Posts

LBWF’s perfidies in microcosm

November 14, 2016 LBWF, LBWF spin

A couple of weeks ago, one of my neighbours showed me the letter pasted below. The story it relates to begins some months ago. LBWF announced that it wanted to place a cycle storage pod in Odessa Rd., and contacted 100 households living on both sides of the road near the proposed site in order to get their response. As the letter reveals, 12 households replied, and of those, the (albeit narrow) majority were against. At that point, LBWF could have gracefully admitted defeat. But what it actually did – as the letter candidly admits – was fiddle the figures. Outside of the consultation, some residents had apparently written in asking for a pod. Never mind that the point of the cons... »

LBWF: it’s parsimony for the poor, but kerching for councillors

November 9, 2016 Council tax, LBWF, the Labour Party in Waltham Forest

Like many people who have followed Waltham Forest politics over a number of years, I often wonder what the Labour administration in the Town Hall imagines is its overall purpose, its mission in life. Two recent developments have increased my sense of bafflement. Let’s start with an issue that directly impacts on the borough’s poor. Until 2013, every household in England struggling with low income or on benefits was part of the centrally administered Council Tax Benefit (CTB) scheme, and as a result was exempt from council tax. Subsequently, the government has replaced this system with the Council Tax Support scheme (CTSS), which is administered by councils, and means tested. What happens is ... »

, ,

The Conservative Party in Waltham Forest: a twitching corpse, maybe, but one that affects us all

November 2, 2016 The Conservatives in Waltham Forest

One notable fact about Waltham Forest politics is that the Conservatives have very little public presence. The party’s 16 councillors huddle in Chingford and its immediate environs. At elections, little effort is expended anywhere else. Between times, while public controversies come and go, it is difficult to recall a singe example of a significant Conservative or Conservative-led response. Symptomatically, as regards the serious matters covered by this blog – mismanagement of public funds, asbestos, religious extremism, and so on – the Conservative silence has been deafening. Indeed, as a group, the Conservative councillors (with only one or two exceptions) seem inward looking and complacen... »

Extremism in Waltham Forest: an update (2)

October 28, 2016 Prevent

Two recent media stories again underline the extent and pernicious nature of the religious extremism which currently permeates Waltham Forest. In early October, the estimable Evening Standard journalist David Churchill reported that a booklet ‘which says “any Muslim should kill” those who insult the Prophet Mohammed’ had allegedly been distributed at the Dar-ul-Uloom Qadria Jilania mosque in Walthamstow, prompting a police investigation. A few days ago, the blog Harry’s Place revealed another facet of the extremism – virulent sectarianism directed towards Ahmadis. It had discovered that at the same Walthamstow mosque, and again in October, a rally was held in support of an organisation calle... »

Extremism in Waltham Forest: an update (1)

September 8, 2016 Prevent, the Labour Party in Waltham Forest

In recent weeks, various commentators on social media have questioned why a Pakistani preacher called Muhammad Hassan Haseeb ur Rehman has been allowed into Britain to tour mosques.* For Muhammad Hassan Haseeb ur Rehman is a fervent supporter of Mumtaz Qadri, and the latter is a very controversial figure indeed. The story starts in 2011. Qadri was a policeman guarding the liberal governor of Punjab, Salman Taseer, when one day he shot him dead. Quadri’s motive was straightforward: he abhorred the fact that Taseer had advocated the reform of Pakistan’s strict blasphemy laws. Subsequently, Quadri was tried and executed, events that for some have made him a martyr, a man who has given his life ... »

Page 59 of 85«‹5758596061›»