery and managed by Local Trust

The local focus of the project is premised on local involvement and a key issue will be how the priorities of local residents will be ascertained. Campaigning in the area during elections and by-elections I often found residents uninterested in local issues with the transient nature of the population a limiting factor. It will be a real challenge to get a representative level of involvement and a viable vehicle to share and prioritise ideas but the promise of tangible pay-offs should help.

This is what Big Local sets out about how the programme works:

What is Big Local?

Big Local is an exciting opportunity for residents in 150 areas around England to use at least £1m to make a massive and lasting positive difference to their communities. It’s about bringing together all the local talent, ambitions, skills and energy from individuals, groups and organisations who want to make their area an even better place to live.

Big Local is being run by Local Trust, which is working with £200m from the Big Lottery Fund and a range of partners providing expert advice and support for residents.

The four programme outcomes for Big Local are:

1. Communities will be better able to identify local needs and take action in response to them.
2. People will have increased skills and confidence, so that they continue to identify and respond to needs in the future.
3. The community will make a difference to the needs it prioritises.
4. People will feel that their area is an even better place to live.

What’s it not about?

It’s NOT about your local authority, the government or a national organisation telling you what to do.

It’s NOT about individual groups fixing their favourite problem without talking to a wide range of different people who live and work in the community.

It’s NOT about short-term thinking – you’ve got 10 years or more to plan and deliver the best options for your area.

Help 'animate' the new Civic Centre with art and culture

Brent Council has put out a call  to schools, colleges, art groups, artists, voluntary organisations and others to help them 'animate' the new Civic Centre when it opens in Summer 2013. Unfortunately it is a tight deadline for those institutions that will be closed over the Christmas holiday - particularly schools and colleges.:

Brent Council is looking for individuals, arts organisations and community groups who are interested in participating in an arts and culture programme for the new Brent Civic Centre.

The programme is being developed to animate the civic centre, due to open in summer 2013, and make it a welcoming place to visit for everyone.

The first season of activities and events will run from June to December 2013, and we are interested to hear from artists and organisations of all disciplines including:

• carnival
• music
• dance
• theatre
• spoken word
• circus
• fashion
• architecture
• design
• visual arts
• digital arts
• film.

We would also like to hear from schools colleges, community groups and voluntary organisations.

View more information on this call out and how to apply

Deadline for expressions of interest: 12 noon, Monday 21 January 2013

Willesden Town Square Enquiry adjourned until February 2013

Cllr Muhammed Butt addresses 100 Days Of Peace Rally in the Town Square

 The Public Enquiry into the application to register the space outside Willesden Green Library as a Town Square  has been adjourned until February 2013 on the grounds that the applicant was not given enough time to prepare the case.

A preliminary hearing will be still be held on Monday December 17th, 10am Studio 2, Willesden Green Library Centre. This will hear directions from the Inspector to the parties concerned. The meeting is open to the public.

The delay has implications for the timetable for the planning application for redevelopment of the site and the building of 95 homes as the developer's plans involves building on the Town Square.

Evidence of the use of the Town Square can therefore continue to be sent to Martin Redston mredston@compuserve.com as signed PDFs with any photographic evidence. The Inspector will be seeking to establish that:

i. A significant number of inhabitants of any locality, or any neighbourhod within locality, indulges as of right in lawful sports and pastimes on the land for a period of at least 20 years; and
ii. They continue to do so at the time of application


Comments are also still possible on the planning application and can be sent to andy.bates@brent.gov.uk (Reference 12/2924 12/2925)

WE DEMAND A BILL FOR PEOPLE AND THE PLANET, NOT FOR POLLUTING PROFITEERS

                     EMERGENCY DEMONSTRATION

Wednesday 19th December 2012
5.30pm-7pm
Parliament Square
   
The Government is trying to sneak its disastrous Energy Bill through Parliament before Christmas with minimal attention.

Don't let them get away with it!

Come to Parliament Square on the day the Bill is debated to MAKE A NOISE for an energy system that serves people and planet.

Bring instruments, bring chants, bring Energy Bill-themed Christmas songs...

Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/515534771803540/

WE DEMAND A BILL FOR PEOPLE AND THE PLANET, NOT FOR POLLUTING PROFITEERS

We are groups and individuals who have come together to highlight the deep flaws in the Energy Bill now going through Parliament. The Bill as written will take us further away from the urgent tasks of cutting down greenhouse gas emissions and helping people to heat and power their homes affordably.

The past year has revealed the dangers of climate change resulting from rising greenhouse gas emissions, caused largely by the burning of fossil fuels. A series of extreme weather events and a melting Arctic point to the future catastrophe we face as a result of a drastically changing climate, caused by the failure to control rising emissions.

Sections of the media and some politicians have framed the Bill as a threat to increase our energy bills to pay for low carbon renewable energy, but this argument is deeply flawed.

The Energy Bill in its current form would lock us into future dependence on fossil fuels - by encouraging a new dash for gas. Our energy bills would continue to shoot up as gas prices increase and we turn to environmentally-destructive fracking. 

The lack of a 2030 electricity decarbonisation target in the Bill makes this future dependence on fossil fuels more probable. This frightening omission only serves to line the pockets of Big Energy, instead of making the planet habitable for future generations. We should be empowering communities and individuals to generate their own renewable energy locally, and investing in energy efficiency and storage, to make energy bills affordable for struggling householders.

We call for an emergency demonstration outside Parliament at the second reading of the Bill, and will work to build a further demonstration and rally outside Parliament at the third reading of the Bill. 

We need an energy system that serves people and the planet, not Cameron and his cronies.

http://www.climatebloc.wordpress.com/

Ash dieback worsened by 'science dieback'

Natural fascination: children discover a slow worm in Fryent Country Park

There was an interesting juxtaposition of articles in yesterday's papers. The lack of plant pathologists was cited in evidence to the Parliamentary Environment Committee as a reason for the slow reaction to the ash tree die back crisis. This was attributed to 'severe' job losses in plant science as well as the lack of university courses in the subject. Barry Gardiner MP uncovered the lack of controls on the import of firewood and wood pellets produced from infected ash trees which could carry the disease into the country if they were mixed with leaves and twigs from the trees. Meanwhile the National Trust criticised the government's interim measures for prioritising the continuation of trade over dealing with the threat. Simon Pryor from the National Trust said, 'Through this action plan we're effectively surrendering the British landscape to this disease.'

Cuts, education policy and the prioritisation of trade combine to make a difficult situation worse and underline the Coalition's incompetence.

The other news story was about the decline in scientific knowledge of 14 year olds in international comparisons, Such comparisons are notoriously unreliable but there has been less emphasis on science in primary schools as a consequence of the ending of written tests in the subject at the end of Key Stage 2. With schools being judged on test results in English and Mathematics and low results bringing negative Ofsted judgements and threats of forced academy status,  schools are concentrating on the 3Rs.

Children's fascination with the natural environment (see them clustered around snails, slugs and worms in the school garden or bent over paving stone cracks on 'flying ant day') should be an interest to build on in the classroom, but too often it is ignored, to concentrate on the timetabled literacy and maths lessons.

This is a pity as so much mathematics and literacy can come out of science based on motivating and exciting  first hand experience rather than lessons down-loaded from the internet. A lifelong interest in nature can come from such early encounters.

Michael Gove will no doubt blame teachers for this, although it is a consequence of both Labour and the Coalition's narrow view of education and their repressive testing regime. It does not even make sense in their own terms as the need to compete internationally, that they both cite,  requires creativity and adaptability rather than the regurgitation of facts and model essays that the new examination system is emphasising.

Kensal Rise Library listing as Community Asset hailed as good news

Jodi Gramigni writes:

Great news! Kensal Rise Library has been added to the Brent Local Authority "List of Assets of Community Value".(Harrow Observer: Kilburn Times:)

This is extremely good news because it confirms the buildings significance as a Community Asset under the new legislation. Please see this LINK for further information:

In fact, Kensal Rise Library is already considered a special resource, and is also listed as a Non-Designated Heritage Asset in Brent, more commonly referred to as "Locally Listed". Being Locally Listed does not afford the same protection as English Heritage Listing, but it does require extra care and consideration by the Planners in regard to changes to the building, including change of use (i.e. from community use to residential use).

Why is this important? Because All Souls has chosen to sell Kensal Rise Library to developers for conversion to private flats even though the library is Locally Listed. Although we did not expect that All Souls would necessarily choose our bid, we did believe that they would choose a bidder who was sympathetic to the planning restrictions in place (i.e. school, charity, library, etc), because they advised us that community use was their preferred option. Sadly, as you know, this was not the case.

However, now that the Kensal Rise Library has been added to the "List of Assets of Community Value", we can prepare a bid (to buy) the building and try to keep it as a community resource. This is an important decision for the community and one that will be need to be thoughtfully considered and discussed in days to come.

You may be wondering if it is necessary, or if in fact if it is reasonable, to consider preparing a bid to buy Kensal Rise Library if All Souls has already offered us an area for a small library.

The truth is, the area All Souls College has offered only practically allows enough space to have one reading room. Because of this limited size we would most likely need to choose either an Adults Library or a Children's Library. As you might imagine we would like a better outcome for the community than a small one room library surrounded by flats. We have, of course, requested more space in our ongoing negotiations, and while nothing concrete has been forthcoming, we are always ready and willing to discuss alternative proposals. In the meanwhile this new development - Community Asses designation - supports the the buildings main function as a library and gives us another option to consider.

This will be our third Christmas campaigning for Kensal Rise Library. As the holidays approach, and frost envelops the pop-up, it is worth remembering that while the land was generously gifted over 112 years ago, the building was paid for by local subscription and donations. This community has always been, and will always be, committed to achieving a fair outcome, a moral outcome, and a just outcome, for our library.

Many thanks for all of your support!
Kind regards,
Jodi

London Councils laments but where's the fightback?

Anti-cuts campaigners in London have been urging councils to get together with their communities to mount a challenge to the cuts imposed by the Coalition.  Most now admit that the cuts are doing real damage to and hitting the most vulnerable.  London Councils, the body representing boroughs across London,  could be the vehicle for a coordinated campaign but have been reduced to lamenting the impact while local councils quietly carry on carrying out the Coalition's dirty work for them.

If London took the lead this could be followed by other local authorities and the beginning of a national movement.

London Councils issued the following statement after the Autumn Statement:

On the basis of the Chancellor's Autumn Statement, funding for local government is expected to fall by a further 2% in 2014/15 beyond the funding reductions already expected. 

Mayor Jules Pipe, Chair of London Councils says:

 ‘The capital needs 90,000 more school places for the start of the 2015 school term and the city’s housing crisis has been brought into sharp relief by the Government’s changes to the benefits regime.

‘This means additional financial pressure on London councils as they seek to ensure a good school for all London’s children and decent homes for Londoners.

‘In 2010 the Government announced a cut of 28% to local government grant. Yet the Government continues to cut the amount of funding available to local government.

‘London’s councils have been at the forefront of delivering efficiency savings while attempting to improve and protect local services.

‘The Government needs to be aware that with increasing levels of demand this level of cuts is unsustainable and presents a significant level of risk to delivering those services vital to ensuring that London is a world class competitive city. The Government needs to realise that if London doesn't work, the country doesn't work."

Butt: The working poor, disabled and young families will be hit by 'Coalition Poll Tax' passed tonight

Brent Council tonight approved the Council Tax Support scheme that Council leader, Muhammed Butt, described as a Coalition Poll Tax that had been forced on the Council by the Government.

Butt, confessing that the scheme was the most unsettling thing that he'd had to do in his political life, said that the Council had been faced with 'equally nasty' choices over which vulnerable groups would be hit. The working poor, the disabled and families with young children would all suffer.  By definition, anyone entitled to Council Tax Support was vulnerable but 'some are more vulnerable than others.'  Pensioners and war pensioners had been protected and most now having to contribute would pay no more than £4.99 a week. He went on however to admit that was still  'a significant amount of money from people who, frankly, just don't have it.'

'Painful and difficult' changes had to be made with the better off claimants having to pay more and the amount of savings allowed reduced from £16,000 to £6,000.

Cllr Butt called for councillors to support the scheme that was 'as fair as it can be'.  Rounding on the Opposition benches  he declared, 'It is your government, your  Coalition, your actions that have brought this about, You are taking money from the strivers and strugglers, the vulnerable and the disabled and giving it to the rich. You should stand up and say sorry to the people of Brent.'

In the questions that followed Butt was asked why the scheme assumed a collection rate of 80% rather than 85%. He responded that  the Council had to make a realistic assumption when collecting tax from 24,000 people who had never paid it before. Lib Dem councillor Barry Cheese asked Butt to look again at the levy on young job seekers who were already under pressure with parents who themselves would be hard up. 

Lib Dem leader Paul Lorber asked why an £800,000 buffer had been set aside in a scheme of £5.1m and why reserves weren't used instead. A cushion of 20% was excessive. Butt responded that the buffer was normal prudential action. Lorber said that the reduction of savings allowance to £6,000 from £16,000 was too much and that this was often money put aside for a funeral.

Lorber went on to say that in the briefing that preceded the council meeting they had been told that they had to accept the scheme - there was no alternative.   He put forward amendments that would protect young job seekers for the first 12 months after their first claim, retain the £16,000 savings allowance and  reduce the minimum contribution to Council Tax from 20% to 15%.  Conservative leader Cllr Kansagra repeated his usual 'blame the Labour government' line and suggested that Labour was choosing to hit the poor rather than make the necessary cuts in services. Tory councillor HB Patel made a somewhat incoherent attack on the plans to increase council tax on empty properties and second homes - 'You are taking away money!'

Defending the proposed Council Tax Support scheme Cllr Powney said that the low level of council reserves had been criticised over many years and that the incoming administration had decided to bring them into line with auditors' recommendations. We had to recognise the difficulty in getting the 24,000 to pay up and that the monies available for the scheme would be eroded by inflation in subsequent years. He said that the £6,000 savings threshold had been chosen to be in line with the Coalition's proposals for Universal Benefit and that if he disagreed with it Lorber should the issue up with Sarah Teather and government ministers.

Labour voted down the Lib Dem amendments and the scheme was approved.

The Labour benches were unusually subdued, as were the Lib Dems, and it was clear that Cllr Butt was not the only one 'unsettled' by the measures that were being taken that will, in a few months times, lead to people's lives becoming even more difficult and some families having to choose between food, heating and paying their council tax.

What is even worse is that many of those that will be hit do not yet know what is coming...

Starbucks versus Sure Start and women's services- the protest

I accuse the Coalition of knowingly increasing child poverty

Blurb of 'Born to Fail?' 1973

A month or so ago during morning play at a local primary school a 5 year old boy came up to me, rubbing his stomach looking at me with pleading eyes, and saying 'I'm hungry'.

Sympathetic school staff  found some biscuits and fruit to keep him going until dinner time. Apparently it wasn't the first time he had made that appeal. 

Inevitably schools are the first to see the direct impact of economic pressure on families, not just hunger but inadequate clothing, worn out shoes, tiredness caused by lack of sleep through living in one room in a bed and breakfast or shared housing. We are also seeing children disappearing from the school roll as they are rehoused out of London away from family and support systems.

Although the Coalition is keen to shift the blame on to 'work shy' families, fecklessness and dependency culture in an effort to divide and rule the working class, the truth is that 62% of children currently in poverty have one working parent. However the Coalition  seem determined to punish children for the perceived sins of their parents.

Coalition policies including the Housing Benefit cap, the Universal Benefit cap, and the move to restrict child benefit to the  first two children, will reduce disposable income and thus amount available to buy food.

The Coalition are taking food out of children's mouths.

There has been some progress recently in closing the gap in educational achievement between the poor and the rich, a gap so vividly illustrated by the National Children's Bureau in 'Born to Fail' in 1973. More recently the Child Poverty Action Group has listed the impact of child poverty:

• There are 3.6 million children living in poverty in the UK today. That’s 27 per cent of children, or more than one in four.
• There are even more serious concentrations of child poverty at a local level: in 100 local wards, for example, between 50 and 70 per cent of children are growing up in poverty.
• Work does not provide a guaranteed route out of poverty in the UK. Almost two-thirds (62 per cent) of children growing up in poverty live in a household where at least one member works.
• People are poor for many reasons. But explanations which put poverty down to drug and alcohol dependency, family breakdown, poor parenting, or a culture of worklessness are not supported by the facts.
• Child poverty blights childhoods. Growing up in poverty means being cold, going hungry, not being able to join in activities with friends. For example, 62 per cent of families in the bottom income quintile would like, but cannot afford, to take their children on holiday for one week a year.
• Child poverty has long-lasting effects. By 16, children receiving free school meals achieve 1.7 grades lower at GCSE than their wealthier peers. Leaving school with fewer qualifications translates into lower earnings over the course of a working life.
• Poverty is also related to more complicated health histories over the course of a lifetime, again influencing earnings as well as the overall quality – and indeed length - of life. Professionals live, on average, eight years longer than unskilled workers.
• Child poverty imposes costs on broader society – estimated to be at least £25 billion a year. Governments forgo prospective revenues as well as commit themselves to providing services in the future if they fail to address child poverty in the here and now.
• Child poverty reduced dramatically between 1998/9-2010/12 when 1.1 million children were lifted out of poverty (BHC).This reduction is credited in large part to measures that increased the levels of lone parents working, as well as real and often significant increases in the level of benefits paid to families with children.
• Under current government policies, child poverty is projected to rise from 2012/13 with an expected 300,000 more children living in poverty by 2015/16.This upward trend is expected to continue with 4.2 million children projected to be living in poverty by 2020.

The last Labour government pledged to reduce child poverty with some limited success and the goal was supposed to have cross-party support. Clearly the Coalition is going in the opposite direction.

'Born to Fail' in 1973 concluded:

...if it is accepted that many parents are expected to cope with impossible burdens and that their material circumstances provide a major contribution to those burdens then there is much to be said for tackling  more earnestly the poor housing and low income that our study has revealed, Arguably it could eliminate a large part of many families' difficulties. And on humanitarian grounds alone large numbers of children need a better chance to grow, develop, learn and live that they currently received...

Are we more interested in a bigger national cake so that some children get a bigger slice eventually - or are we ready for disadvantaged children to have a bigger slice now even if as a result our personal slice is smaller. 

How many of our pleasures are bought at the expense of the disadvantaged.

It is not just the immediate hunger that a child might feel today but the way that will affect their life chances in terms of education attainment, health and income. For society it raises questions about polarisation, alienation, disaffection and conflict.

In 2011 the Institute for Fiscal Studies in Child and Working Age Poverty 2010-2014 modelling the changes ahead in welfare and fiscal policy concluded:

The results therefore suggest that there can be almost no chance of eradicating child poverty - as defined in the Child Poverty Act - on current government policy.

 

Although this project did not assess what policies would be required in order for child poverty to be eradicated, it is impossible to see how relative child poverty could fall by so much in the next 10 years without changes to the labour market and welfare policy, and an increase in the amount of redistribution performed by the tax and benefit system, both to an extent never before seen in the UK. IFS researchers have always argued that the targets set in the Child Poverty Act were extremely challenging, and the findings here confirm that view. It now seems almost incredible that the targets could be met, yet the government confirmed its commitment to them earlier this year, in its first Child Poverty Strategy, and remains legally-bound to hit them.

There is no shortage of evidence about the damage that is currently being done and that will increase over the next few years.  The only conclusion I can reach is that the Coalition  is prepared to see children suffer as they pursue their aim to destroy the welfare state.

Harlesden incinerator plans put on hold

The Brent and Kilburn Times is reporting that the application for an incinerator at Willesden Junction have been put on hold by Ealing Council. This follows a letter from HS2 regarding their need for the proposed site.

How the poor will be hit by Council Tax Support scheme

The Special Meeting of Brent Council on Monday will be making decisions on the new Council Tax Support scheme that will leave many residents worse off. This follows the Coalition handing implementation of the schemes to local councils whilst at the same time reducing the money available by at least 10%.

The overall result in Brent is that residents who used to receive Brent will now generally  have to pay double the contribution to Council Tax that they used to pay.   These residents will also be hit by other benefit changes including the Housing Benefit cap and the Universal Benefit cap. 24,604 residents will be affected by the changes which can only have the effect of pushing more people into poverty.

The following table gives an overall picture but the full document needs to be read for detail on excemptions and the means-testing involved.
 

Description of deduction	Amount of weekly deduction 2012/13	Proposed weekly CTS scheme deduction	Annual change in 2013/14
Adult in receipt of pension credit guarantee credit or savings credit	Nil	Nil	Nil
Adult in receipt of employment support allowance (income related) main or assessment phase	Nil	Nil	Nil
Adult in receipt of job seekers allowance (contribution based) or employment support allowance (contributed based)	£3.30	£6.60	£171.60
Gross income of adult  in remunerative work is less than £183	£3.30	£6.60	£171.60
Gross income of adult in remunerative work is greater than or equal to £183 but less than £316	£6.55	£13.10	£340.60
Gross income of adult in remunerative work is greater than or equal to £316 but less than £394	£8.25	£16.50	£429.00
Gross income of adult in remunerative work is greater than or equal to £394	£9.90	£19.80	£514.80
Adult in receipt if job seekers allowance (income based)	Nil	£6.60	£343.20
Adult in receipt of income support	Nil	Nil	Nil
Adult working less than 16 hours per week or is on maternity, paternity, adoption or sick leave	£3.30	£6.60	£171.60
Any other adult not included in the above descriptions	£3.30	£6.60	£171.60

There are likely to be difficulties concerning collection of council tax where resident are already financial pressed or where they have not paid anything before.

A second decision that the Full Council will have to make is on changing the amount of tax paid on empty properties. Owners of such properties will now have to pay more Council Tax and in the case of long-term empty homes this could be a 150% tax after two years.

These are the proposals set out in the report:
 

• Class A empty properties (requiring major repairs or undergoing structural alterations) – reduce the current 100% exemption to 50% discount for the first twelve months.

• Class C empty properties (vacant and substantially unfurnished) – reduce the current 100% exemption to zero so that the owners of such properties pay 100% of their Council Tax liability with immediate effect from the date of vacation.

• Second Homes – Remove the current 10% discount so that owners of such properties pay 100% of their Council Tax liability

• Long term empty properties – charge a 50% premium after they have been empty and unfurnished for 2 years so that the Council Tax liability for such properties is 150% (after two years).

This is the full report:

 

Local press continue to hold Brent Council to account

Following my recent posting on the importance of the local press in ensuring the accountability of councillors and the counter claim that the BKT was too close to the council, it was heartening to see the front page of the newspaper this week. LINK

Clearly the BKT is continuing to dig up stories that ensure resident know what is really  going on in the Town Hall.

The Wembley and Willesden Observer also has a story this week about the importance of the local press with post-Leveson comments from campaigners about the part local newspapers have played in enabling them to put their message across.

McDonnell: Let's form a national coalition against poverty

John McDonnell MP has sent the following open letter to his Labour colleagues:

Dear Colleague,

Proposed Welfare Benefits Bill

As you know, Osborne announced that the Coalition is to bring forward before Christmas a Bill to sanction the cuts in welfare benefits set out in yesterday’s autumn statement.

We all know that there is no need for primary legislation to implement these cuts and that this is his crude and blatantly cynical attempt to lay what he considers will be a political trap for Labour.

In his crude political terms, his obvious aim is to be able to claim that if Labour votes against or abstains on his Bill then we are on the side of the so called skivers whilst the Tories are the champions of the strivers. If we do vote for the Bill he will then cite our vote as support for his attack on benefits.

Like many right wing politicians over the years, when their policies are demonstrably failing they reach for a scapegoat. It’s often the poor simply because they haven’t the power to defend themselves.

I believe that we shouldn’t allow ourselves to be dragged into the gutter of politics by Osborne’s exploitation of the poorest and most vulnerable in our society.

Instead of falling for this grubby trap us let’s take them on, on this issue.

If we have the courage and behave astutely, we could turn this cynical ploy by Osborne into an opportunity for us to transform the debate on the issues of welfare, poverty, unemployment and fairness in our society.

 

This means stop all hesitation on this matter and making it clear now that we are not voting for this cynical attack on the poorest, which includes cutting benefits to many people in work and struggling to survive on low pay and often poverty wages.

It means saying now that we are taking the Tories on, on the issue of fairness. Nobody, especially ordinary working people, likes a skiver but there are mechanisms that can deal with this and if they need improving well let’s have that debate. The fact is that it is becoming increasingly obvious to our people that it is the rich and wealthy, who are ripping us off with tax dodging. It is equally becoming obvious whose side the Tories are on.

Let’s seize upon this opportunity to highlight the real facts about the hardship that so many of our people are facing. Most of our community are under pressure. Many are only a couple of pay packets away from a life on the edge. Many others have tipped over into debt and poverty.

Let’s turn the tables on Osborne and use this opportunity to expose this reality and offer our alternative of a fair tax system and investment for growth led employment.

Let’s get out there and build the coalition of all those people and organisations who are willing to speak out on what is happening to our people. That means nationally and locally bringing together not just all the charities and campaigning organisations that take an interest in poverty and welfare but all the churches, mosques, synagogues, gurdwaras, community organisations and anyone with a conscience on this issue.

Let’s lead in forming a new national coalition against poverty and those who attack the poor.

Let’s enlist the support of people from all walks of life, including artists and performers, in the same way we did in the fight against the prejudice of the Nazis against black people and ethnic minorities.

In many ways it’s the same struggle against prejudice mobilised by cynical politicians.

It should start though by making it clear immediately that we are not playing Osborne’s cynical political games. We are not voting for his cuts to the poor.

Yours ,

John McDonnell MP

Greens' alternative to 'cuts at all costs'

The Green Party is calling for positive economic policies instead of the Coalition’s dogmatic, self-perpetuating and failed “cut at all costs” approach.

Green Party leader Natalie Bennett said:

We reject this government’s self-defeating and contradictory approach of trying to cut its way to growth while providing tax giveaways to large corporations, including environmentally and socially destructive fossil fuel companies.

And we reject its inhuman and inhumane pressure on the poorest in society - households with members in work and those without - with non-pensioner benefits restricted to real-term decreases (below inflation, 1% increases) for the next three years. That’s £3.7bn being squeezed from people whose lives are often already insecure and desperate.

One certainty George Osborne has ensured is that the foodbank “industry” is going to become a permanent feature in Coalition Britain, the world’s seventh-wealthiest economy.

Britain needs to invest in environmentally-positive, jobs-creating policies, rather than using the UK’s historically unremarkable debt to GDP ratio to justify slashing state expenditure and further tax cuts for the wealthiest.

A Green government would immediately invest the £4bn windfall from the 4G phone spectrum auction and the £35 billion quantitative easing surplus to create jobs in low-carbon infrastructure and in sectors such as renewable energy, energy-efficiency, low-carbon finance and manufacturing and in our contracting construction sector. The Green New Deal group has called for green quantitative easing to fund solar PV, insulation and other efficiency schemes that could create 140,000 jobs.

Despite Osborne’s best efforts to hold them back, green industries are already providing essential goods and services that we need - from insulation to clean power from wind turbines - having contributed over 9% of UK GDP in 2011 - yet they retain enormous job creation potential.

The Green Party would  ‘reboot’ the tax system to ensure that wealthy individuals and multinational companies pay their fair share, levelling the playing field for small businesses that are currently paying their taxes and struggling to compete against the tax-avoiding business giants.

Ms Bennett said:

Our reformed tax system would replace council tax and business rates with a land value tax, a wealth tax to recover some of the gains from those who benefited from the boom years and have surfed unscathed through the bust. Furthermore, we would end tax relief on private pensions, putting the savings into a Citizens’ Pension that would immediately lift all pensioners out of poverty.

There would be a financial transaction tax to discourage casino-style financial trading, moves to force transparency in the books of multinational corporations and a genuine, effective crackdown on tax avoidance.

And it is difficult to have faith in the Chancellor’s announcement of new infrastructure projects, as his government announced a similar scheme in 2010, which has actually delivered a decrease in spending on construction. The government has also delivered just £750m of a £5bn expenditure it promised for public works at last year’s Autumn Statement.

Natalie added:

In recreating the failed PFI schemes of the last Labour government, this government is repeating its predecessor’s mistakes and announcing headline projects that are unlikely to be delivered. According to the Office for National Statistics, we already have future PFI liabilities of £144bn. Renegotiations that have saved £2.5bn are small beer in comparison.

A Green government would provide genuine government investment in the new schools and transport infrastructure that we need. What we don’t need is spending on new roads, an action shown to simply move congestion from one place to another.

Power from Pee process invented by schoolgirls

HS2 or Incinerator - what a choice for Willesden Junction!

Well, here's a dilemma!

The Brent and Kilburn Times is reporting LINK that the Willesden Junction site ear-marked for an incinerator may be required by HS2 to transport waste from nearby tunnelling operations.HS2 under its safeguarding rights would have prior claim to the site.

Brent Greens are opposed to both the incinerator proposal and HS2 - perhaps we should campaign for a much needed green space on the site or an Alternative Technology Centre

Sing-along to a musical critique of bankers

I couldn't resist sharing this with you. Even I can sing along with it!

A new dangerous neighbour in Kensal Green

Atos abandon wheelchair user in fire emergency

Cameron's Britain continues to shock. This happened just down the road in Neasden: (From The Independent) LINK

Recently, there have been several  reports of Atos carrying out their fitness to work assessments in buildings which are not wheelchair accessible.

Considering the number of wheelchair users who undergo fitness-to-work assessments, this is only seen as yet another thing to add to the long list of serious problems that disabled people and carers  have with the way the company operates.

The latest story of an inaccessible assessment centre appears to be the worst one yet, with the most serious potential consequences for a severely disabled person. It also illustrates clearly exactly why it is so important that all centres and offices used by Atos should be completely wheelchair accessible.

Geoff Meeghan, 32, has early-onset Parkinson’s disease and cannot walk more than three metres unsupported. He was being assessed by Atos on the second floor of a building in Neasden, North West London. A few minutes into his assessment, the fire alarm went off.

Staff evacuated the building, but left him behind in his wheelchair.

Disabled people are supposed to be asked whether they can exit the building unassisted. Mr Meeghan, for some unknown reason, was apparently not asked this question.

He also said that they were not allowed to use the lift and when they asked a security guard for help, he said he would send some, but no one came. Eventually, another security guard arrived at the scene and stayed with Mr Meeghan and his carers, even though he had been told to evacuate.

Mr Meeghan can tackle stairs supported, he said, but in the “highly stressful situation” he felt it was “far too risky.”

Most shocking of all, it was a real fire. Mr Meeghan said “It wasn’t a drill. We could see the fire engine arriving outside.”

He went on to strongly criticise the company, saying: “I feel like there was a general lack of respect for disabled people at Atos – they make you feel as though you’ve done something wrong by being disabled – like you’re being persecuted.”

An Atos spokesperson said: “This should never have happened and we apologise unreservedly. We will be getting in contact with Mr Meeghan directly. We have since reviewed this case internally with the building security and management team to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

“This is a DWP building and the fire warden in charge on the day followed the appropriate evacuation procedures and advised that everyone had to leave the building except for a security guard who was asked to stay with Mr Meeghan.”

Mr Meeghan is extremely lucky to be alive after this incident. And this story transpires after we hear of the Atos boss getting a £1million bonus.

It is now hoped that all Atos workers and assessment centres are made aware of this incident at the very earliest opportunity. It is also hoped that all assessment centres used by Atos will, in light of this case, now make every possible effort to provide ground floor rooms to wheelchair users for assessments at all times. At the very least offering respect and safety to the disabled people they are testing.

Mums against Harlesden Incinerator

This Soapbox has been posted  on the West London Mums website LINK

Contributed by: Virginia Rowe

Be afraid! Be very afraid! A new dangerous neighbour has set its sights on West London.

Yes mummies, daddies and kiddies, disturbing plans are afoot to build a giant waste incinerator at Willesden Junction, with devastating effects for family-friendly neighbourhoods for miles around.  So what would we be looking forward to if Ealing planning department give this the green light? (And folks, they really are leaning towards giving this the green light…)

Four 25 metre chimneys chugging out burnt toxic fumes 24/7 + in excess of 60 heavy duty trucks rumbling in and out of the area every day and night, polluting the lives of not only the poor residents that live on the doorstep of the proposed site, but also the whole area around Kensal Rise, Queens Park, North Kensington, Willesden Green, Harlesden, Ealing, Acton….. all family-friendly neighbourhoods.

Incinerator chimneys emit dioxins and heavy metals, associated with cancer, hormonal issues, reduced immune system capacity, effects on foetal development, lung and kidney disease and nervous system problems. These emissions travel for miles!

Despite mass public appeal, this planning application, submitted by a property company located in an offshore tax-haven, is actually being favoured by Ealing Council who will be making their decision on whether to go ahead with it on 19th December.

Few local residents have been informed or consulted on this toxic plan and the wording in the proposal is designed to deliberately mislead those who read it, using smoke and mirrors and a whole array of PR new speak.  At no point do they use the word ‘incinerator’ even though the ‘pyrolysis’ part of the plant, which will be burning gases, is actually deemed an incinerator by the European Union Waste Directive.

This would ruin our neighbourhoods and put our collective health at risk. There is no place for incinerators in highly populated residential areas. It is inhumane. And taking into account the overwhelming public response against them – undemocratic.

Say NO to our West London neighbourhood being turned into a toxic waste dump by a tax-haven based company that cares nothing for our area.

Contact your local MP, councillors and most importantly vote NO to the NW10 incinerator here:

Virginia is a creative director living and working in Kensal Rise. Follow her campaign against the proposed west London waste incinerator on twitter @NOincineratorNo

Calling Brent Youth: All I want for Christmas is a Future that works

 A one-day rally and workshop for 16-27 year olds on Youth Unemployment, Education, Apprenticeships and a welfare system that works.

Tell your story on youth unemployment and find your voice in our activism workshops.

Organised by Brent Youth and SERTUC Young Members Network

CONTACT: David Braniff on 020 7467 1283 or email LondonYouth@TUC.org.uk

 Saturday December 8th, 11am-4pm
 Harlesden Methodists Church,

25 High Street, Harlesden, NW10 4NE London, United Kingdom

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