A note for readers…
This is a personal blog, which aims to scrutinise the powers that be in Waltham Forest, from the Council (hereafter London Borough of Waltham Forest or LBWF), both elected members and staff; to our MP... »
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Hather Ali, of ‘bed in a shed’ fame, to stand for Labour in Higham Hill (naturally) UPDATED
News reaches this blog that the Labour Party has chosen Mr. Hather Ali as a candidate for Higham Hill in the forthcoming local elections. This is certainly very surprising, because a couple of years a... »
Cllr. Anna Mbachu, accusations of bullying, and an embarrassing Employment Tribunal verdict
Anna Mbachu is Labour councillor for Grove Green ward, chair of the Health and Housing Scrutiny Committees, and Deputy Group Leader. Her current public profile is low-key. But in the past, she has cer... »
Local Labour heavyweight Richard Price denounces internal party shenanigans
Eagle-eyed politicos have drawn my attention to a speech by local Labour heavyweight, Richard Price, at the party’s recent Brighton conference, which can be viewed here at I hour 51 minutes: htt... »
John Cryer MP speaks out on Labour anti-semitism UPDATED
Currently, the BBC is running a story about John Cryer and Labour’s anti-semitism: ‘A senior Labour MP has said he is shocked at some of the anti-Semitic tweets by party members that come ... »
Redeveloping Waltham Forest: some experiences from the periphery
As a previous post indicates, LBWF is currently engaged in a major public-private programme to redevelop the borough. Much of the publicity about this programme centres on a few key hubs, principally ... »
Waltham Forest’s Safer Neighbourhoods Board and MOPAC funding: a scandal in the making
Previous posts have dealt in depth with the travails of the Waltham Forest Safer Neighbourhoods Board (WFSNB) – its inability to hold regular meetings, the incompleteness of its minutes, and the fact ... »
LBWF CEO Martin Esom’s appointment to the Health and Safety Executive Board: a step far too far
In July of this year, LBWF CEO Martin Esom joined the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) as a part-time non-executive director – a post that entails approximately 30 days commitment per year for a remu... »
Knife crime in Waltham Forest: a nasty little scandal (6)
In mid-June, I contacted the Mayor’s Officer for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) to inquire about whether it or LBWF had prime responsibility for the Waltham Forest Safer Neighbourhoods Board (WFSNB)... »
LBWF Leader Clare Coghill’s MIPIM muddle (1)
In 2012, the Waltham Forest Guardian reported that councillors were finding the requirement that they fill in and then update their register of interest forms to be challenging. Some had missed out cr... »
London Borough of Waltham Forest: ‘a property empire with a sideline in local government’?*
In March 2016, then portfolio holder for economic growth and high streets, now Group Leader, Clare Coghill travelled to Cannes in the company of LBWF CEO Martin Esom and ‘Assistant Director, Investmen... »