Southwark mediation

As with most councillors in Southwark I’ve seen relly tricky anti social problems resolved by Southwark mediation service – the award-winning charity.

Sadly its funding from Southwark is ending. Amazingly the Labour cabinet member in charge of relations with charities Cllr Abdul Mohamed didn’t know this. He also denied that the charity had found it impossible to speak to any Labour councillors about this closure. Perhaps the cllr PA’s and secretaries have fended this charity away without checking with cllrs.

The council is proposing to train its own staff, who are quite often the subject of the mediation, to provide this service. Great fig leaf but hardly credible.

As reported before Southwark has the money to keep such services but Labour has decided to poor money into its reserves for a future rainy day….

North Cross Road market extension

After several months of public consultation the final recommendations of the Dulwich Community Council, based on lots of input from market traders, shop keepers and residents, were heard at last nights Licensing Committee about changes to North Cross Road market.

Stunningly the Licensing Committee, a semi judicial committee which is not legally allowed to be whipped along party lines, made its decisions exactly along party lines. Pure fluk?

 The committees Labour members apparently threw out all the proposals including any expansion. The Labour members then APPEAR to have realised they’d thrown everything out. They then APPEAR to have met as a Labour group with officers privately. They then returned to the committee and then decided to re vote approving the scheme but failed to immediately approve Sunday opening – which everyone is locally against – so decided that Sunday opening will be reviewed in 6 months time. Travesty of a decision against local democracy.

I’d like to publicly thank those members of the Licensing Committee who were prepared to listen to the Dulwich Community Councils recommendations based no traders, shop keepers and residents views. Those members who didn’t give the appearance of voting in a whipped way.

So we need to be prepared to yet again fight for the locally sensibly agreed recommendations against the Labour administration. What a waste of residents, shop owner, street trader, officer and councillor time.

What a potentially tragic waste of council resources.

Camberwell Baths reopens

I was chuffed to see Camberwell Baths finally open on Monday.

Despite years of council officers telling us we should close Camberwell baths when the Lib Dems led Southwark Council we didn’t. It’s such an important hub for Camberwell being Camberwell. The specious argument was Camberwellites could go to the Peckham Pulse for a swim or to use a gym.

So we made it a manifesto pledge in 2006 as part of our Lib Dem promise to modernise all Southwark’s leisure centres. We won and allocated over £12M for this. It took longer to make happen than we ever expected with Dulwich Leisure Centre phase 1 completing recently and now Camberwell Leisure centre.

People say whats the point of politics. These are clear examples of where politicians and politics make a difference.

2011 Census

The 2011 national census starts shortly and has been run every 10 years since 1801.  Censuses are used to decide how much money is handed to public bodies based on how many people and the demographics of those people living in an area. Forms will start being sent out 7 March and the answers are meant to be about where people are on Sunday 27 March.

The 2001 Census run by Labour in Southwark was a disaster for Southwark in that many many thousands of people went unrecorded. Consequently Southwark Council has been receiving many tens of millions every year less than it could have received.

Hopefully Labour run Southwark has learnt that lesson and will this time round run a good census.

So when you receive the forms please do fill them in completely and get them submitted promptly. Failure to fill them in could lead to a £1000 fine and a criminal record but more importantly if you and your friends and family aren’t recorded Southwark receives much less money to run services.

If you need any help filling in the forms please do feel free to contact me or the helpline 0300 0201 101 or www.census.gov.uk.

Unnecessary Labour cuts – excessive saving for a rainy day

Tomorrow is Southwark councils budget setting council assembly.
If anyone has a particular issue they’d like me to raise please do let me know.

The Labour proposals see huge squirelling away of money into contigency and unallocated reserves. The reserves were already standing at nearly £90M but under Labour proposals will soar to well over £100M. The proposed Labour cuts would see a dirtier meaner borough – not good going into the Olympic year 2012. In fact unallocated reserved and unallocated contingency funds already stand at £22.2M and will rise rapidly under Labours ‘saving for a rainy day budget’ to £49.2M.

The proposed budget can be seen here:

http://moderngov.southwarksites.com/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=132&MId=3454&Ver=4

The Lib Dem proposed amendments which will fail are attached….but always a chance Labour councillors, as per the 8 in Lambeth, wont have been paying council tax and therefore wont be able to vote….

Broadly the Lib Dem proposals would see no cuts to: 5-11 play service, no cuts to play centres for 0-5 year olds, preserve funding for older peoples day centre, older person assisted shopping service, taxicard scheme fully kept, keep all eco grants, keep community recycling scheme, all CGS kept, keep sport development and the community games, don’t cut street cleaning, fully preserve SASBU the award winning anti social behavioural unit, fully keep the noise team working 24/7 and not reduce it to day etc, keep lolly pop people protecting all our kids getting to and from school, keep current events programme (especially important going into the Olympic year), mainatain South London Gallery support, keep all libraries, mobile library, housebound library service, keep all night time and current street cleaning.

Pupil Premium

The Pupil Premium is extra money for every school for each poor pupil they take next year under the government’s pupil premium scheme – one of the key four Liberal Democrat manifesto pledges

Schools will receive the money for every pupil in receipt of free school meals whose parents have an annual income of less than £16,000. The premium schools will receive is £430 for each child.

Head teachers will be encouraged to spend their premium on reducing class sizes or more one-to-one tuition. This should Read the rest of this entry.

Grove Vale library

The planning application for current Dulwich Garden Centre to be demolished and replaced by a new Grove Vale library (twice the current ones size), 20 flats and a shop has been submitted.

This is more attractive than the previous application easthetically. Unfortunately it has had to propose the library in a slightly less favourable position but it is proposed it will be bigger than the replacement one previously proposed.

So I’m rather excited by this.

Do take a look and let me know what you think:

http://planningonline.southwarksites.com/planningonline2/AcolNetCGI.exe?ACTION=UNWRAP&RIPNAME=Root.PgeDocs&TheSystemkey=9538777

‘Leading Labour councillor quizzed by police over grooming child for sex’

Shocking that the circumstances around now former Cllr John Friary’s sacking on Wednesday as a cabinet member for Southwark Council and resignation on Thursday have been revealed as suggestions of grooming a child for sex. But he was, perhaps still is, a school governor and volunteers at an after school club. I hope it’s all a horrible mistake but I can’t imagine the Police not thinking their absolutely sure. Appalling.

Added to newly elected in May Labour Cllr Keadean Rhoden convicted of her second housing benefit fraud and forced to serve 200 hours community service.

Added to newly elected in May Labour Cllr Stephen Govier who has been suspended from the national Labour party under very mysterious circumstances. (Now clear it was for shooting someone in the head in California and his parole appears to have ended June 2005 within 5 years of his election in May 2010 which if he’d committed the offence in the UK, Channel Island or IoM would have exempted him from standing. technically he’s ok legally but morally clearly not and should never have been allowed to stand by Labour).

Added to Cllr Abdul Mohammed never correctly completing a Declarations of Interests form – and I’ve looked back to 2007 as far as record go back – which allows people to see if a councillor would benefit from any of the decision they’re involved with.

Could something fundamentally be wrong with Southwark Labour party?

To lose one Labour Councillor may be regarded as a misfortune for them, but to lose three looks like more than carelessness….It looks like complacency of the worst kind.

Be afraid, be very afraid

Recently the Labour Cabinet member councillors in Southwark went ‘back to the floor’.

It now appears whichever floor they each went back to is to receive significant cuts.

Cllr Barrie Hargrove went litter picking – which is now cut back from daily to every other day for a 1/3rd cuts.

Cllr Veronica Ward spent an afternoon on the mobile Library – it’s now completely cut. So all those housebound residents previously served by the mobile Library will no longer have any such such service.

Cllr John Friary spending part of an afternoon after school closing time out with Community Wardens – again 1/3rd cuts with no community wardens in the south of the borough anymore. Presumably he thinks nothing bad ever happen down here.

So if you run anything or value any of the services in Southwark never let a Labour cabinet member visit – they’re probably on the prowl finding more things to cut to fund their wild election promises.

Funnily enough this contrasts sharply with their leader Cllr Peter John. Wherever he goes he seems to offer a million or two million pounds. He visited the Herne Hill Velodrome – first he offered £25,00 to help save the Velodrome which has now turned int o a £2M Olympics fund. He met youngsters and has now stated he’ll created £1M fund to help sponsor apprentices or 9 under graduates. So if you get the chance ot meet him make it clear whether you expect one ot two million from him.

Grit on?

Friday and two very conflicting views on whether London and Southwark had enough grit and salt.

We had the Mayor of London stating London has “prodigious quantities of grit”. Great news. But Labour Southwark Cllr for gritting Barrie Hargrove stated “We urge residents to look out for themselves” while stating “With current low stocks of grit we are being forced to reduce operations”. This reduction has already seen shopping high street such as Lordship Lane left unsalted or gritted.

In fact the first bout of snow had side roads and pavements left un salted or gritted so reducing the salting and gritting operations further beggars belief.

Last winter 80 hand propelled gritters were bought when the Lib Dems ran Southwark Council. But this winter has seen them languishing as salt is tightly rationed across the borough. If you live outside Southwark main through routes have been kept open. Mean while the borough is a complete ice rink for those that actually live here. Good luck out there. Keep safe.