Somali author Hashi Mohamed at Preston Community Library on March 3rd

From Preston Community Library

Local author Hashi Mohamed’s “People Like Us'' has been receiving national press and broadcast attention in the last few weeks since its publication by leading publisher PROFILE. He is coming to Preston Community Library as part of his UK-wide publicity tour on March 3rd.

Hashi arrived in the UK aged 9, a penniless, stateless, parentless refugee from the civil war in Somalia speaking no English.

Raised on benefits in Wembley, he is now a barrister in Lincoln's Inn and prolific broadcaster. He speaks in schools across the country and is mentor to an incredible 22 people. It could have all gone another way. The book is a gripping account, and an invaluable part of the debate on Social Mobility, the lack of...

Reviews

‘I found myself nodding in agreement with every word of People Like Us – Hashi Mohamed has written a moving, shocking, clear-eyed account of the increasingly rare phenomenon of social mobility using his own extraordinary story as a spine’  Grayson Perry

‘Finely written...an ambitious and far-reaching attempt to rethink the whole stalled project of social mobility’  Sunday Times

‘A work of courage and hope by a very remarkable individual’ Philippe Sands

Come and hear Hashid talk about his amazing journey through some of the lowest performing schools in Brent, to Oxford and the Bar, and join the debate.

Is Brent getting any closer to fulfilling its fossil fuel divestment pledge?

Cllr Shafique Choudhary, in a highly unusual contribution to the Allowances section of the Full Council agenda last Wednesday, made the case that the complexity, workload and responsibility - with the added issue of climate change, meant that the Chair of the Pensions Sub-Committee deserved a substantial additional allowance. 

Cllr Choudhary spoke about the role in the third person without mentioning that he is the Chair of that sub-committee. LINK

Certainly last night's meeting of the committee had a very heavy, complex and technical agenda and would have required a considerable amount of homework.  The committee had pre-meeting training on a range of subjects including the welcome addition of climate change, which made a very long evening for members and officers.

I was there as a member of Divest Brent, a cross-party and non-party group that want Brent to divest its pension fund from fossil fuels. This is a manifesto commitment of Brent Labour Party supported by more than 1,000 petition signatories and Brent NEU which represents support workers in schools who are members of the Pension Fund, among a range of other civil society groups. Divestment is made all the more relevant and urgent following the Council's declaration of a Climate Emergency.

Despite this, although there were warm words at the meeting about the need to take account of climate change it did not seem to move much closer to outright divestment. Although not included in any specfic recommendation adopted by the committee, there was support for 'engagement' with fossil fuels companies and car manufacturers as exemplified by a presention by LAPFF. LAPFF prioritise climate change and are part of Climate Action 100+

They think that engagement is preferable to divestment and although they would not try and stop clients from divesting would not recommend it.  - a view considered  by Simon Erskine in his presentation (see below). Instead the focus was on investing in low-carbon funds as part of the Fund's portfolio.

The committee agreed the following recommendations:

The Committee should discuss and agree the investment strategy review undertaken by the Fund’s investment advisors, Hymans Robertson, available in Appendix 1.

The following proposals should be taken into consideration:

·That the committee’s current investment beliefs are fit for purpose but expands on its Responsible Investment beliefs in light of the increased focus on, and importance of, this area.

·The current long term strategy is fit for purpose from a returns perspective as it is expected to return in excess of the required return.

·To introduce a global low carbon mandate as part of the Fund’s equity allocation and to delegate authority to the Director of Finance to agree the size and fund in question and to put into effect this investment following discussions at the committee meeting.

·The Fund’s actual investment arrangements will deviate from their target over time and therefore a degree of rebalancing should take place on a regular basis to try and prevent too much deviation from the desired strategic allocation.

Simon Erskine's presentation on behalf of Divest Brent:

Click bottom right for full page:

 

Simon had certainly done his homework but his recommendations were not addressed by the committee. Perhaps they could be on the agenda of the next meeting.

Update on Strathcona closure process

A Task Group has been set up with officers of the local authority and Roe Green-Strathcona senior management and the Chair of Governors to manage the phased closure of the Strathcona school site.

Although the unions are not part of the Task Group they will be receiving regular reports on its activity from Brent's Operational Director for Children and Families. I understand that the unions' suggestions on avoiding compulsory redundancies are being considered by the authority.

The NEU ballot for strike action is still live.

Discomfort as Brent councillors debate an increase in their own allowances

The debate comes just after the vote on the Local Plan

Last week's Full Council approved a Council Tax rise of 3.99%, numerous cuts and a rise in the councillor's basic allowance of 2% as recommended by the independent allowance review body.

Voting on your own renumeration is always an uncomfortable experience and this was no exception. As you will see in the video Cllrs Abdirazak Abdi, Robert Johnson and Anton Georgiou did not feel justified in taking the increase in the light of the Council Tax rise and many residents' difficult financial position.

Others argued that allowances had been fought for to give everyone, not just the well off, the ability to stand for Council and serve residents.

The livestream video does not show councillors as the vote was taken and it was not a 'recorded vote' when councillors' names are called out by the CEO like a school register and their vote recorded. I cannot hear the for and against vote on the video but think I heard 6 absentions.

There are quite a few barbs in the speeches which are likely to mean little to the public but seem to relate to levels of attendance at council meetings, the suggestion that some councillors are privileged and so can afford not to take the increase and allegations of 'grandstanding.'

Brent Central Labour Party GC: Labour suspensions 'smack of totalitarian regimes'

Graham Durham speaking at a joint Brent Solidarity Campaign-Brent Trades Council meeting on Palestine - September 2018
 

Local Labour pro-Palestine activist and former Brent Labour councillor Graham Durham last night received support from the GC of Brent Central Constituency Labour Party followed his ‘administrative suspension’ from the Labour Party after he pointed out that the Chief Rabbi was a Conservative in the context of the Board of Deputies ’10 Commandments’ put to Labour leadership candidates.

Durham had received enough support inside the Labour Party to be on the current ballot for the NEC but has now been removed.  There had been rumours about the suspension over the weekend, which initially he denied, only to receive the notification late as it had gone astray in the post.

This is the motion:

"This GC has been concerned at the recent spate of administrative suspensions from the Labour Party.

Candidates for the forthcoming NEC elections and parliamentary selections seemed to have been targeted which has meant that CLPs and unions who nominated these candidates were de facto disenfranchised. We were however pleased that Jo Bird, for example was "reinstated" and is back on the ballot paper.

Now it seems the same method of administrative suspension has been used again, this time against Brent Central member, Graham Durham, who was also on the ballot for NEC. This means he can no longer be on the ballot.

It seems to happen to members once they have achieved enough support to be on the ballot. Labour Party elections should be as democratic as possible. Removing candidates in this way smacks of totalitarian regimes who deal with "opponents" in this way rather than letting the electorate decide.

This GC wants there to be a fair and transparent election of NEC members and parliamentary candidates. The timing of these suspensions gives us cause for concern. We ask the NEC to address these issues as quickly as possible and call for NEC elections should to be halted until all candidates under suspension have been investigated or had their suspensions lifted. "

Love Where You Live - the Bobby Moore Bridge tile murals

From the “Brent & Kilburn Times”, 20 February 2020.

Guest post by Philip Grant

Dear Councillor Butt,

Love Where You Live - the Bobby Moore Bridge tile murals.  This is an open email.

​By chance, a letter that I wrote to the "Brent & Kilburn Times" (urging readers to go and see, by 24 February, the three tile murals which were "revealed" on 18 January) has been published today alongside your article, urging readers to Love Where You Live.

Like most of my fellow law-abiding local citizens, I abhor illegal rubbish dumping as much as you do. But there is more to having an environment that residents can love living in than just fighting against litter. 

Having beautiful surroundings, that give you a sense of pride in where you live, and encourage you to look after that place for others to enjoy as well, is another important factor. That is why, for the past couple of years, I have been working with colleagues in the Wembley History Society, and with a growing number of residents who have told me that they love the tile murals at Wembley Park, to try to get this Council-owned heritage artwork put back on public display.

I realise that most of the murals are currently covered over with advertisements, or with light panels which can be used for displaying advertisements. This is as a result of a lease of the Bobby Moore Bridge to Wembley Park Limited, which you and your Cabinet agreed to in January 2018. However, the Officer's Report on which you based that decision did not mention the murals, or disclose that the advertising rights were over walls with these tile murals on them, so that there was no consideration of the heritage value of the Council asset that you were being asked to sign away control over.

The current lease expires in August 2021, and I would ask you to give a commitment now, that when any renewal of advertising rights on the walls containing the Bobby Moore Bridge tile murals comes before Cabinet again, the Report must include a proper description of the murals involved, and a fair assessment of their heritage value, so that any decision is based on the full facts.

I believe that it would be possible for the Council to receive a worthwhile advertising income from the Bobby Moore Bridge, while still allowing the tile murals, or at least most of them, to be put back on permanent public display. So that the possible options which could deliver this outcome can be properly considered, I would ask you to notify Brent's Chief Executive, and confirm publicly, that you support the following suggestion:

My suggestion is that, within the next six months, a Senior Council Officer should meet with me, and any other representatives of Wembley History Society or local residents who wish to be involved, to discuss ways that the murals can be displayed again, while the Bobby Moore Bridge still produces advertising income for Brent Council. If those discussions produce a viable plan for a way forward, that plan should be implemented in good time before the current advertising lease expires on 30 August 2021, so that the Cabinet can choose what it considers the best option for the Bobby Moore Bridge from that date onwards.  

With the "reveal" of some of the murals for LBOC 2020, Brent has finally acknowledged that these scenes from famous sports and entertainment events at the Stadium and Arena 'are part of Brent’s rich heritage'. Now we need to build on that, to help Wembley Park residents, old and new, to Love Where They Live.

Let me end by echoing the closing words of your "View from the chamber" article, which I endorse: 'Working together, I know we can make an environment we can all be proud of.’

I look forward to receiving a positive response from you. Best wishes,

Philip Grant

(a Fryent Ward resident).

 

High Court challenge to Barnhill by-election result

An Election Petition has been issued in the Election Petition Office of the High Court challenging the result of the January 23rd by-election. The petitioners have applied for a court hearing and the High Court will list a time and date for the hearing which will published on Brent Council's website.

The petition from the Conservative candidates  is set out below and is available via the Council's website. As an interested party I will comment no further other than note that the election result was declared around 12.50am on January 24th rather than January 23rd.

Click bottom right for full page.

This was the result of the Barnhill by-election:

Winning hearts and minds on St Raph's

Two groups are active on social media with differing views on the current consultation taking place over the future of St Raphael's Estate.  Brent Council has put forward two possibilities - refurbishment with infill or demolition with the new blocks financed by private development on the same site.  South Kilburn has come into the equation both as a positive exemplar and a negative one.

From St Raphael's Estate Community

www.architectsforsocialhousing.co.uk

From St Raphael's Voice

https://www.brent.gov.uk/your-community/st-raphaels-estate/

Comments are welcome but please focus on the issues not the people involved.