Lynne's Parliament and Haringey diary

The Violent Crime Reduction Bill came back to the Commons for Lords Amendments. All over bar the shouting really! The Government had finally realised that it had to lay amendments lengthening the sentence for carrying a knife or bladed weapon in a public place. There had been a Tory amendment to lengthen it to 5 years and a Lib Dem one to lengthen it to 7 (same as for a gun) – but the Government had voted against previously. However, it is often the way that the Government just won't vote positively on an opposition amendment. They vote against and then bring it back themselves later in the process. So who cares - so long as they finally saw sense.

That having been said - it ain’t just the sentence. The real proof of pudding will be less young people carrying - and that needs a mix of police work, prevention, education, making kids feel safe on the streets, giving them life chances, working with them to show it's not 'cool' - as well as the deterrent of a longer sentence and the actual custodial detention itself. It isn't quick, cheap or easy to change a whole culture - but that's what we are up against.

The other highlights were around imitation firearms, Drink Banning Orders and Alcohol Disorder Zones. We support totally the tackling of the twin challenges of weapons and alcohol - but it's how these laws are enforced that will matter. Anyway - now that one is on its way to the final stage of legislation. Whew!

Labels: crime, knife crime, violent crime reduction bill

Another local issue that has blown up is the danger that the Ally Pally TV studios are in as the Ally Pally Board, headed by Haringey Labour councillor Charles Adje, has now confirmed that there is no long-term protection for the studios (the birth place of television) in the proposed sale of the Palace to the Firoka Group on a 125 year lease.

The television studios at Alexandra Palace were occupied in 1935 by the BBC, and in 1936 the first television broadcasts were made from the site. The lease that could be signed with the Firoka group only requires that the group provide a space for a museum somewhere within the building, not the maintenance of the original studios.

My Lib Dem councillor colleague, Bob Hare, who is Lib Dem Alexandra Palace spokesperson put it very well I thought - "This is the equivalent of losing Stonehenge and replacing it with a fibreglass replica. The television studios are of vast historical importance not just locally but nationally and internationally. It is a crying shame that in their rush to complete the deal with Firoka, there has been no thought given to their long-term survival. We must do everything we can to ensure that our children do not regret the hasty decisions that are being made about the future of Ally Pally."

The Charity Commission will soon start a short, one-month public consultation on the proposals to sell the Palace – so here’s your chance to have a save and help save the TV studios by emailing the Charity Commission at enquiries@charitycommission.gsi.gov.uk

As always the emails that work best with this sort of lobbying are short, temperate but clear messages that include your full name and postal address. It would be handy if you could also copy your email to me at lynne@lynnefeatherstone.org

(It would also help the campaign if you can mention this lobbying campaign, such as by linking to this blog posting, on any appropriate website or blog you have).

I am also tabling an Early Day Motion in Parliament – so if you don’t live in my constituency you can contact your MP asking them to sign this EDM when it comes up for signature.

UPDATE: You can read about the latest state of play here.

Labels: alexandra palace, bob hare

Last outing of the day on is a much happier one. I meet up with Sergeant Leon Christodoulou (Highgate Safer Neighbourhood Police Team) and two local community support officers and Paul McLean Thorne (a local shop owner on Archway Road) to visit potential new premises for the Highgate Safer Neighbourhood Team. We looked at several vacant properties between the station and the old police station - and although they were in good locations, there didn't appear to be enough room and they would need a tremendous amount of work. Then the last visit was to the old Highgate Police Station.

You know there are moments when you really just have to laugh. As we walked in, the ground floor has disabled access, it is in the right location, the old front counter is still there in relatively good nick should they want to put in a volunteer service. There is space and there could not be a better or more suitable premises. Well, it did use to be a police station … !

Our local Commander, Simon O'Brien, had just emailed me to say that this was a possibility for premises and I will be writing back to say that he would be completely mad if he and the Met Police Estates did not use these premises. They are absolutely ideal. Highgate residents would be over the moon.

What tickles me about all this is that the Commander before the Commander before Simon, Stephen James, said - when I had begged him to re-open the station - 'over my dead body'. Perhaps I ought to give him a call…

I had a meeting with Pat Patel who owns the sub-post office in Hornsey High Street to see what on earth else I can do to try and drum it through the Government’s head about the damage their post offices policies are causing not only the service itself but also the very social fabric of many local communities. (This is also the topic of my latest newspaper column – so I won’t repeat the points made in much more detail there).

We agree on Parliamentary questions and lobbying - but I am grim with doubt that the Labour juggernaut will continue to destroy all before it.

Labels: post offices, royal mail

Busy day at surgery - and harrowing as usual. Followed by rushing up to Muswell Hill Broadway to receive a huge petition (3,450) against the Stop & Shop proposals from Labour-run Haringey Council. The petition was started by Andrew Rowan of 225 Jewellery Exchange with signatures that were collected during the summer by traders along Muswell Hill Broadway, between the roundabout and Colney Hatch Lane.

The petition calling for 'FAIR PARKING', and requested a few free short-term parking bays to match those provided along the other stretches of the Broadway. It also requested warning signs to be provided notifying people that parking enforcement by CCTV camera takes place in the area. I might add - a CCTV camera that was earning a fortune for Haringey Council - trained on a safe place to stop by a cash point. A nice little earner!

There have never been any calls by these traders for Pay and Display to be provided and they have been very angry that Pay and Display has been the only option that the Council seems to be prepared to consider. Good to see though that they are also proposing positive plans as well as opposing Labour’s unwanted ideas.

I say unwanted because the first stage of consultation on the Labour Council's 'Stop and Shop' parking scheme in Muswell Hill shows that an overwhelming 98.8% (really!) of responses were for the scheme to be scrapped. Liberal Democrat councillors felt it was necessary to scrutinise the responses to the Council's consultation, and found that of 724 responses to the consultation, just 9 were in favour of the proposals. Crouch End has also responded with a resounding 'No' - with 90% opposition to its pay and display scheme (out of 143 responses, 128 were against the plans).

Local councillor Martin Newton, Lib Dem spokesperson for Environment, Traffic and Highways has written to Cllr Brian Haley, Labour Executive Member for Environment, to ask for these schemes to be abandoned, as virtually no one wanted these pay and display schemes in Muswell Hill or Crouch End. Cllr Haley has often been quoted saying that the Council do not impose parking schemes on unwilling residents, so he has been asked to honour this, and to not go ahead with imposing these schemes against the wishes of the local community.

I am now going to wade in with a letter to the Council Leader George Meehan to honour the Council's pledge that it listens to local people and doesn't impose unwanted schemes on them.

Labels: george meehan, martin newton

Managed to get called during Business Questions - which is a quaint way of bringing constituency issues to the fore and asking the Leader of the House (Labour MP Jack Straw) for a debate. The debate I asked for was on the rate of grant from the government for statutory support for asylum seekers.

In Haringey we happily provide support for a very high level of asylum seekers. But if you take even just one element of Government funding support - the rates for looking after unaccompanied asylum seeker children - the grant doesn't come anywhere near the actual cost. And even worse – not only does the Government funding not cover the costs, but the costs racked up by the Government’s failure to make asylum decisions quickly – because much of the cost in that maintenance is due during the period whilst the Home Office (that oh so fit for purpose establishment) takes years to process the legality or otherwise of the asylum seeker.

It is completely unfair and unsustainable on those areas where asylum seekers naturally congregate.Jack Straw's answer - he would pass on my remarks to the Home Office and a slagging off for the LibDems in general. That really raised the tone!

In fact I have just written to Jack Straw over his outburst last week on knives. My Lib Dem colleague, Mark Hunter, raised the issue of lengthening sentences for carrying a knife in a public place and Jack just ranted about Lib Dems opposing longer sentences for knife crime. This is misleading Parliament in the first degree (i.e. untrue! and you can check in Hansard from report stage of Bill in Commons). Not only is this assertion factually incorrect but also completely unwarranted. In response to the recent surge in knife crime, a Liberal Democrat sponsored amendment was laid down in the Violent Crime Reduction Bill (on which I lead for my party) that would increase the sentence for carrying of a knife in a public place to seven years. This amendment was not voted on as a Conservative amendment, take before it ,which would have increased the sentence to five years was defeated by the Government. So the truth is – Labour voted against increasing the penalty for carrying a knife in a public place.

The Bill is coming back to the Commons for Lords Amendments next Monday and Labour will be tabling an amendment to make the sentence four years (which is better than the current tariff), and although it doesn't extend it far enough in my view it is a step in the right direction. I will go into this further when I write up my blog after the debate next Monday.

Labels: crime, jack straw, knife crime, mark hunter, violent crime reduction bill

I was going to attend a conference on the Middle East on 4th November held by the LibDem think tank - Centre Forum. Unfortunately that now clashes with the Climate Change march which I really want to go on - but I think it will be a an exceptional conference- so many interesting speakers being flown in specially. I might pitch up there after the march if there is any conference left. If you want details see www.centreforum.org/middle_east.htm

Also they have launched a new site (which includes a blog roll and included my blog too!) so if you want to look at that have a look at (www.freethink.org) which was launched at the Lib Dem Blogger Awards which I presented at the party’s Brighton conference.

Labels: centre forum, middle east

On Wednesday several pensioners from Hornsey & Wood Green came to see me and lobby me as part of the Pensioners' Lobby. Their very passionate argument is that the Government's promise to link pensions with earnings which is promised for 2012 will see many of them dead – i.e. it doesn't help those who are in poverty right now. So I will be tabling some questions to Gordon Brown. Moreover - the one-off payment of £200 to pensioners by him just before the last General Election has not been forthcoming again (surprise) and yet pensioners are expected on their tiny fixed incomes to cope with the rises that will come in April on Council Tax and the Mayor's precept for the Olympics.

Then I had to accompany Ming to a meeting with Sir Ian Blair (Met Police Commissioner). The meeting was private - so sadly can't reveal all - but I myself did raise the issues (which are not confidential) over the future of police properties in London - there is a big review of their use of property, the location of police stations etc. Our local Commander, Simon O'Brien, has promised he will consult - but in his most recent email to me said he need to get so far (including identifying the actual premises) so that he had something to consult on.

The other issue was my question to Sir Ian a while back off of one of my written parliamentary questions about the disproportionately high numbers of black and ethnic minority people being arrested by the police. Amongst those arrested but not then charged or cautioned, people from the black and ethnic minority communities make up 60% of the total – hugely more than their share of the population. 28% of London’s population are from those communities, but they make up 60% of people arrested but not cautioned or charged. In other words – an innocent black man is much more likely to be arrested than an innocent white man. Sir Ian will get back to me.

Labels: ian blair, ming campbell, olympics

Leading for the Liberal Democrats in Parliament on the Police Justice Bill today - which means pressure! What always astonishes me is that although it takes months for a Bill to wend its way through the legislative process in both Houses of Parliament, when it is due to come to the Chamber, it is so utterly rushed. Third reading in the Lords on the Thursday, Hansard published on Friday (needed so you can read up on what was said, what happened and why etc) and back in the Commons for Lords amendments on the Monday. So frantic weekend preparing – but even then you don't know what amendments will be taken in what order – as that only came through at lunchtime today.

The big issue was extradition - because we on the Lib Dem side believe that – in a nutshell - our treaty with the USA means they can extradite our citizens much easier than we can get theirs. The Without going into the nitty gritty that had the lawyers in the house slavering - it's not fair! Oor extradition expert, David Heath, did a great job on extradition

The rumours were that the vote would be close - possibly even a defeat for the Government. And given the number of Labour ministers in the lobbies (including Tony Blair – who often does not vote) I guess the Labour whips must have thought they might lose. It was close - but not that close. Close enough, however, for it to be likely that the House of Lords will have another go on this when the Bill goes back to them.

I then battled on Conditional Cautions - where the Government is creating (in my view) a two-tier justice system as you will be given a choice to pay a fine or go to court. If you pay a fine (i.e. if you can afford it) - then you not only avoid the nasty business of going to court, but you also evade a criminal record. I call this Labour's Pay & Go policies.

Then it was the powers that the Home Secretary wants to directly intervene in a failing police force. There used to be independent inspection - which if negative would trigger intervention. The Government had conceded that some independent inspection should still be involved - but there are no criteria for what constitutes 'failing' or 'last resort'. Given the Government's sensitivity to bad publicity, you can just imagine something going wrong and getting them bad headlines over a crime incident. And then in order to look active and in charge - the Home Sec 'intervenes'. The operational independence of the police in my view would be seriously compromised. The last thing we need is any more politicisation of the police.

On police mergers the Government agreed to the five test that we and the Tories put forward - making the case, public and proper (not just statutory) consultation, adequate parliamentary time, addressing the funding etc. So no vote needed on this one!

And last but not least - prison inspectorates. We had already had a great victory in the Lords. The Government’s defeat meant they came back at the last minute with 20 pages of amendments to Lords Third Reading stage abandoning their proposals to merge five inspectorates together. I had laid such a similar amendment at Committee stage in the Commons - but the Government didn't budge. Sadly we rely on the Lords to right wrongs! Anyway - there were a few details that pulled back power to the Home Sec again - and away from the independent inspectorates. So the Tories managed to get amendments down on these - but the Government defeated us.

I also just about managed to meet my constituent Caroline Sharpe - part of the Breakthrough Breast Cancer lobby today. And she was very successful in lobbying me (and I was very happy to be lobbied as so many women fail to get screened). I am going to see if I can get a letter out to those areas in Hornsey & Wood Green where screening take up is so poor. I don't know anyone who doesn't know someone (or more) who has breast cancer. I have several friends - and my mother had it too. Early detection and the new treatments can change the prospects of survival dramatically. Also - as Caroline pointed out - Herceptin is easy to get if you go privately as are new forms of chemo - which up your chances. Our state system has to improve in its treatment of these types of diseases. It used to be that the difference between going private or state was just that you got a nice private room and food - but the clinical treatment was the same - and in the end it is the clinical treatment that really counts. Now there appears to be a clinical difference - then we need to agitate for the NHS to be able to provide the best possible.

Labels: nhs, tony blair

It’s the big Lib Dem Green Tax Switch campaign week at the moment, so today we held our own street stall. This is a national campaign to get people to sign up to our Green Tax Switch (www.greentaxswitch.com). And Lib Dems up and down the country are having street stalls to back the campaign. I was on our stall on Crouch End Broadway, and after a bit of early rain - the sun came out.

The big idea is to begin the move away from taxing work towards taxing the polluter - and whilst the overall tax take remains neutral - as well as helping to stop Climate Change (one of the two biggest threats we face) it also allows us to lift the bottom 10% of people out of tax altogether and cut the basic rate of tax by two pence in the pounds for everyone. (That’s not two pence off the your tax bill, but rather more!). It is a real shift in taxation policy - and already we are seeing the other parties having to come onto our territory. I am just glad that the environment is now centre stage and that we are able to force the issue politically.

It's so great when you are doing a street stall and you see someone rushing by with both hands full of shopping as one lady did and then - as you mention 'climate change' - they stop! It's the last thing they want to do with hands full and rushing about - but their conscience will not let them pass. Thank goodness so many people really care about the future and took time to fill in the Green Tax Switch sign up cards.

Labels: climate change

I went straight on to from my meeting with Haringey Council’s Chief Exec to a meeting between the management, building owners and tenants of Chocolate Factory 1. There is a whole rumpus over the rent reviews on both Chocolate Factory 1 and 2 - but 2 decided not to come to the meeting arranged by Manoj (Collage Arts - the Management) as they are being represented by a surveyor who is fighting against the hike in rents and service charges. But the tenants of 1 were at the meeting and Manoj had invited me and David Lammy - as Minister of Culture and Arts it would have been useful if he had come, but he didn't. The Chocolate Factory is our Cultural Quarter and the willingness of our artists to move into this industrial area and help revive it has so helped the area. So – gave them some advice on the short and long term issues, but most of all advised them to get detailed specialist advice over the possible future leases.

It was very difficult to know whether what was on offer was fair or not - but I am concerned that they are all individuals seemingly frightened that if they make a fuss or object, they will lose their space altogether. They wanted to know about funding streams and I will try and find out what they might bid for - but David Lammy is, as I say, the Minster for Culture and Arts and so I will try and get an appointment to see him – after all, charity begins at home!

Labels: chocolate factory

Met with Haringey Council’s Chief Exec and raised a number of issues:

- the fact that the Noel Park Recreation Ground children's play area was still unfinished and the contractors according to a local parent had not even been on site for three weeks. I can't think of an excuse and if they were my contractors I would want to take action.

- the need for Haringey to gain two stars in their star rating assessment for housing. Residents were encouraged to vote to outsource housing from the Council to an ALMO (Arms' Length Management Organisation) because then they would get lots of money for housing improvements – but only if the service also got a two star rating. So I asked for the action plan and was told I can get it from the new Chief Exec of the ALMO who used to be Director of Housing at the Council - which I will do. We need Haringey and ALMO to deliver that action plan (and I don't care to distinguish between that revolving door) so that tenants don't face the double whammy of outsourcing responsibility for housing in order to get repairs done only to find that they then don't qualify for the dosh.

I have offered to help in any way I can to lobby the Government on this (or indeed if anyone ever was interested to tell them what I know from all those who come to me about housing issues).

- the long time it is taking to get a lorry ban in Dukes Avenue. I know there is a meeting to take place (not the first) soon between my colleague Cllr Susan Oatway (Lib Dem, Alexandra ward) and the appropriate officer - but I want to raise the slowness of the process (years) and indicate that waiting for the North Circular to be resolved is like waiting for Godot.

- the poor result in Ofsted on Youth Services - for which the response was an assurance was that the Labour Exec Member in charge of this area was a good and absolutely committed councillor. All well and good - but I had hoped for a somewhat more robust assurance about what the Council might be doing in terms of action and resource in this area - when we know that so much of the anti-social behaviour that is complained about stems from young people having nothing to do and nowhere to go etc.

- and a number of other issues, including provision of business recycling services (a must in my view), lobbying on the costs of asylum and the need to investigate what is and has been built behind the shop fronts on Myddleton Road.

Ita (the Chief Exec) will get back to me on all of these in due course.

Labels: haringey council, susan oatway

I managed to attract Mr Speaker's eye on at question time in the Commons - and came in on a question from another MP on lost and stolen post. Having done a survey a little while back in Hornsey & Wood Green and received an enormous response, it is clear to me that the Royal Mail is unable to deal with the issue properly. Part of the problem seems to be the lack of accountability short of the very top – when something goes wrong there is pretty much always someone else, higher up, to whom the issue can be passed rather than real local organisation and accountability.

I raised the result of my survey with the Minister Alistair Darling who said he would see that the Royal Mail addressed any specific issues and that 99% of the mail is delivered just fine and dandy. Gee thanks Alistair - I have already passed all the individual complaints to the Royal Mail having already got their agreement that they would deal with them. The point I was making to Mr Darling was that it wasn't some tiny little individual problem - but that if I get around 1,000-2,000 complaints from just one survey in one constituency - something ain’t right! More on this in next week's Ham & High column.

Labels: alistair darling, royal mail

Wednesday evening sees my reselection for the seat of Hornsey & Wood Green. Happily - the motion passed unanimously. My lot know a work-horse when they see one!

We had the local party’s AGM on the same evening – and it was really well-attended, with a new Tottenham Branch also formed, following the election of our first councilors in the seat in May (and moving back up to second place in the Parliamentary seat in 2005). Hopefully we will replicate our success in Hornsey & Wood Green in Tottenham.

The second half of the evening was political debate. Paul Marshall, who runs the Centre Forum think tank came to discuss his book Britain after Blair, in which I wrote a chapter on race relations. Given that Haringey is one of the most multi-cultural areas in the country – and all the debate about veils at the moment - we had a pretty lively evening on both race and Blair!

Labels: centre forum

PMQs - same old, same old. Bear pit behaviour - no score draw between Blair and Cameron - but Ming was really on form. It was on Iraq - and of course this is home territory for Ming and where he is at his best. Still - despite the barrage of suggestions that our military presence might be part of the problem rather than the solution - Blair is only conceding that 'of course they want to bring the troops home as early as possible - but not until the job is done'. When is 'done'?

The debate today is the second day of Modernising Company Law Bill and I sat in to listen to the part that I have had most correspondence from local constituents on - that is the section about regulation and audit for companies with regard to their ethical behaviour in purchase, behaviour and sales.

The Labour Government dropped some rules in this regard a little while back - and the amendments today are to try and introduce a wider remit for what is now called Business Review - a requirement to report on a variety of ethical behaviour issues.

The amendments widened that remit to include reporting and revealing things like the supply chain - for who a company buys from is just as important in terms of how ethical or not that company is as its own direct behaviour.

Sadly, the so-called Labour rebels withdrew their amendment on this before the vote. Our amendment was on bringing a formal audit to the Business Review - alone in the lobbies with the moral high ground as usual - we lost the vote. The debate continues.

Big lobby on Parliament today by the sub post office masters with the largest petition ever presented - something like four million. Not surprised - as per my entry on Monday it was down to the Lib Dems to bring a debate on the Post Office to the floor of the House of Commons as the Government won't even give it debating time - let alone save the sub-post offices that remain after decimation under both Labour and Tory governments.

Labels: iraq, ming campbell, pmqs, post offices

Lib Dem Opposition Day - which means we get to put a motion to the House in the main chamber – which means in normal speak that the Liberal Democrats get to choose the topic for debate in the House of Commons today. And as the Government won't give the Post Office debating time – we pick the Post Office, whose network which has been decimated over recent years - denuding both rural and urban areas of a central function and social fulcrum. Thousands of sub-post offices have given up the ghost as Government has removed function after function from their stock of services.

What the Government seems completely deaf to are the consequences for villages and little local shopping parades and for the vulnerable who can just about get to a post office. Stony ground during the debate. The Government is not interested in good arguments, logic or reason - only in steam-rollering through 'modernisation'. But genuine modernisation would be to use Post Offices to provide more services locally - not less. The Tories voted with us - but the Government can always out vote us and they did. Moral victory is not satisfying enough!

After that, I went to the opening of the new David Hockney exhibition at the National Portrait gallery - and met David Hockney. For me - a real highlight. Having been a designer and illustrator for 20 years before politics, and having grown up through the years of Hockney's Bigger Splash and Warhol, looking at the pictures sparked many memories of my youth. Standing in front of one of the swimming pool / naked young man paintings of the Bigger Splash era, one such memory came bounding back across the intervening decades - auditioning for Andy Warhol's play 'Pork' when I was about 18. They phoned to offer me the part of the understudy - but it was just before the summer hols and I was going to Greece with my friends - so I turned it down! The rest, as they say, is history. And then moving along - sure enough - there was a portrait of Warhol.

Earlier in the day I had met with two women representatives of Embargo - a lobby group who are trying to get Turkish Cypriot isolation ended - Suzanne Nuri and Fusun Nadiri. Recently the intransigent impasse between Turkish and Greek Cypriots seems to me to have become more, rather than less, entrenched. But as always on these issues of great divides of historic rights and wrongs what strikes me is the dreadful situations ordinary people have to live with for decades whilst their governments and leaders refuse to move ahead.

I don't see the point of keeping people in dreadful situations. It's as if somehow if the situation is eased the people will feel less like keeping to old demands and will move on with their lives thus leaders lose their rallying causes. But I don't think ordinary people should have to suffer in this way.

Having come out of the statement in Parliament on Northern Ireland for this meeting - the (near) miracle of Northern Ireland has to be a message of hope and possibility for all of these dreadful world divides. For whether Catholic and Protestant, Palestinian and Israeli or Greek or Turkish Cypriot - it is clear where great men and women put aside the hatreds of centuries for the benefit of all futures - there is no enmity so great that peace cannot be found. That is the message of hope from Northern Ireland. And if Tony really wants an outstanding legacy - one that would erase the bitter taste of Iraq - then let him go use his skills and energies in the Middle East - that would be truly remarkable.

Labels: post offices

Hike over to Trent Park to start the Charity Walk in aid of Motor Neuron Disease. Lots and lots of people turned up for this good cause. Although the disease is incurable, there is much that can be done to make the life lived with the disease better and more enjoyable. The reason they wanted me is that Clare Chadwick, who is the North London organiser of the organization doing the walk, is a local constituent and she was telling me that they need publicity so that the 30% of people who have this disease but who do not beling to the Motor Neuron Disease Association here about it. Support is critical with such an illness - and the 70% of people with the disease who are part of the MND Association can find support, advice and company with others who understand the whole world that surrounds MND. The hope was that the papers might put it in if I showed up and that this might have the affect of reaching those who are not aware of this helpful body.

The afternoon event was a Green Flag ceremony in Albert Recreation Ground. Haringey, astonishingly, has won 7 Green Flags (certification of good open space / park with lots of criteria) which is more than any other borough in the country. And green spaces are truly important - it's where human beings can get together and intermingle whoever they are and wherever they come from. Only human relationships will overcome the challenges now facing our country - and something as simple as the local park, free from crime and grime, can help provide the basis for that human network. And the sun shone too! The Friends of Albert Recreation Ground have worked very hard to achieve this (the status that is, not the sun shining!) - and indeed there is a network of 'Friends of...' for the spaces in Haringey. With 26 open spaces and 7 Green Flags - the ambition is to make all 26 winners. There was a lovely atmosphere, lots of kids, food, wine and a band - and of course - the raising of the flag!

The last (but one) call of the day is to a big public meeting in Wood Green about the Wood Green Audit. Local residents' associations have put together after about nine months work an audit of the local conditions and needs for local residents living around the High Road. Haringey Council hired consultants to do a plan to maximise the land use and attractiveness to retail of the area - but hey - they forgot the people! Luckily the people have put together such a comprehensive audit of what they need in terms of care and attention behind the High Road, the back alleys, the need for public toilets, the open spaces and so on.

If they hadn't done this then I am pretty sure that the issues - the very important and priority issues for local residents - would never have even been considered. Thanks to them - the Council will hopefully now incorporate the residents' needs into any further planning.

I have suggested that they set up a steering group with the local Residents so that none of this work is lost - and so that they do not go further into any more planning without real input from local people. Hopefully Haringey Council will now recognise that there needs to be real partnership - not dictatorship.

Third call of the day is to Bowes Park Community Gardens where the local association is having a table top sale to raise a bit of cash for their activities. They are a very active and committed residents' association - including fighting hard for Myddleton Road to be properly looked after. I remember so many promises from my time as a councilor made by Haringey Council about ensuring proper rubbish collection and action on the strange (and possibly unlawful) building that seems to go on behind closed shop fronts on this road. I will write to the Council to ask the status and legality of all the development that appears to have gone on here - as there were worrying tales of overcrowding and inappropriate and inadequate accommodation. I believe it is all privately developed - but the Council must have had to give planning permission - and if not, then their enforcement team must take a look.

The other big issue for the residents’ assoiation is the illegal left turns that traffic makes into Brownlow Road by Bounds Green Tube. It is extremely dangerous and needs to be redesigned with safety first. The residents are gathering a petition at the moment - and when done then we need to push this up the agenda. Promises about next year, sometime never aren't really good enough.

Second call of the day is to Garden Africa which is a UK based charity working in Southern Africa setting up training gardens in schools and hospitals to teach people affected by poverty and HIV/AIDS how to grow nutritious food and medicinal plants to improve their health and generate income. They teamed up with Ally Pally Garden Centre this weekend and the garden centre is magnificently donating 20% of every purchase made.

I am photographed with Georgina McAllister who set up the charity. I have offered to try and find someone in the EU who can help them apply for funding. There is an enormous amount of funding available for work with HIV/AIDS and Africa etc - but how to get at it is the devil of the problem. I will contact MEP Sarah Ludford - but if there are any fund-getting specialists out there - feel free to contact me or them.

First call of the day to open Kidz Adventure Zone in Wood Green. It's a new play system for children up to 12 years old and is the work and vision of a lovely couple - Segun and Chinyama Okunuga who had managed to get this play centre project through all the hoops that had to be jumped - and in Haringey, that's quite a lot. There is the most amazing structure for children to play in - three stories high with lots of climbing tunnels and tubes. The emphasis is on helping the children develop their imaginations and potential and on reducing the challenge of obesity which means that already 20% of the children in London are overweight. They have put their heart and soul into this - and I wish them every success.

Spend until after lunch chairing a Community Crime and Policing Conference at Parliament but then whipped back to grab an hour and a half at the Annual Knit & Stitch Exhibition at Ally Pally. I try and go every year - but I'm working right through the weekend so no time then. I knit! I know this will ruin my image (such as it is) but I love knitting. Since being elected though I really haven't had much time and the last thing I knitted took four years. And to add insult to injury, when I finished and put it on it didn't fit and was ghastly. But I just got an urge to knit something new - and having just got back I didn't actually find a pattern which is just as well as it would probably take about 10 years for the next one.

I like quite high fashion knits and stopped at one stand as I quite liked the style of the two cardigans on display. This turned out to be SIRDAR (who are giants - but not high fashion) marketing a new range which I think was called 'Sublime' which is to try and capture the high end of the market. The MD of SIRDAR was there and we had a bit of a chat. Now I know this is all highly irrelevant as it is personal not professional - but it kind of combined both as Ally Pally hosts this really National Event and it is one of the great exhibitions that goes on there. I go to at least a couple of their shows every year - but I wondered how many local people do go. Today there was a veritable army of women (and almost no men - a few tokens) marching up and down the exhibits. This is the heart of Britain - Womens' Institute and John Lewis women who make curtains, and sew and knit. And I love it!

Pictured in pink at Parliament for Breast Cancer awareness week. Turning up for a photo op / campaign support MPs found themselves presented with big pink hats, rosettes, mad pink sunglasses, pom poms, boas and so on. I felt a complete twit - but having observed the propensity for MPs before and after me in the queue to rather seem to enjoy such exhibitionism - I donned a hat and rosette (the least they would let me get away with). Well - it's for a good cause!

Then rushed to Chamber. I wanted very much to be called to speak in the Climate Change adjournment debate scheduled for today - at late notice. I dropped a note to Mr Speaker to alert him to my desire - but being only able to put it in just before the debate and with three backbench Lib Dem colleagues wanting also to speak - was not optimistic about my chances. They call about 10 Labour and Tories to every Lib Dem and with no time limit on backbench speeches as the hours wore on my hopes sank.

But after five hours of jumping up at the end of everyone else's speech in the hope of catching the Speaker's eye - and just before the wind-up speeches were about to begin - I did get called - last of all. I had tabled an Early Day Motion just before the debate which congratulated Al Gore on his film on Climate Change - An Inconvenient Truth and urged all MPs to go and see it and sign the EDM when they had. The brains of the Table Office said the rules of the House ruled it out of order as the House could not pass a motion to sign the motion if signed. After three brains had a go - we removed the signing bit - and tabled the encourage MPs to go bit. I had been trying to find a way to 'encourage' MPs by making sure that they had to see the film before they could sign the EDM - but the House saved them from potential exposure. That's the way the House always works.

Anyway - back to my speech. By the time I finally did get called almost all the points I had scribbled down had been made - so I stuck to pointing out to the Minister that the Friends of the Earth 'Big Ask' campaign was clearly hugely supported by individuals in all Members' constituencies. I think I've had about 800 postcards by now (and still climbint). And we all want a Climate Change Bill in the Queen's Speech to set reduction targets for carbon. And as I said to the Minister - if you don't ask, you don’t get!

You can read the speech in Hansard, but the main points were on travel planning and on education and dissemination of the threat of climate change. I suggested that the Government get Al Gore's film shown in all secondary schools. And idea that the Minister nodded quite enthusiastically at I thought - and which was praised as 'an excellent idea' by the Tories when they were summing up. That's not a usual reaction by Tories - but a good idea is a good idea!

Labels: al gore, climate change

Result! Having been so cross with Thames Water over the level of donation offered to MPs (for charity!) for their time in responding to a very very long survey about their services - and putting it on my blog - I arrived in my office to find they had been in touch to say that they heard I was unhappy and are doubling their donation to all MPs.

So in total now Water Aid should get £1,000 rather than £500. So credit to Thames Water for responding quickly and positively!

Mad dash to Iain Dale's new TV (internet) company, 18 Doughty Street, for its inaugural program. A cab is sent for me - but sod’s law - gets stopped by security coming into the Commons to the Members' entrance. After 15 minutes waiting for it to clear, the policewoman on the door where I am waiting calls to the search post to find that they have found something in the engine they don't like and are holding the cab pending the arrival of further security experts. So - not wanting to completely ruin Iain's opening show, (which I am extremely flattered to have been asked to do!) I run out into the street, literally throw myself in front of a taxi and we arrive with about 10 minutes to spare.

There are lots of people and a reasonable degree of uncertainty about whether the mikes should be placed. The other guest - Fraser Nelson of the Spectator - arrives even later than me! Lucky I put my make-up on myself before coming - as there wouldn't have been time and this was no night to frighten the audience. Chaos appeared to reign - but miraculously as go live 9pm struck - the studio was clear and we were rolling.

Iain’s co-presenter Rena who was absolutely lovely and just the right person to have alongside Iain. And, hats off to Iain. I cannot imagine the stress of going live on your first TV program with guests, films, texts, emails and so on. I don't know how it came over (pretty well I would have thought) - but I think Iain's desire was for it to not be so desperately tribal as most format political shows - and to bring in the very live, live media feeds combined with real political discussion. Not soundbites and even allowing a full half hour - yes half hour – for debate on a single topic debate.

So we started with Graham Norton and drugs, followed by remembering a Tory parliamentarian - Eric Forth who died quite recently, followed by blogging (very brief) and then the half hour debate on 'Rogue States' - mainly North Korea and her impossible to rein in nuclear progress. I was trying to defend the United Nations which was being attacked as toothless and useless by Fraser and Iain. Challenged to find some way in which they hadn't been useless - nothing came to mind. Of course, the next morning I remembered a whole slew - including the recent ceasefire in Lebanon / Israel. Love live TV!

Of course, everyone condemns North Korea - but I am not sure that anyone has got any useful answers. Sanctions - yes - but they generally hit the poor people not the despot rulers.

So - a bit of TV history! I really enjoyed it. I hope it does develop into a whole new genre of political programming and formats. I thought it went extremely well, am delighted that there is a challenge here for the very traditional fare that is usually political programming, think Iain is very brave and wish it every success for the future.

Just a PS. I was so worried about the poor taxi driver that had been held at the Commons that on the way home I phoned the company that the TV firm had sent to check. They rang the driver and he was OK. They had found what they thought was a bullet in the engine. The security squad had come and it had turned out to be some sort of bolt and then he was let go. So he was OK. And I was quite impressed that they had actually seen something and stopped someone - albeit in this case happily with no bad outcome. But they search all the cars in and out - including mine when I take it in - and I always think 'are they really looking'?. Clearly yes. 10 out of 10 - even though it nearly gave me a heart attack thinking I wouldn't get to the church on time.

Labels: 18 doughty street

Went to New Scotland Yard to meet with Gary Pugh (in charge of forensics) about DNA. DNA is taken from people who are arrested, some of whom are then found innocent. Now here’s the thing – if you look at the DNA taken from innocent people, a far higher proportion of it comes from members of the ethnic minorities than their overall proportion in the population. And remember we’re talking about people found innocent here - so it looks as if there’s something very troubling going on.

Anyway – having asked my Parliamentary Question a while back and got the numbers showing that an innocent member of an ethnic minority is much more likely to be wrongly arrested than an innocent white person, I had written to Sir Ian Blair (Met Police Commissioner) to ask why the figures are as they are? Is it discrimination resulting in ethnic minorities being wrongly arrested far too often or does he have some other explanation?

No answer for a long, long time. But eventually they agreed to have a look at the issue - hence my meeting today. However, it turned out they wanted to deal with the DNA side as opposed to the disproportionaly arresting innocent men side. Having first agreed that we would need another meeting about this somewhat important aspect with the appropriate person - we went on to discuss DNA.

I suppose they are concerned because I keep raising a number of issues around DNA in general and around the retention of DNA records from innocent people. (There’s more about this on the campaign website, http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/dna - including a link on the right hand side to an article I’ve written about why it matters even for innocent people if their DNA records are being wrongly kept).

Gary informed me that there is now to be an 'ethics' panel being set up, which is good – if belated – news. It was also clear that whilst DNA and its database was set up in regard to catching criminals (and I reassured him that I think in terms of a detection tool the sun shines out of DNA's bottom) it is being used for a number of other - probably legitimate - purposes but also possibly open to less worthy ones and commercial ones.

Labels: dna, ian blair

I agreed to do a phone interview as Thames Water are surveying people as to what we think of their services (as a Parliamentarian as opposed to me as a person with a home). Lots of companies do this and to entice MPs into agreeing to what is around 20 -25 minutes of interview they offer to donate to charity. The Charity is Water Aid - and that is an excellent charity setting up fresh water access in far flung parts of the world. So I said yes.

So the good news is that Thames Water is trying to find out what we think about it, what it should be doing etc etc. The bad news is at the end of the interview, I asked the interviewer what donation I had just earned for Water Aid. It is £10 per MP and £500 in all from all the MPs. This is beyond paltry. The minimum is usually around £50 per MP for this sort of thing and some going as high as £200. MPs do it - because of the charity benefit for it. 25 minutes of mind-numbing questions would not be first on the list to squeeze into a day.

That is why I am publishing this on my blog. It is my only revenge for a company who make Scrooge look generous!

UPDATE: Thames Water have now decided to be more generous.

Met with the first of the local GP practices that I am hoping to see as part of the Lib Dem campaign to get a first-class health facility on the old Hornsey Hospital site as promised six years ago by those who closed the original hospital down.

The local trust is bidding for “Community Hospital” money from the Government - and it involves bringing a practice or two into the site itself and provision of lots of services that they hope all the practices will use for their patients. It will save lots of visits to hospitals too.

So I have written a letter of support for our bid - levering in the sort of money that we can get from this bid is, in my view, our best chance of getting this level of services into the west of Haringey and on the site of the old hospital. However, I want to make sure that the GP practices, who after all know the community and its local needs, are fully involved in the process and will be hopefully having further meetings in due course.

Labels: hornsey central hospital

Heart warming! That's what today was. I 'opened' a park bench. This bench is dedicated to the memory of Paul Eddington (of the Good Life, Yes Minister and Yes Prime Minister). He used to live in Park Avenue North, in my constituency, and the Warner Estates Residents Association (WERA) - mainly in the form of Joyce Rosser - organised the fund-raising for the bench. Moreover, the bench is on Priory Road by Priory Common - and Priory Common itself came about because WERA turned this little strip of land into something. Named it and claimed it. Cleared it of litter and weeds and a sign is being made with its name on to be put up soon.

Anyway - back to the bench. It is a splendid bench with a lovely plaque dedicated to Paul Eddington. Patricia, and two of their sons - Toby and Hugo - came back for the 'opening' of the bench. A really amazing crowd of local residents turned out to celebrate and what was so lovely (and heart warming!) was that the warm affectionate smile that comes to everyone who thinks about Paul as Yes Minister etc exactly summed up the warmth of the community action. A truly lovely event.

(You can even watch a very brief movie clip of the opening – as the wrong button was pushed on my camera by mistake!).

Ruth Carnall is the Chief Executive of the new London Strategic Health Authority. I wanted to see her because at the recent public meeting on Hornsey Hospital it was made clear that a parcel of land from the site is to be sold off. Now - it is one thing if it is sold and all the money comes back into developing a new health facility on the site – but another if the money disappears into some distant pot and we here are left high and dry without hospital, without the land and without the dosh!

Where the money goes is down to this new body – so I wanted to meet them, but they didn't want to see me! When my office phoned, (and my 'arranger' Ed is pretty insistent) - they insisted that I go and see the local Chief Executive of the Enfield Haringey Health Authority - Tracy Baldwin. So I did on Friday.

Happily, the fuss I made about wanting to see Ruth Carnall had preceded me in that Tracy Baldwin had been to the London body and been greeted by 'who is this Lynne Featherstone?'! According to Ms Baldwin this was helpful in that the bid for a government pot of money is ready to be submitted (this is the larger part of the funding needed for the new facility) and if the government grants the bid then, together with the proceeds of the land sale, there would be the money and the plans to start work on the new facility on the site early in the new year. And – importantly - the London Strategic Health Authority have now said that Haringey will have first call on the proceeds. So – not quite a cast-iron legal contract, but pretty good news and if the bid is successful it looks as if the money will come here and the project will go ahead.

I am writing a letter of support for the bid - because this is the best shot at delivering facilities we are going to get. It’s best to get the best of what’s possible. There are other lesser options in the bid - but this is the one to go for. I am optimistic – and next it will be a matter of working to ensure that local people and users of local GPs services get an input to the next round of decisions about the site and its development.

We are a long way on from last year when it looked like only private money for private health would make the project viable. At least with this system the vast majority of the funding is NHS and the consequent facilities are mostly what local people say that they want. So - fingers crossed.

Labels: hornsey central hospital, nhs