Lynne Featherstone

Hornsey and Wood Green MP Lynne Featherstone has expressed her disappointment at learning that the missing Banksy from Wood Green has been sold at auction.

Reports suggest that the piece has sold for more than £750,000. This is despite a direct plea from the Liberal Democrat MP last week, calling on the owners of the piece to “do the right thing” and return it to its original home. The mural was removed from the wall of Poundland in Wood Green in February.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“Local people have been dismayed by the removal of the Banksy piece, so of course I’m disappointed that it has been sold.

“At this time, we don’t know who the piece has been sold to, but I now call upon the buyer of the artwork to make this piece of work public, so we can all enjoy it again, or return it to its rightful place in Wood Green.”

Local MP Lynne Featherstone has today issued a public statement to the current owners of the missing Banksy piece, which was removed from a wall in Turnpike Lane in February.

The Liberal Democrat MP has ‘called on the consciences’ of the current owners, and urged them to ‘do the right thing’ and return the piece to Turnpike Lane, before it is too late.

The owners have allowed the Sincura Group to auction the piece on the 2^nd of June, at an exhibition in Covent Garden, London. If it is not sold at the exhibition, the owners will sell the piece directly to an American collector.

The Sincura Group claim to have ‘no doubt’ that people who currently possess the piece are indeed the legal owners.

Lynne Featherstone MP issued the following statement:

“On June 2nd, the Sincura Group plan to put the infamous Banksy piece up for auction at an exhibition in Covent Garden, London. The piece was removed without warning from Turnpike Lane in February – to the dismay of local residents.

“Sincura do not own the piece.  The Sincura Director says that he is ‘the good guy’ – that he has put a lot of work into finding the piece and its owners. He is exhibiting it in the hope that it will be sold to someone who will either return it, or keep it somewhere with public access. This is admirable, perhaps, but also incredibly optimistic.

“If the piece isn’t sold on the night, Sincura say the ‘owners’ will sell it directly to an American collector. The piece will then be lost for good.

“This has left us campaigners in a catch 22. We don’t want the piece to be up for auction and bought by a random private buyer. We don’t want the piece sold to a collector who will keep it in a warehouse. We want our Banksy back in its rightful place – the streets and community of Turnpike Lane.

“So now I make this direct plea to the owners of the Banksy piece: You have this one last chance to do the right thing. You have deprived a community of an asset that was given to us for free and greatly enhanced an area that needed it. I call on you, and your consciences, to pull the piece from both potential sales, and return it to its rightful place.”

Lynne Featherstone MP has today spoken to the Director of the Sincura Group – the company which will exhibit and possibly sell the Banksy piece ‘slave labour.’ The piece recently went missing from the wall of Turnpike Lane Poundland, sparking numerous campaigns and calls for its return.

The MP for Hornsey and Wood Green wrote an email this morning asking Sincura to clarify whether the piece will be exhibited or auctioned, and for their comments on the legality of its removal from Turnpike Lane.

In a follow up phone conversation, the Sincura Group Director confirmed that the piece will be shown at their exhibition at the Film Museum in Covent Garden on the 2^nd of June – and that there will be an opportunity to purchase the piece. They said, however, that if the piece is not snapped up on the night, it will be sold to a private American collector.

Similarly, Sincura have confirmed that, if the piece is pulled from sale before the event, it will be sold by default to the American collector.

The Group, who say they will not profit from or make commission on the sale, also claim to be “entirely satisfied that the mural was legally salvaged.”  This contradicts previous statements from the property owners, who were adamant that the piece was removed without their knowledge or consent.

Commenting, Lynne Featherstone MP said: 

“The story of the Turnpike Lane Banksy gets more and more bizarre. After being withdrawn from sale in the US, the piece arrives back in the UK and will be put up for auction again.

“The Sincura Group is saying that unless their auction goes ahead and another buyer is found, the piece will be sold to an American collector and lost forever.  This leaves campaigners in an impossible position regarding whether to call the auction off or not.

“This seems to leave us one option – to track down the current owners and plea directly to them. Unsurprisingly, they have remained anonymous to date – but I will do my best to expose them before the 2^nd June.”

Lynne Featherstone MP has today made urgent contact with Labour-run Haringey Council, after a resident informed her of the pending closure of the Burghley Road under 5’s Community Centre.

In March, the Trustee of the Centre had written to the Council, expressing a desire to return the building. He did this, however, without consulting the management team.

The team at the Centre acted quickly, putting new trustees in place, securing the Charity Commissions’ consent to continue as a charity, and agreeing a new funding arrangement with Haringey Council’s Childcare and Early Years Department until 2015.

The Community Centre management then received a letter on the 3rd May from Haringey Council’s Property Services department, informing them that they needed to vacate the property by Monday 13th May.

In a strongly worded email, the Liberal Democrat MP has demanded answers from the Council, particularly whether Property Services will withdraw their demand to vacate the property.

Commenting, Lynne Featherstone MP said:

“I am shocked at the way this issue has been handled by Haringey Council’s Property Services. There has clearly been no communication with the Early Years Department, who agreed to fund the Centre until 2015. The Centre performs a vital role in the local community, accommodating up to 200 children.

“The stripping of a resource such as this from the local area would constitute a great loss for local residents and create a huge gap in local childcare.

“No consideration seems to have been given regarding the value of the Centre to the local community. And finally, 10 days is a completely unrealistic amount of time for the task of shutting down a Centre that has been in place for a great number of years.

“I have asked some tough questions of the Council and requested that any action against the Centre is suspended until I receive a full response to the questions raised. I will keep residents updated with any further developments.”

Local MP Lynne Featherstone last week visited Fatih Mosque, a branch of Suleymaniye, in Wood Green to talk to members of the congregation about local issues.

The Liberal Democrat MP entered the Mosque after prayers and was given a tour of the Women’s area. Following the tour, the MP for Hornsey and Wood Green sat outside the Mosque and met with members of the congregation.

Along with two of her caseworkers, the MP spoke to dozens of people, and offered them assistance with their local issues.

Lynne Featherstone and her team process around 400 pieces of casework on behalf of local residents per week.

The event was organised by Dr Turhan Ozen, the Liberal Democrat European Parliamentary Elections Candidate for London.

Following the surgery, Lynne Featherstone MP commented:

“I would like to thank Turhan for organising this event, and thank the congregation for welcoming me to the Mosque. It was great to take advantage of the nice weather and hold an advice surgery outside.

“My team and I spoke with dozens of people and gave them advice on their local issues. We will be making numerous representations to the Council and other authorities on their behalf this week.

“I hope this will be the first of many advice surgeries at the local Mosques in my constituency.”

The Lib Dem opposition in Haringey have slammed the decision by the Mayor to close the front counter in Muswell Hill and reduce opening hours at Hornsey and Wood Green police stations.

Lib Dem councillor and crime spokesperson, Martin Newton has written to the Deputy Mayor of London objecting to the decision and calling on him to change his mind.

The Lib Dems have argued that having a contact point in Muswell Hill Library instead of the police counter is unacceptable because it will only be open for a short time and will be based in Muswell Hill Library. The library does not have disabled access so will not be usable for disabled people who would be forced to travel across the borough to report a crime.

Haringey Lib Dems have been campaigning for a local base for the Safer Neighbourhood Team on, or near, Muswell Hill Broadway with an accessible front counter for the public to report crimes.

Local Lib Dem MP, Lynne Featherstone, is also fighting the decision and has stated her opposition to the closure of Muswell Hill volunteer counter and the reduction of opening hours at Hornsey and Wood Green stations.

Martin Newton, Lib Dem crime spokesperson and councillor for Fortis Green, Muswell Hill, comments:

“This decision by the Mayor is unacceptable. We need to keep a front counter and safer neighbourhood police base in the Muswell Hill area and to keep Hornsey and Wood Green open twenty-four hours a day.

“The contact point in Muswell Hill Library, open three hours a week is completely unsuitable and will not have disabled access.

“We will continue the fight to keep a police presence in Muswell Hill and keep Hornsey and Wood Green police stations open twenty-four hours.

“I have written to the Deputy Mayor calling on him to change his mind, protect our twenty-four police stations and keep a proper police base in Muswell Hill. I hope he sees sense and listens to us and the pleas of local residents.”

Commenting, Lynne Featherstone MP said:

“I am deeply disappointed with the Mayor’s crime plan for Haringey, which leaves the whole of the west of the borough without any nearby police station open twenty-four hours.

“In the past, I was promised that the Muswell Hill counter would never close without a suitable replacement service. The current alternative presented by the Mayor is certainly not suitable, and I will continue to campaign for an equal or better replacement in the Muswell Hill area. I will also continue to oppose the downgrading of front counters in Wood Green and Hornsey Police Stations.

“I encourage residents with views on the plans to also make themselves heard by contacting the Mayor directly.”

Read the full letter here.

Lynne Featherstone MP last week took part in the Wood Green Hunger Banquet, organised by Oxfam volunteer Katrina Gajevska.

The event is part of the ‘Enough Food for All – If’ campaign – which aims to visualise the unfair distribution of food around the world.

The MP for Hornsey and Wood Green opened the banquet by speaking about the role of UK aid in combating hunger.

The Liberal Democrat MP – who is also a minister in the Department of International Development – spoke further about her recent visits to Ethiopia and South Sudan, where she witnessed the effects of uneven distribution of food and hunger.

The attendees then ate different meals, depending on whether they had drawn a rich, middle or poor ticket. The rich received the best meal, the poor ate only a modest portion of rice, and the middle-class got a slightly better menu.

Food for the banquet was donated by the following local businesses: Jai Shri Krishna from Turnpike Lane; Qui from Crouch End; Zer from Crouch End; Dolly’s Delightfuls; Bakes Cakes and Treats from Turnpike Lane; BG Foodtwist from The Harringay Market.

After the event, Lynne Featherstone MP commented:

“I’d like to thank Katrina for organising this fantastic local event, which was a great way of illustrating some of the issues faced by the world’s poorest. It was a pleasure to take part and speak at the event.

“I was very happy yesterday when the Chancellor reaffirmed our commitment to spend 0.7% of GDP on overseas aid – so we can continue to help the world’s poorest and contribute to ending hunger in the developing world.”

Lynne Featherstone MP last Friday met the owners of Wood Green Investments Ltd. The company owns the property on which street artist Banksy painted his ‘bunting boy’ piece last year.

During the meeting, the representatives of Wood Green Investments said that the piece was taken without their knowledge, yet they would not be reporting the incident as a crime.

The representatives also said that they would allow their wall to be used for street art, provided that the Council protected the wall from now on.

The Liberal Democrat MP for Hornsey and Wood Green contacted the property owners in February after the Banksy piece disappeared from the wall, and ended up at an auction house in Miami.

The auction, however, was pulled at the last minute, and the exact whereabouts and current ‘owner’ of the piece remains unknown.

Commenting, Lynne Featherstone MP said:

“It is deeply disappointing that the property owners have chosen not to report this as a crime. If they really did not know anything until after the piece disappeared – then the person who currently has the Banksy piece is getting away with theft.

“Allowing the wall to be used for future street art is a nice gesture from Wood Green Investments – but what we really want is our Banksy back.

“I will continue to try and find out who has our Banksy, and hope that the property owners change their mind about reporting this as a crime.”

Hornsey and Wood Green MP Lynne Featherstone is continuing her efforts to get to the bottom of the mysterious disappearance of Turnpike Lane’s famous Banksy piece.

On Saturday, the artwork was unexpectedly removed from the wall of the Poundland shop on Wood Green High Road. The authentic Banksy piece has subsequently appeared for auction in the United States with an estimated value of £320,000-£452,000.

The Liberal Democrat MP has already taken the following actions:

• Contacted Poundland to ascertain whether they had any part in or knowledge of the removal. The retailer has insisted that they are not responsible, but they are expected to shed some light on the course of events.
• Used the land registry office to track down the building owners, Wood Green Investments. The MP then asked the company for an explanation, and to identify the collector to whom the artwork was sold.
• Contacted the auctioneers, Fine Art Auctions Miami, to ask that the artwork be withdrawn from auction pending further investigation.

Lynne Featherstone, Liberal Democrat MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, commented:

“I share my constituents’ great strength of feeling on this issue. It is clear that the Banksy piece was much loved by locals and visitors alike, and a community asset that was an important part of the fabric of the Turnpike Lane area.

“So far, Poundland have denied all knowledge and responsibility. The auction house has confirmed that a well known collector brought the piece to them, and said they see nothing untoward about how the piece ended up with them. I am now focussing my attention on the building owners, and the identity of the collector.

“It is totally unethical that something so valued should be torn without warning from its community context.

“I will continue doing all I can to investigate, with the hope that our Banksy piece might be returned to its rightful home.”

Lynne Featherstone MP is making investigations into the disappearance of a Banksy piece from the side of a building in Turnpike Lane.

The piece, which was confirmed as genuine, appeared on the side of a Poundland store just before the Jubilee last year, and depicted a young boy using a sewing machine to make Jubilee bunting.

The piece is now up for auction in the United States, with an estimated value between £320,000 – £452,000.

Lynne Featherstone, Liberal Democrat MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, commented:

“The Banksy piece added something different to Turnpike Lane and attracted many people to the area. It’s certainly a shame to have the piece ripped from the building and bizarrely put up for auction in the States – for hundreds of thousands of pounds. This just isn’t right.

“Poundland have said that they are not responsible, but I want to find out who is.  I will be making enquiries today to Poundland and the building owners and will keep residents updated. I will also make sure that the company auctioning the piece are aware of the situation.”