Harringay Liberal Democrats

Local Liberal Democrats have, this week, raised concerns with transport bosses about pedestrian safety in Haringey, after it was revealed that eleven crossings in the borough do not meet safety requirements for blind and partially sighted residents.
 
Nine pedestrian crossings in Tottenham and two in Hornsey and Wood Green have been identified as a potential risk. At each crossing, tactile surfaces and audible sounds, used to enable blind and partially sighted residents to locate safe and controlled sites at which to cross the road, are missing.
 
Local Liberal Democrats have expressed their concern and have written to transport bosses at the Council and Transport for London to ask why crossings are not meeting basic safety requirements.
 
Cllr Lyn Weber, Liberal Democrat Environmental Services spokesperson, comments:
 
“It is shocking that the Council and Transport for London has failed to act to protect some of the most vulnerable members of community. Uncontrolled crossings present a real safety risk to the blind and partially sighted residents and swift action is needed to remedy this unacceptable and potentially dangerous situation.”
 
Cllr Karen Alexander (Harringay ward) adds:
 
“Raised paving and audible crossings are essential to enable blind and partially sighted people to know where to cross the road safely. Currently these crossings do not provide safe passage for the blind and partially sighted people in our community.”

crossings1.pdf - Copy of where the crossings are in Haringey
 

Local Liberal Democrats have demanded an explanation from Council bosses as to why Haringey Council has spent one of the highest amounts in the country on its website when the Council facing a £10million budget black hole of its own making in the current year and a funding squeeze from central government next year. 
 
Information released by the Daily Telegraph newspaper this week shows the Council spent over £500,000 on a website redesign in 2003 and, since then, the total costs for the website have reached £2million.

Liberal Democrats are concerned that, once again, the Labour-run administration seems to be spending more money than most other Councils. In a letter to the Chief Executive, Cllr Robert Gorrie has highlighted the need for the Council to prioritise front-line services over website expenditure.
 
Cllr Robert Gorrie, Leader of Haringey Liberal Democrats, comments:
 
“Haringey is, once again, top of a league table but for all the wrong reasons. Communication through websites and the opportunity for residents to engage with the Council online is important, but spending £200,000 of taxpayers’ money on a website every year, especially when there is good evidence of better value elsewhere, needs to be challenged.
 
“At a time of extreme financial pressure, money must be prioritised on front-line services which tangibly benefit residents, and not wasted on projects with little direct influence on people’s lives.
 
“The only specific cut identified so far is the web casting of Council meetings. I wonder if that is because there is evidence no-one watches them or because Haringey Labour is embarrassed by what they show of the nature of their administration.”
 
Lynne Featherstone MP adds:
 
“It is worrying but sadly unsurprising to hear of Haringey Council wasting taxpayers’ cash. 
 
“Of course Council’s need to communicate with residents, but £2 million on revamping and maintaining the website is just another example of Haringey Labour’s limp grasp of this borough’s finances.
 
“This has lead to disaster after disaster – from £37million lost in Iceland, to millions wasted on overspent IT projects and one of the highest Council Tax rates in London to boot. Our residents deserve better.”

Link to the Daily Telegraph information
 

Following the recent news that Hornsey Central’s walk-in clinic will close in September, MP Lynne Featherstone and local Liberal Democrats have this week urgently demanded that the plans are stopped and local people are consulted.

On Wednesday (11th August 2010) the Hornsey and Wood Green MP found out that the Park Road site will have its 8am-8pm walk-in clinic suspended on the 1st September 2010 whilst the service is reviewed. Following the shocking news, Lynne Featherstone has urgently written to top health bosses to urge them to reconsider, and local Liberal Democrat health spokesperson, Councillor David Winskill, has requested a meeting with health service bosses to ensure local people’s views are considered.

Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Cllr David Winskill comments:

“Hornsey Central was built to bring health services closer to local people and to relieve A&E departments, but this sudden decision risks having the opposite effect.

“Health bosses need to take a good hard look at how this will affect local health services, instead of making ill thought through decisions.”

Lynne Featherstone MP adds:

“I was extremely concerned to hear of the plans to close the walk-in centre at Hornsey Central. If you suddenly fall ill and need to see a doctor urgently, then the Park Road walk-in centre is a godsend!

“It seems like the plans have been sprung on local people and staff at the centre without looking at the consequences. That is just not acceptable and I hope that they will listen and reconsider.”

Liberal Democrats have demanded an extension to a consultation after local residents were left out by Haringey Council on plans for a controversial development in Stroud Green.

The Council failed to send thirteen residents in Quernmore, Elyne and Stapleton Hall Road key consultation documents on plans to turn a garden into a five-bedroom house that borders their properties.

Local councillor, Richard Wilson, has made a formal complaint to the Council and asked that the consultation, which to due to end on 4 August, is extended for local residents to have their say on the proposals.

Cllr Richard Wilson (Stroud Green) comments:

“It is vital that all residents have a say on developments affecting their neighbourhood. It is unacceptable that the Council have failed to consult adequately and the consultation should be extended immediately.

“And I can understand why people are so keen to object to this proposal. I don’t think the site is really suitable for development – and certainly not for a house of this size.”

Lynne Featherstone MP adds:

“The Council needs to own up to this mistake and do all in their power to make sure residents get the chance to respond. This is frankly quite a large development and neighbours should to get the chance to have their say.”

Following an intervention by a Liberal Democrat councillor last week, a breastfeeding campaign group are set to have ’roundtable’ discussions with health bosses to discuss their concerns about the recent withdrawal of specialist breastfeeding support for local mothers.
 
The group of local mothers, led by Maren Boehme, attended a meeting of the Council’s watchdog committee on Wednesday (28th July 2010) to discuss the reduction in services and to highlight their campaign.
 
At the meeting, health officials agreed to Cllr Dave Winskill’s suggestion that they should meet the group for ’roundtable’ discussions to discuss how best to secure future provision and funding for the service.
 
Cllr Winskill, Liberal Democrat Health spokesperson comments:
 
“This has been a fantastic campaign and I am delighted that the PCT have agreed to meet the organisers. Breast feeding has a very significant positive effect on the health and well being of children and adults. I hope the PCT agree and ensure that adequate resource is made available to support mums who want to breast feed.
 
“I urge anyone who wants to support the campaign to sign their petition online.”
 
Tottenham Cllr David Schmitz , who attended an earlier demonstration by the group and whose partner, Valerie Mortimer, is a breastfeeding support volunteer, adds:
 
“Until recently, breastfeeding advice could be patchy; often it was confusing and sometimes it was wrong. When the local health service brought in a temporary midwife to give specialist advice to breastfeeding mothers and to support volunteers, they made an important step forward and revealed an enormous need. We must make sure that specialist professional advice is again made available, both for the mothers themselves and for the volunteers who support them.”

Link to camapign site http://www.petitiononline.com/dbab00b/petition.html

News that Haringey Council will cut 10% off all supplies and service budgets as a result of a £10million overspend on its 2010/11 budget has been met with criticism from local Liberal Democrats who have accused the Labour-run administration of failing to control local finances.

In February, Liberal Democrats warned that the Council needed to take action to plan for future budget pressures and said that Labour was ‘ignoring the crisis in public finances’ in their budget amendments to the Council.

Liberal Democrats have demanded full access to new reports that have led the Chief Executive of the Council to take drastic action to curb spending.

Cllr Richard Wilson, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader, comments:

“It is flabbergasting that, at a time when money is in such short supply, Haringey Council has managed to build up a predicted £10 million overspend.  We tried to persuade Labour to restrain their spending back in February, but they ignored us and now the money has run-out.

“This demonstrates how Labour just can’t be trusted with public finances.  The failure by Labour to control spending will make it even harder for Haringey to cope with the coming financial squeeze.”

Today, local Liberal Democrats have launched a campaign to make Haringey’s roads safer with the introduction of a borough-wide 20mph limit. The campaign aims to gain support from local people and successfully urge Haringey Council to take action to implement a 20mph limit on all residential roads. Local Liberal Democrats believe that such a limit would halt a worrying recent increase in accidents.
 
Liberal Democrats presented their plan to Full Council last night but the Labour group blocked a motion that sought to urge the Council to commit to take action on accidents.
 
Since 2007, the annual number of accidents on Haringey’s roads have increased by 17 per cent, incidents involving cyclists have doubled and those involving children have increased by 50 per cent.
 
Local people who are in support of a 20mph limit on all residential roads can sign the Liberal Democrat petition at http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/20mph
 
Cllr Lyn Weber, Liberal Democrat Environmental Services spokesperson, comments:
 
“Over the last year there has been a worrying increase in accidents in Haringey involving children and cyclists. Our proposals aim to make our roads safer by introducing, in consultation with local people, a 20mph limit on all residential roads without speed humps and other physical measures.
 
“It was very disappointing that the Labour group sought to stifle debate and duck any decision that would commit the Council to improving the safety of Haringey’s roads. But we will not stop there, we will continue to campaign on this vital issue and I hope residents will sign the petition.”
 
Lynne Featherstone MP adds;
 
“This is a really great and positive proposal by my Liberal Democrat colleagues on the Council.  With such a big increase in accidents recently, something needs to be done. It’s very disappointing that the Labour administration seem reluctant to take road safety seriously and consider the proposal.”

Haringey Liberal Democrat 20mph limit report

Fears that the Rhodes Avenue Primary School expansion might be abandoned, or that the school would be downgraded to become a ‘portacabin park’, have proved unfounded, following a dramatic 11th hour about-turn by Haringey Labour.
 
Last Thursday (July 8th), council chiefs tried to remove the Rhodes agenda item from the Muswell Hill Area Assembly agenda, while they attempted to soften up the school for an announcement that ‘budget cuts’ would halt the expansion.
 
Assembly Chair and Lib Dem Councillor Gail Engert refused to back down and the item stayed on the agenda, forcing a sheepish Council Leader, Claire Kober, to attend in person and face questions from angry parents and governors.
 
She reluctantly agreed to make an announcement one way or the other the next day and finally, on Monday, the school and parents heard the good news.
 
Council tried to blame government cuts
 
Parents were told, at the meeting, that the expansion was under threat, because of government cutbacks; but the truth has emerged and is rather different from Labour’s attempt to spin the blame onto someone else.
 
The Rhodes scheme has been evolving for two years and money was allocated in 2009.  Meanwhile, a separate bid for funding, for improvements to other Haringey Schools, was referred back to Haringey by the previous Labour government before the election, because more information was needed.  This extra tranche of funding was subsequently refused, so Haringey attempted to steal the previously allocated Rhodes money and spend it on these other projects.
 
Parent and Lib Dem pressure has highlighted this deception and forced the council to come clean.
 
Said MP Lynne Featherstone, “I am delighted that the Rhodes scheme is to go ahead, as we always hoped it would.  It was quite unforgivable of the council to attempt to cover its own incompetence by sleight of hand, by moving the funding elsewhere, when everyone knew that the money was intended for Rhodes all along and was approved by the Department for Education some time ago.”
 
Lib Dem Children’s Spokesperson, Cllr Rachel Allison, said, “The last week has been nail-biting for all those who support Rhodes Avenue School.  Thank goodness that Haringey Council has seen sense and has backtracked from its crazy idea to pull funding, less than a month before the start date for building work.” 

Haringey Labour has come under severe criticism over their misleading claims regarding the impact of Government cuts on Haringey Council’s budget, from Haringey Liberal Democrats.

In a misleading press statement, Haringey Council has claimed that they will need to find £60m savings over the next three years, as a result of the coalition’s Government measures to address the budget deficit.

However, hidden in the £60m figure are required savings that have nothing to do with Government cuts, including:

- £9m to pay for Haringey Labour’s manifesto commitments and other budgetary pressures.
- £12m for revised inflation forecasts
- £20m of savings already agreed by Labour at the last budget.

Liberal Democrats have made an official complaint to council officials about the misuse of council resources in relation to the misleading statement.
Councillor Ed Butcher, Liberal Democrat Finance Spokesperson, says:

“Of course, making savings is going to be tough, but Haringey Labour are obviously desperately trying to blame someone else for all their budgetary misfortunes.

“The coalition Government cannot be blamed for Haringey Labour’s unfunded manifesto commitments, changes in inflation or savings they had already agreed last year!

“What is more alarming, is that Labour is using taxpayer money to peddle these lies.”
Lynne Featherstone, Liberal Democrat MP for Hornsey & Wood Green, adds:

“No-one is saying that the measures to address the deficit aren’t going to be difficult, but Labour needs to come clean with the people of Haringey about this council’s budgetary problems.

“To make these savings, Haringey is going to need all the support it can get from local residents, but instead, it is alienating them through dodgy figures and trying to shift the blame elsewhere.”

Campaigners have vowed to put an end to local schoolchildren’s “terrifying” route to school by starting a campaign to make a dangerous crossing in Stroud Green safer.

Local Liberal Democrats have launched a petition to get Haringey Council and Transport for London (TfL) to take action to make the zebra crossing safer on Upper Tollington Park by installing a pedestrian crossing but, in the short-term, having crossing patrols for local schoolchildren.

Despite many requests from local Stroud Green councillors, Haringey Council have failed to keep to promises to make the crossing clearer to drivers and slow down the traffic.

Local residents can sign the petition by visiting http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/page1633

Cllr Richard Wilson (Stroud Green) comments:

“It is clear that local residents want action to make this crossing safer for local pedestrians, especially schoolchildren, who use this crossing everyday.

“I am very disappointed that, despite promises, the Council have failed to take any action.”

Lynne Featherstone MP, adds:

“We think that the Council should employ a crossing patrol now. We cannot wait until a serious accident happens.

“A longer term aim will be to ask the Council and TfL to work to install a permanent crossing or other measures to make this crossing safer.”