Archive for Campaigns
7 May, 2008 at 12:40 pm
· Filed under Campaigns, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Essex Road Post Office, Islington, post offices
We finally got the news today!
Post Office Ltd have issued this announcement: “Public consultation has been held on a proposal to close Essex Road Crown Post Office in N1 but Post Office Ltd announced today it has been decided not to proceed with the closure of this branch at this time as discussions with a potential franchise partner are now underway. If these negotiations are successful there will be a six week consultation on a proposal to franchise this Post Office® branch.”
It’s a triumph against the odds (and against the government) and a tribute to a great team effort. We made it very clear that we did not want Essex Road post office to close.
I can’t believe it’s a year since we launched the petition with Jo Swinson MP; since then thousands of Islington residents have signed up to our campaign against the closure. We’ve also had fantastic support from local businesses, voluntary groups and the Council.
It’s also a bittersweet victory as other branches in Islington are still set to close - part of the government-backed restructuring voted for by Labour MPs, including Emily Thornberry. But we’ve saved Essex Road for our community - and that’s something to celebrate. !
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6 May, 2008 at 2:45 pm
· Filed under Campaigns ·Tagged disabled access, Essex Road Post Office, Islington, post office closures
Now that the election ‘purdah’ is out of the way, we’re expecting an announcement very shortly on the future of Essex Road Post Office.
I’m hoping against hope that it’s good news. Local people & I have worked so hard to save it. We launched our first petition nearly a year ago. Since then, as well as our 5,000+ signature petition, the Save Essex Road Post Office campaign has held a rally complete with video on YouTube. We have enlisted the support of the local newspapers, the local Council and the celebrity OAP singers the Zimmers. We have set up a dedicated campaign website and a Facebook group. We have taken our protests to Islington Town Hall and to Downing Street.
My submission to the Post Office on behalf of the Save Essex Road Post Office campaign made objections on the following grounds
- Islington is the 8th most deprived borough in the UK
- Essex Road Post Office serves a cluster of elderly person’s homes & sheltered housing
- Essex Road Post Office provides the only banking counter on Essex Road and serves a thriving business community
- Essex Road is Islington’s most accessible post office building both as a building and in terms of transport links and parking; closing it could be a breach of the Disability Discrimination Act. At Upper St, wheelchair users have to be served in the street….
- Islington has already lost over 10 sub post offices thanks to the Government’s closure programme
- the remaining post offices are all too busy to cope if Essex Road closes
- Islington’s population is growing, it’s madness to close another main post office now.
Islington residents do not want Essex Road Post Office to close. Have the Post Office listened? Have we lived up to our name and Saved Essex Road Post Office? Watch this space….
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3 May, 2008 at 12:59 pm
· Filed under Campaigns ·Tagged Boris Johnson, Brian Paddick, elections, Islington, London, Meral Ece, voting
It felt quite extraordinary to be waking to a London with Boris as Mayor. We are so used to the Islington electoral landscape of Labour vs Lib Dems, that Tory victories are a bit of a shock It’s a healthy reality check to find that everything looks the same as usual in Islington this morning; Labour activists apart, people seem very relaxed about the result rather than having a collective hangover.
The media reported the Mayoral election as the Ken vs Boris show, and that in turn unfairly marginalised Brian Paddick. Brian really grew as a campaigner during the election; he didn’t lose the straight-talking honesty that really reached people when he met them, but he did get more relaxed and confident at hustings and with the media. If all voters got to hear from all the candidates, Brian’s vote would have been much higher. He brought a serious approach to the issue of how we tackle crime and violence in London, from which I hope the new Mayor will learn. It will take more than a new generation of City sponsored boys’ clubs to tackle this problem.
Londoners clearly found Boris an acceptable and electable alternative to Ken Livingstone. Boris rightly recognised that this does not mean that London has suddenly turned Tory; Islington certainly has not.But there’s no doubt that the celeb cred of Boris combined with the meltdown of the Labour government – and the desperate response of local Labour activists - made Lib Dems vulnerable to an anti-Tory squeeze in Labour areas.
We do not yet know the breakdown of votes in Islington, but Meral’s vote across London NE (Islington, Hackney and Waltham Forest combined) was significantly ahead of the London-wide trend, making her the most popular Lib Dem GLA candidate north of the river.
Meral’s been a brilliant candidate, engaging people who don’t normally get involved in politics, both from the Turkish community and across the borough. One email I got yesterday said “I voted yesterday for your colleague Meral Ece. We have yet to find out whether she won, but as the only candidate who took the trouble to canvas me (and I am not registered as one of your supporters) I felt she deserved my vote.” So this is a personal achievement by Meral and one that reflects well on the local campaigning in Islington.
Nationally Liberal Democrats got a bigger vote share than Labour, a shift that would see Westminster seats like Islington South & Finsbury go Lib Dem. Although if I were in Gordon Brown’s place I’d not be contemplating a General Election any time soon. We didn’t elect him last year, and we certainly wouldn’t elect him now.
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2 May, 2008 at 9:06 am
· Filed under Campaigns ·Tagged elections, Islington, London, Meral
My feet are still on voicemail after yesterday’s 22 hour day.
Every election day has its little highs that keep us going. Like reassuring a Turkish family who wanted to vote for Meral but couldn’t find their poll cards that they could still vote, and seeing them leave for the polling station five minutes later; or recruiting a new deliverer for my old ward 30 minutes before close of poll.
We had a fantastic team out, including my darling parents. Dad is such a charming ‘teller’ that some voters were writing their poll numbers on their hands in biro in order not to let him down.
Meral’s been a great candidate and the whole campaign – a few minor wobbles aside - has been upbeat and well-run.
Generally the atmosphere on polling day is cheery and courteous to the opposition although there was a bit of a ‘rival football fans clash’ feel when we met some Labour activists in the pub. One tired and emotional woman told me “We’re voting for KEN because he’s a SOCIALIST!!”. “So how do you rate Jennette Arnold?” I asked. The reply: “Who’s that?” Our point entirely.
And as the results come in, ‘mayday’ certainly seems to be living up to its name for Labour.
And how was it for us in London NE? As soon as my feet respond, I’m off to the count to find out.
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27 April, 2008 at 10:03 pm
· Filed under Campaigns ·Tagged Brian Paddick, elections, London, VoteMatch
Elections are all about voters making a choice and deciding who to support this time. So it’s ironic that for most political activists, this central decision barely impinges on all our campaigning; we know who we’re voting for, thank you very much.
So the 2nd choice in the London Mayoral election gives us committed Lib Dems a refreshing dilemma; obviously we hope Brian Paddick makes it into the last two. And with support like this and this (and even this) he could. But if he doesn’t, should we vote for Ken or Boris or waste our 2nd choice on a party that’s certain to get knocked out first – or not use the 2nd choice at all. Aha – but we fought for a fairer voting system; so it’s a bit sad not to use that 2nd vote now we’ve got it.
This is where VoteMatch comes in. It’s a handy website that asks you to react to various policy statements and then matches you against the Mayoral candidate closest to your views. You can even weight the answers so that if, for example, pigeons matter more to you than police, then that is reflected in the results.
I do have some quibbles with it. It feels a bit like those magazine quizzes where you express your preference on Italian vs sushi, and it announces that your ideal man is George Clooney. (By the way, it’s not me who needs to know: just tell George.)
More seriously, I think it’s got some of the policy a bit wrong, or interpreted it wrongly. One question asks if you agree that “the Congestion Charge should be the same for all cars regardless of their engine size or exhaust emissions”. Well, we have criticisms of Ken’s new policy of charging some gas guzzlers extra, while suddenly lifting the charge for lots of smaller cars which are not carbon neutral and will increase congestion. But we don’t want to introduce charges for the electric cars or emergency vehicles or taxis which go in free. So no, Lib Dems don’t think it should be the same for all; but VoteMatch seems to think we do.
And I was very disconcerted to find that by changing my answer to one or two questions, my result moved from Lindsay German to Boris Johnson. Or maybe that exposes some interesting overlaps in their agenda….
But overall, VoteMatch is a great way to engage people in thinking about the Mayoral election. And who knows, it might even help me choose that elusive 2nd preference.
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27 April, 2008 at 9:32 pm
· Filed under Campaigns ·Tagged election, fire, flood
Paddy Ashdown used to tell the story of how he visited a constituent whose home had been flooded. After having a cup of tea and listening to the long history of their case, Paddy realised he was desperate to go to the loo. Finally he asked if he could use their facilities, yanked the old-fashioned chain with relief – and pulled the cistern off the wall, flooding them again.
I’ve never had an experience quite like that. Or not until today. I was canvassing with one of our councillors, and we called on a lady who wanted to show us a problem in her flat. We duly went into the basement and were checking it out when suddenly the smoke alarm went off. There was a pan simmering on the gas hob, and the roll of kitchen towel nearby had gone up in flames. One damp tea towel and the fire was out; no damage done. In fact our host insisted she was delighted we’d called and we all had a nervous laugh about our memorable visit. She even took a Paddick poster. Well he does have a background in the emergency services….
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22 April, 2008 at 10:28 pm
· Filed under Campaigns ·Tagged criminal justice, Daniel Morgan, police
I remember the headlines from 21 years ago; a private investigator found dead in a pub car park, an axe in his head, murky stories of drugs, hitmen and corrupt police. It sounded more like something from a thriller than the evening news. The awful death, and the mystery since, were all most people knew of Daniel Morgan. Yet he was also a much-loved son, brother and father. And Daniel’s family have never given up on getting his killers caught.
To quote Met Assistant Commissioner John Yates, “The one consistent theme throughout has been the astonishing determination of the Morgan family to ensure that those responsible are brought to justice.”
Daniel’s brother, Alastair Morgan, is an Islington resident. As part of his campaign, Alastair contacted me in the run-up to the 2005 General Election; he wanted to know that I would take up the case if elected, as indeed I would have been happy to do.
The Lib Dem MP Roger Williams, who represents Daniel’s mother, raised the case in Parliament; he tabled an EDM and sponsored a debate, in which the former Islington South & Finsbury MP Chris Smith also took part.
After four failed police investigations, they demanded an independent judicial inquiry to try and resolve the case. All the Home Office could offer was tea and sympathy.
Now, a fifth investigation has finally led to some arrests. Let’s hope it also leads to justice for Daniel, and vindication for his family.
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17 April, 2008 at 9:56 pm
· Filed under Campaigns ·Tagged Gordon Brown, Labour
With friends like this, it’s not a great week for the Prime Minister.
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12 April, 2008 at 5:27 pm
· Filed under Campaigns, Neighbourhood ·Tagged GLA, Islington, Meral Ece, politics
Another Saturday, another action day. With just under 3 weeks to go, the campaign is hotting up. The weather is less sure: we have sunshine and sleet in the space of a few minutes. With a team of 16, ranging from students to veteran councillors, we got all our deliveries out in record time. A friend from church came out of his house as I passed; his son turns 18 this week, so will be able to vote for the first time on 1st May. The whole family are debating their choices for Mayor; it seems to be mostly Brian with a bit of Boris. I reassured him that with the 2nd vote system, you can have Brian then Boris, if you insist.
At lunchtime we went to the Duchess of Kent pub. The food was good as ever - I had the mushroom and spinach pancakes - but the service was more than a bit off. Maybe they couldn’t handle that number of hungry Lib Dems all at once.
With deliveries done, we started canvassing in pairs, hitting different streets and estates over the neighbourhood. I end up on BoJo’s own street. You remember those shots of him jogging in disgrace and a bandana? Then finding himself locked out of the house? That’s the one. It is a lovely place, elegant houses with enough arched windows to delight anyone brought up on PlaySchool, and cherry blossom on the trees. There were not a lot of people in, but the cute cat count was high. A pretty butterscotch one even hopped on my shoulder and stayed there, parrot style while I rang their owners’ doorbell and posted my leaflet through the door. Don’t try this at home... “If only I had a camera” said my colleague.
This street is arguably the most Tory in Islington. Not only does Boris Johnson have a house there, but opposite there used to be the Conservative party hall, until they sold it off a few years ago. So we were braced for lots of Boris votes; not the case. What’s interesting is the genuine uncertainty among voters: “I normally vote Labour/Conservative, but....” is the common theme. So we met a mum who normally votes Labour but thinks Ken is a hypocrite; and a young man who stopped us in the street to say he’s basically a Tory but can’t take Boris seriously. Then there was the EU citizen who likes Brian and hadn’t realised he could vote. So good news all round.
I wasn’t the only one canvassing in possible enemy territory today. I’d just got home at teatime when there was a knock on the door. I opened it to find a nice looking young woman with a Labour sticker. Her: “Are you Bridget Fox?” Me: “Yes“. Her: “Oh, I guess I shouldn’t have called here....“. Me: “I think you can safely assume I won’t be voting Labour 
“.
Mind you, we started it. Earlier this week I was out with our GLA candidate Meral Ece and our Barnsbury team. We’re reminding people that they’re electing assembly members as well as the Mayor. Our standard question - “do you know who your Assembly member is?” - usually has a 100% non-recognition rate for the incumbent; after 8 years, that’s reason enough for a change, as voters agree! So Meral was surprised to find one guy who instantly knew the name of our mystery member. I checked the card: he works for our Labour MP.
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29 March, 2008 at 8:05 pm
· Filed under Campaigns, Family & friends, Going green, Local history, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Eden Grove, electricity, Holloway, housing
Richard & I had a normal Saturday morning today (shock, horror) including food shopping, laundry, picking up Percy’s Frontline prescription and unblocking the vaccuum cleaner. We know how to have fun... Then with Rich heading off to catch the old firm game, I caught up with the campaign team for lunch.
We had teams out in Holloway and St George’s, and ended up lunching just over the border in Camden at Rustique Cafe on Fortess Road. It’s a lovely bohemian cafe with sofas, wooden chairs, warm walls and a great good value menu. I can heartily recommend the pancakes with apples and cream cheese. There are similar cafes I love at Newington Green and Hazelville Road but nothing quite like it nearer home, certainly not on Upper Street.
After lunch, James Kempton & I went off to deliver letters to the new flats on Eden Grove and Hornsey Street. These are a mix of private and affordable homes, plus a gym, studios and the inevitable Tesco metro, as well as an attractive new open space between the D-shaped blocks (designed by Piers Gough). For as long as I can remember - certainly since I was a student at North London Poly in the late 80s - the site was a largely-derelict and inaccessible industrial estate. Now it’s completely transformed.
While most of the buildings are completely new, there are some older ones, all vaguely ecclesiastical. The development has preserved the old Mount Carmel school on Eden Grove, a victorian building with gothic windows that’s now converted to flats. Tucked away at the west end of Eden Grove is Sacred Heart church which dates from 1870. Next to it is a fascinating facade: “Vestry of St Mary, Islington” above, “Electricity Generating Station” below. This dates back to 1894 when the Vestry, the predecessor of the borough council, ran its own utilities. Over a century on, James is enthusing about the Council developing new green projects for local electricity generation; this is an idea I floated when I was a councillor so I’m delighted it’s still on the agenda.
Meanwhile we had a great opportunity to see the buildings in action as lived-in homes rather than the building sites or half-empty developments we’d visited before. I wondered if the private flats would be one of those gated communities that are cut off from their neighbourhood by choice or design. We were pleasantly surprised. The concierge was welcoming once he’d established we were legitimate callers. Wherever you go delivering, you find the pizza leaflets have got there before you. In this case I actually met the pizza man, complete with pizza, wandering around the central courtyard looking for a particular flat... There is an active residents’ association, with a sociable outlook (a pub crawl features among recent events). I also had the chance to chat to some of the residents who were genuinely pleased to have us seeking their views. New Holloway is not New Labour! I’ve already picked up one issue where we can get some results for them. So we’ll definitely be back for more.
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