Posts

An interview with James O’Rourke of Walthamstow Independents Forum

March 29, 2019 Walthamstow Independents

For those who don’t know you, can you briefly describe your political apprenticeship? Life events are often the catalyst for entering politics. In my case in 1990 my brother, who has a severe learning disability, faced a crisis. I approached each Party spokesperson seeking support. The Liberal Democrat, Bob Sullivan, simply said ‘I can’t promise anything but I’ll do my best to help you resolve the issue’. As a former social worker that’s all I wanted to hear. The ruling Party spokesperson refused to engage and the main opposition simply saw it as a political and PR opportunity. In 1994 I first stood for election for the Liberal Democrats in the local elect... »

LBWF and the Freedom of Information Act: some troubling new findings

March 6, 2019 Freedom of Information Act, LBWF spin

The Campaign for Freedom of Information has just published an overview* that examines the extent to which London local authorities are following good practice in complying with the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, and predictably LBWF does not come out of it very well. To start with, it emerges that LBWF receives an unusually high number of FOI requests: In passing, it is rather surprising to find that, almost uniquely, as a note to this chart records, ‘Waltham Forest wasn’t able to extract the number of requests received in 2016/17 from its system’. But the more interesting question, obviously, is why LBWF finds itself being so much questioned. Perhaps the borough’s residents are unusually... »

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The Prevent programme in Waltham Forest: has LBWF surrendered to Islamic sectarians? UPDATED

February 27, 2019 Prevent

‘Waltham Forest is a Prevent Tier 1 priority area and as such receives additional funding from the Home Office to deliver Prevent projects. Tier 1 status is apportioned as Waltham Forest is considered to be of significantly higher risk [of terrorism] than the majority of local authority areas. Accordingly, expectations of delivery are high’ (Home Office, Prevent Pier Review Report Waltham Forest (March 2018)) For some years past, Waltham Forest has been home to a number of active Islamist extremists, and as a consequence LBWF continues to receive a considerable amount of extra cash to augment its counter-terrorism Prevent programme. Never afraid to look a gift horse in the mouth, LBWF today ... »

The £40,000 Cann Hall side-wall ‘artwork’ is cancelled, artists Mathew Raw and Abigail Holsborough depart the scene, and LBWF scrambles for excuses – its a big victory for local residents

February 6, 2019 Cllr. Keith Rayner, Cllr. Paul Douglas, Cllr.Patrick Edwards, Cllr.Sally Littlejohn, LBWF spin, Redevelopment, the Labour Party in Waltham Forest

As the linked posts (below) describe in some detail, for the past few months, and as part of its Making Places programme, LBWF has been intent on putting an ‘artwork’ made of tiles and costing an extraordinary £40,000, on the dilapidated side-wall of a private property in Cann Hall Rd. – a private property that coincidentally happens to be owned by a prominent family of Labour supporters, the most eminent of whom is Dawn Butler, the Shadow Women and Equalities Secretary. Meanwhile, large numbers of residents have expressed their displeasure, citing everything from the ‘artworks’’s flawed aesthetics, to the almost total lack of consultation about what was to be done an... »

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‘Public realm and shop front improvements’ in South Leytonstone: dogs get their dinner, while the area’s real problems are forgotten

January 24, 2019 Cllr. Keith Rayner, Cllr.Patrick Edwards, Cllr.Sally Littlejohn, Redevelopment, the Labour Party in Waltham Forest

Recent posts have looked at LBWF’s plan to spend £40,000 turning the wall of a private property on Cann Hall Rd. into an alleged ‘artwork’, and the subsequent massive backlash. But as documents released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal, this is by no means the only extraordinary waste of public money that LBWF is foisting on the same area, broadly South Leytonstone’s Cann Hall and Cathall wards. As has been previously pointed out (see links below), having studiously ignored the subject for the best part of a decade, Cann Hall councillors in particular have suddenly become infatuated with the idea of a local plan, which sounds impressive, though on closer inspection turns out to be... »

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