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Waltham Forest Labour : boosting the local economy…er sorry, a local economy

July 11, 2018 Waltham Forest Labour Party

Here’s something funny. Councillor Clare Coghill is a great one for saying how important it is to boost the local economy, and often reassures us that, in its never ending search to make our lives better, her council is doing just that. For example, here she is writing in the preface to LBWF’s 2016-18 Growth Strategy: ‘Over the next four years we will continue to work closely with local businesses and give them the support they need to prosper, and promote and invest in our town centres to keep wealth in the borough and give residents the quality and mix of services they expect’ [emphasis added]. So against this backdrop it comes as a bit of a surprise to find that th... »

The Labour Party in Waltham Forest and the financing of local elections: a scandal in the making? (2)

July 4, 2018 the Labour Party in Waltham Forest

A recent post, based on the evidence of a whistleblower, casts doubt on the way that the Labour Party in Waltham Forest has been financing its local government election expenditure (see link below). The key point is that in the last two local election campaigns, the bill appears to have been picked up solely by the Labour Group (LG), in other words the councillors in the Town Hall,  and this raises eyebrows for two interrelated reasons. First, there is the question of the LG’s status.The Electoral Commission (EC) oversees party political spending, and does this in part by monitoring what it calls ‘accounting units’, for example Constituency Labour Parties (CLPs), which it r... »

‘London Borough of Waltham Forest: “a property empire with a sideline in local government”’ – the movie

June 18, 2018 Redevelopment

The trailer from Limitedscope. Other Limitedscope productions can be found at vimeo.com/limitedscope   »

LBWF’s refresh of its Gang Prevention Programme: spin, spin, and more spin?

June 6, 2018 Gang Prevention Programme, Policing/crime

It is abundantly evident that many people in the borough, from many different backgrounds, are worried about the seemingly unchecked level of local gang-related crime, and the grave impact that this is having on young people’s lives. It is therefore astonishing that those who turned to LBWF’s website yesterday in order to find out what the Cabinet is intending to do about gangs found themselves greeted by the following: Certain aspects of anti-gang work – for example, active police operations – of course must be kept largely confidential. But yesterday’s discussion was about the direction of LBWF policy, and the resources to be expended, in other words the kind of things that taxpayers... »

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The Labour Party in Waltham Forest and the financing of local elections: a scandal in the making? (1)

June 4, 2018 the Labour Party in Waltham Forest, Waltham Forest Labour Party

Over the years, a number of correspondents have approached this blog to express anxieties about how the local Labour Party (LP) is being run and financed. Some of their claims are plausible, others less so. But in general, it is often difficult for the bystander, given the prevalence of internecine strife, to separate out truth from factional point scoring. However, a whistleblower with impeccable credentials now has stepped forward to put meat on the bone, and what emerges is alarming, to say the least. LP rules require that the costs of local government elections – which are often substantial – should be borne by the relevant Constituency Labour Parties (CLPs). But in the last two co... »

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