Brian Coleman Gets Away

The appalling Brian Coleman has had another run in with the Standards system, as reported in the Standard.  Unfortunately the new Tory government has effectively emasculated the Standards system, so that it no longer has any sanctions for non compliance, making the whole process rather pointless.

Steve Reed Response

Steve Reed has written a response to those calling for a 1980s style response to the cuts here.  I am shocked that Lambeth is still paying off £20 million in interest dating back from those times. I had no idea that the consequences were so far reaching. As he says, those who do the loony left posturing are not those who pay the price.

Brent Population Growth

The Guardian reports on the increasing population of East London.  Brent has also seen a massive increase in population.  The 2011 census shows a population figure of 312,200, an increase of more than 58,000 compared to 2001.  That is enormous, and makes us the fifth biggest Borough in London, with all sorts of spending pressures as a result.

Ebook Lending

I found the Channel 4 broadcast on ebook lending the other day too short to be informative, but they now have a longer item online (appropriately).  Some of the comments on the piracy issue are interesting.

Willesden Social Club Update

I had a recent conversation to confirm that the development of the old Willesden Social Club is going ahead.  This site has been a centre for anti social behaviour for so many years and I have campaigned for it to be sorted for so long, I shall be delighted when it finally comes to fruition.

Legal Actions and Planning

Eric Pickles is eager to encourage people to sue their local Councils over planning.  He seems to think that relaxing planning restrictions will be popular; much as he assumed alternate weekly collections would be unpopular.  I suspect, however, that more people will find new developments objectionable than will want to build them.  It also strikes me as being rather beside the point. The economy is in recession because of lack of demand, not because we have had planning laws all these decades.  Still, one should not expect Eric Pickles to want to be confused by the facts.

Word up in Brent

Word Up had its first event at Kilburn Library last night.  Unfortunately, I had to attend the Planning Committee, but the programme has events at Brent libraries throughout the Autumn.

Planning Committee Again

I find myself attending Planning Committee again tonight.  One of the cases coming up is for outdoor gym equipment in King Edward VII Park, Wembley.  This is the first of several sites that have been put forward for outdoor gym equipment around the Borough.

Anglesey and Local Democracy

Anglesey has had its powers returned to it after a break down in governance there.  Anglesey is a salutary warning to any authority that try's to set a deficit budget.  Ultimately the government can do as the Welsh government did in Anglesey, and simply appoint commissioners to run the authority because the local councillors are incapable.  That is likely to lead to short term budgeting, longer term disruption and a democratic deficit.  Not outcomes with any appeal beyond a tiny number of people on the loony left.

Technological change and Town Centres

Some concerning research on Town centres reported by the BBC.  Coping with new technology is a huge challenge for all sorts of parts of society, but I don't believe this is widely recognised.

Red Tape Returns

At the same time as claiming that red tape is holding back the private sector, the Tory/liberal Democrat coalition appears to be increasing red tape in the public sector. It has drastically broadened the definition of which decisions need a written description of why they were made.  Imagine the kind of hullabaloo that be made by the same ministers if private sector companies had to do this kind of thing.

Well Done Brent Parks

I am delighted to see the success of Brent Parks in the most recent London inBloom awards.  Mapesbury Dell got a gold award in the small park category.  Fryer Country Park got a SilverGilt award in the country park category.  Brent parks as a whole got third prize in the biodiversity award for the changes we have recently made to bedding in a more sustainable way.  Overall, Brent got a Silver Gilt award in the large city category.

The Rise of Ukip

Yesterday,s Observer suggested that Ukip have overtaken the Liberal Democrats for the first time, making the party of Nick Clegg Britain's fourth party.  That is no great surprise given the way the Liberal Democrats have turned their backs on their former supporters to join the current exceptionally righting government.  However, it might not just be a blip but become permanent.

If Ukip are seen as more credible by pollsters, it means that they are likely to become one of the party names used to prompt interviewees.  That may appear minor, but it will almost certainly lead to Ukip automatically seeing their poll ratings rise, and therefore being taken more seriously. That means more influence for Ukip's anti-European ideas and probably lots more people in the TOry Party calling for a shift (even further) to the right.

If Ukip can overcome the traditional weaknesses of smaller parties in translating votes into seats, it might mean that they hold the balance of power in any future hung Parliament.  That looks like leading to a majority for some very rightwing and nationalistic policies in future.

Harlesden in The Guardian

The Harlesden and Willesden Junction area has appeared in the Guardian.  The fact that this kind of article can appear these days is an encouraging sign.

Ebook Prices

I note that there is an ebook price war going on with some prices as low as 20 pence for a novel.  Presumably, this is the same publishing industry that resists allow libraries to lend ebooks on the ground that it would price them out of the market.

Cutting Library Opening Hours

One of the objections we had to our libraries plans was the suggestion that it would be better to cut opening hours instead.  We didn't go down that route, but an analysis has been done on Hertfordshire Council which did. It demonstrates how falls in usage follow from cutting opening hours, although there is some people do seem to alter their patterns of access to suit the new hours.  Of course, the issues around library services in Hertfordshire are quite different to Brent, not least in terms of public transport.  But I think it illustrates how budget reductions are bound to affect services, and therefore the important thing is to analyse the best way to minimise them.

Tax Evasion

The Economist, of all sources, does a good job of exposing the legerdemain of confusing tax in general with in come taxes.  The article focuses on America, but really this confusion was pioneered by Mrs Thatcher and Geoffrey Howe in the early 1980s.

Basically, a successful confidence trick is pulled off where income taxes (inherently progressive) but paid by all but the poorest are defined as "real tax".  Other taxes, like VAT, are ignored despite everyone paying a flat rate and the tax base being broader. Hence the poor are stereotyped as parasites.

Willesden Library Lab

The work done at the Willesden Library lab, based in a vacant space at Willesden Green Library Centre deserves to be better known.. Here is a short video about it.

Election Petitions

The Electoral Commission is calling for the law on election petitions to be reformed.  It is not clear whether they want to make it harder or easier. 

I attended the Court hearing in the only case that Brent has had of an election petition in the past decade _ that contesting Liberal Democrat councillor Pawan Gupta in Dudden Hill in 2006.  It certainly gave me the impression that electoral law was less than straightforward.  I recall the Judge at one point asked Gavin Millar QC for references to precedent.  The response came that there might well be precedents on both sides of the point.   Election law seems to have developed in quite a haphazard way partly through Common Law and partly via occasional and isolated bits of legislation.

I suppose that is precisely the kind of thing that Harold Wilson set up the Law Commission to sort out. 

In any case, even if the cost of challenging is reduced, I suspect that challenges will will remain rare, as even if a new election is called the challenger is often unsuccessful.  This was true of Pawan Gupta's case.  He lost in Court, forcing a by election, but won the by election in 2007 by a narrow margin.  The successful challenge by a Liberal Democrat to Phil Woolas in 2010 also led to a by election in Oldham and Saddleworth, which Debbie Abrahams wn for Labour by a fair margin.

Healthy Eating in Brent Schools

There are reports of cutbacks in Breakfast Clubs, as well as the apread of junk food in free schools.  This is worrying as the only way to get funding for a new school is to accept it being a free school, and even existing schools are increasingly becoming free schools. 

In Brent one of the principles that we are insisting on for any new free school to be built will be a committment to providing healthy food in its catering.