Andy Slaughter's eNews #37
Posted by Andrew Slaughter, MP for Ealing, Acton and Shepherd's Bush, at 09:48, Thu 25 September 2008:
CLEAR RED WATER It’s a pity it required the greatest turbulence in the international financial markets since 1929 to expose the shallowness of Cameron, Osborne et al.
It was right to rescue Northern Rock – they said it was wrong. But now George Bush has rescued Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, AIG and the whole sub-prime market they say it is right after all.
It was right to intervene on short-selling – they said it was wrong. It’s only wrong if you are part of that crew who would bring the economy crashing down by speculation – which is how a lot of their City chums make their money.
But the most dishonest pronouncement of all is the fable of the rainy day. We are in a mess – the Tories say – because Gordon didn’t put anything by for a rainy day.
Not only did they purport to support every penny of investment in schools and hospitals; not only was that unprecedented investment needed because they had starved public services of funds for 20 years (until people died on trolleys and water poured through classroom-portacabin roofs); but until two weeks ago they were pledged to match Labour’s future spending.
Well at least we are back to normal politics and the Tories, to their great relief, can stop pretending to believe in public services.
WE DID FIX THE ROOF #1 I recently attended the launch of the new Academy to be built on the site of the former Stamford House secure unit off Goldhawk Road. It is an impressive design, though I have concerns about the limitations of the site and the catchment area (see below). Present were the sponsors – two City corporations – local private schools, who are giving advice, Tory politicians and education officers. Each congratulated the other on their contributions. No one mentioned the £35 million the Government is providing to build the school. Along with the £20 million for Burlington Danes and the £120 million to rebuild, renew or expand every other secondary school in the borough it is the biggest ever investment in secondary education.
WE DID FIX THE ROOF #2 My opponent for the Hammersmith seat is currently circulating a questionnaire that poses the following question: ‘do you support the Conservative campaign against the possible downgrading of Charing Cross Hospital and other local NHS cuts?’ Here is my answer template, should you receive one.
New developments at Charing Cross in the past two years include the Maggie’s Centre for cancer care, the new A&E and outpatients units, the new short stay unit, and new scanners. Next year a polyclinic will open on the site with walk in GP and nursing services operating an 8-8 and weekend service. There will be at least six new GPs. CXH is tipped as the site of one of the major new trauma centres for London.
The borough’s second polyclinic will go ahead in White City – it would be open this year but the Tories have delayed giving planning consent for two years until they could be sure the development contained no affordable housing(here). This will bring another 12 new GPs to the borough and a range of nursing, dentistry and social care services. Because the NHS does not want to wait until it is ready in 2011 they are looking around Shepherds Bush for temporary sites for four new GP practices.
There will also be a new walk-in GP service alongside the A&E at Hammersmith Hospital. Above all the partnership between the local NHS and Imperial College is bringing not only the best clinical care in the world but hundreds of millions of public and private investment in research to our borough. The biggest ever investment in health services.
WE DID FIX THE ROOF #3 According to a council report last week they now have £230 million to spend on the improvement of public housing in the borough. The biggest ever investment in council housing.
All they had to do was spend it by the end of 2010. They are a year behind, the quality of some of the work is poor and they have wasted a lot of money. Now they are re-surveying properties and deciding that some don’t need improvements, even though the kitchens and bathrooms may be 30 years old.
SHEPHERDS BUSH - THE KRAKEN AWAKES
An eerie silence has descended on the Bush as we await the opening of Westfield. It may be the traffic gridlock or the ethereal shapes of the new stations appearing from behind the hoardings and scaffolding or a collective holding of breath.
We have been badly treated over the past year by those who should represent our interests. Stations, roads, bus stops and shops have closed unnecessarily to allow Westfield to open ‘on time’. Residents living near the site have suffered 24/7 working with the council always taking Westfield’s side. All this may be forgotten if not forgiven if the openings go well – but other problems await.
At the last meeting with TfL we were given target dates for the opening of the three stations but asked not to publish them as they may be liable to change. Today the Council published them as firm dates much to London Underground's anger and contrary to their instructions.
The dates are 28th September for the Overground station, 5th October for the Central Line station and 13th October for Wood Lane station but these are still only the dates the station may open. This sums up the chaos surrounding the Shepherds Bush project.
Two further unpalatable facts have emerged from my meeting with TFL. Firstly, the whole design of the new Shepherds Bush favours Westfield over local residents and businesses. The landscaping next to the central line was supposed to protect the residential streets north of the Green from intrusion but now how it looks to the shoppers is more important. Most of the buses that used to serve the shops, theatres and flats around the Green will now only serve Westfield.
Secondly, Westfield is just too big. When the original shopping centre got planning permission almost a decade ago we were told the local road network could just cope with the additional traffic. Since then other development and the general growth in the number of cars has seen Shepherds Bush in almost permanent snarl-up. But recent planning consents have increased Westfield’s capacity by a quarter– with no extra road space or parking.
Last week an eagle-eyed resident saw that Westfield were advising visitors that they could often park in local streets for free. The message was quickly taken off their website after complaints but it bodes ill for their still undecided parking charge policy.
GINGLIK The Ginglik protest went ahead last Saturday in high spirits thanks to good weather and some of the good acts the club is famous for.
Ginglik is an unintended victim of Westfield’s money – the £4 million they have given to prettify the Green is being used in part to close Ginglik down. But it’s amazing what 2,000 voters protesting can do to make a council think again.
There is more here http://iwc2.labouronline.org/166818/ginglik
24/7 The official report on the council’s 24/7 policing pilot last week confirmed that crime had risen by 4.6% in Shepherds Bush against a projected fall of 10%. This was proclaimed a success by the council whose ‘less crime’ banners still hang from the lampposts around the Green. I can only conclude they are too trapped in their 1984 world dealing with thought crime to bother about drug dealing and burglary.
FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS While Hammersmith Broadway residents were still celebrating the demise of the Strawberry – the overdevelopment of the NCP Car Park site – down the road Avonmore residents were forced to accept the ten storey Olympia hotel which will dominate and ruin the outlook, neighbourhood and access of 1,000 residents along Hammersmith Road. What is particularly offensive about this is that the developer is the one the council is trying to sweet talk into demolishing part of West Ken to build a conference centre – but of course they are completely impartial when it comes to planning.
DISCRIMINATION The coalition against community care cuts is already suing the council for its social service policies which discriminate against elderly and disabled people. Now lawyers are looking at its housing and education policies also. The local housing strategy actually admits that the policy of building no social rented housing may discriminate against minority communities and disabled people whose average incomes make them unable to afford even the cheapest properties the council proposes. And White City residents have told me they believe the catchment area for the new Academy discriminates against the poorer and more ethnically diverse communities north of the Uxbridge Road. Under the council’s plans children on the White City Estate five minutes walk away will not be in the catchment area but Brook Green 25 minutes away will.
SEWERS The Hammersmith & Fulham Chronicle asked me to explain how a rumour that part of Furnival Gradens might be dug up led to a campaign across London to abandon plans to stop the Thames flooding with sewage from Hounslow to Tower Bridge. My attempt is here http://iwc2.labouronline.org/166818/super_sewer
HFVC I was very pleased to be asked by Marion Schumann to speak at the HF Volunteer Centre Annual Meeting - about the Government's contribution to volunteering. You can readd the full story on my website by clicking the link below http://iwc2.labouronline.org/166818/volunteer
RAMADAN So far I have attended two Iftars (fast breakings) in Parson’s Green and Ealing. At the well-respected Muslim college in Ealing (www.themuslimcollege.co.uk) Jewish and Christian academics joined the college’s professors in discussing the role of fasting in religion. I just ate.
The unfailing generosity of Muslim families and organisations around the constituency never fails to overwhelm me and I would like to wish them all a happy Eid http://iwc2.labouronline.org/166818/eid
AND FINALLY... The Tories have at last opposed a development. They are against the proposed lap dancing club in North End Road.
Good for them, though they night be better advised to follow Jacqui Smith's example in tightening the law to make it easier for councils to refuse permission for these seedy establishments than David Cameron’s.He has included an invitation to visit a Birmingham lap dancing club in the pack for Tory Conference. Full story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/7615733.stm
Commenting on this message is now disabled.