Lib Dem Leader's Blog

Ashley Lumsden is Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group - the main opposition to Labour at the Town Hall. Ashley was first elected to the council in 1998 and has since been re-elected twice. Here he gives us his thoughts life in Lambeth - from the Town Hall and as a local resident.

Ashley Lumsden is Leader of the Liberal Democrat Opposition

Hodge on Housing - Labour Lambeth were there seven years ago

Speech delivered on Tue 22nd May 2007

Margaret Hodge seems very short of supporters for her proposal to give priority to British families over migrants when it comes to allocating social housing.

I would have thought that most people who've looked at housing policy can't get away from the idea that those in the most need should be at the top of the housing list. And it must be wrong to allocate housing on the basis of race or nationality.

But Ms Hodge might be pleased to hear that she has support from the Labour Group on Lambeth Council.

The story that broke over the weekend had me hunting through the archives of Lambeth Council meetings. And there I found the evidence. In July 2000 Labour introduced an allocations policy that gave priority to people who had lived in the country longest over people who were most in need of a home. The policy was worked up by Cllr Tom Franklin who became leader in May 2000 and so Cllr Donatus Anyanwu took over and implemented the policy change.

Both of them were still crowing about it in April 2002 - just before the election that saw them turfed out of office - when they declared that their policy "replaced the needs-based points system" that they saw as "unfair", and ensured "no one is overtaken on the housing list by an applicant with more 'points'."

Looking at it now it is no surprise that their allocations policy was ruled illegal in two separate court cases.

But the question for Margaret Hodge and for Cllr Donatus Anyanwu is simple. Why should be people in the most need be stopped from overtaking those in lesser need?

For Ms Hodge it seems to be that she sees a danger that people won't vote Labour if they aren't offered a council house ahead of those arriving in Britain more recently.

But how does Donatus explain his enthusiasm for the policy? He is still on the council and has transferred his responsibilities to cover social services for vulnerable adults. He's probably too busy there taking services away from 700 people who are in "substantial need" of help from the council.

Perhaps he has trouble with the concept of "need" - whether in housing or in social care. Either way he was wrong on his housing policy and he is wrong on taking services away from those in need now.

Read "Hodge on Housing - Labour Lambeth were there seven years ago".

Short-term or Long-term solutions?

Speech by Ashley Lumsden on Tue 20th Feb 2007

The sad deaths of three young people in the local area shakes us all out of our complacency. It is a sharp reminder of the lives that some local teenagers are living.

The fact is that shootings are now so common that they rarely make the national news. But the shooting by and of teenagers is newsworthy because it is a worrying trend.

But the questions I've been struggling with concerns the response of the council and its councillors.

I'm certain that in the short term it is the police who need to take a lead in working with the local communities that have been affected. And they've done this very visibly. I went along to the meeting called in Streatham after the shooting at the ice rink and the police officer who spoke was sincere and open minded in what he said.

I'm not convinced that police's other actions are going to be as helpful. The headlines say that they are increasing armed patrols on Lambeth's streets. The small print undermines the claims but then headlines are they so that Ministers can say that "something will be done". And as for tougher sentences for gun-crimes - well the evidence from America is that this doesn't lead to a down-turn in crime - just an ever-increasing prison population.

But I think long-term action is needed. And that's where the council must face up to things.

One Labour councillor has succumbed to the "Something must be done" disease that dogs politicians. So he has demanded a rethink of the entertainment licence for the Streatham Ice Rink Saturday night disco. I don't think there's anything to suggest a link between ice-dancing and gun crime. And the police have already exonerated the ice-rink over the shooting there. But Cllr Mark Bennett will haul them before the Licensing Committee so that he can seen being as tough as John Reid and Tony Blair.

To my mind long-term solutions don't come out of knee-jerk reactions.

So I've put forward an amendment to the council to get the long term thinking under way. A cross-party commission to sort the facts from the rhetoric and short-term from the long-term.

I don't have the answers but I do have some ideas. Ideas about youth work for younger children - working with them before gangs and guns become an attractive way of life. Ideas about finding those young people excluded from schools and working with them to find alternatives between school and crime. And there are many people saying that the problem is parents and they way they bring up their families. This needs to be challenged to find out what is behind this thinking. I for one don't accept that blaming single-parents is going to help find answers.

It all now depends on my fellow councillors to step up to the table and start the serious work of developing those long-term answers.

Read "Short-term or Long-term solutions?".

Closing the Cabinet

Speech by Cllr Ashley Lumsden on Wed 7th Feb 2007

Thursday 8 February will see the first of Labour's daytime cabinet meetings. Starting at 2.30pm it is timed perfectly to keep parents on the school run away just as much as people - and councillors - who work during the daytime.

I was thinking about how councillors who work are to be disadvantaged and my memory started to bring up an indignant email or two from the last council - when Labour were in opposition. So today I hunted through my email archive.

And look what I came across.

A sharp perhaps even condescending email from October 2005. It is from a Labour councillor who was then in opposition and now sits on the cabinet. Look what it says.

______________________________________________________________________

-----Original Message-----

From: xxxxxxxx, xxxxx

Sent: 04 February 2005 12:31

Subject: RE: Stockwell Park and Robsart Estate Stock Transfer Master Plan briefing

I cannot possibly attend a meeting at 10am on 23 February 2005 for the simple reason that I will be at work!

While I am aware that members of the Executive also have jobs, I think there is complete lack of appreciation by both officers and members of the Administration that the majority of Labour Group members have full-time jobs and/or are looking after children during the day.

I have lost count of the number of invitations I receive for meetings that are either during the day or at 5pm when one is only just leaving the office.

Could I ask that in future members are offered the option of two dates, at least one of them should be in the evening from 6.30pm.

______________________________________________________________________

Well what a change around today as this Labour councillor voted to hike up her allowances now isn't quite so shrill about the rights of those councillors who work.

I wonder if you can guess who sent it?

Read "Closing the Cabinet ".

Climate Change Is Wash-Out

Speech delivered on Fri 2nd Feb 2007

Solar powered street-lights - from schoolboy joke to environmental reality

I'm a strong believer that one of our biggest failings in the developed world is the constant procrastination from political leaders on the subject of climate change.

Whether it is George W Bush who sough election on the back of refusing to sign the Kyoto treaty or Tony Blair's failure to persuade him to change his mind, the fact is that time is slipping away and before long it'll all be too late.

But there's more to the issue than the global context.

Just as it is no good saying "Britain isn't a big polluter in the world so we needn't do anything" - then it is no good saying we've no responsibility here in Lambeth.

I was very disappointed that when Labour published their glossy corporate plan last year it contained not a single proposal to look at climate change or carbon emissions. Where were the proposal to support micro-generation? What about tougher requirements on the builders of new housing? Let alone the idea that the council should actually spend some money now to play its part in reducing emissions?

All were absent in the draft corporate plan. And despite complaints from Lib Dems they were absent in the finished version too.

But we weren't prepared to let it go. As a good opposition we used the tools we have to push on with the issue. Through scrutiny and through the council meeting we got agreement at least in principle for more to be done.

But what, I hear cynical politicos musing, will that actually achieve?

Well the answer arrived today in the cabinet papers. It is that the cynics are right. Much is planned but only on the proviso that it must cost nothing to do.

Not a penny.

Not until 2008/2009.

And then it will only be "considered".

When I look at the enormous progress on green issues that councils like Lib Dem controlled Woking have achieved it makes me green with envy. They've been rolling out environmental schemes like there's no tomorrow.

But here our Labour leaders have their own special "Lambeth Protocol". They will declare on Thursday (during the daytime when residents are at work or picking up children from school) that Lambeth is so green that it will do any environmental measure provided it saves the council money now.

It's hard to imagine a more short-sighted view.

Read "Climate Change Is Wash-Out".

Kazantzis Latest Problems

Speech delivered on Sat 27th Jan 2007

Poor old John Kazantzis starts this week with two new problems ahead of him.

But there isn't any surprise about where they've come from: they both stem from his disastrous plans for Lambeth's Housing.

Firstly there's his plans transfer the management of Lambeth's housing to an ALMO. It seems that tenants are so underwhelmed by the plans that not enough of them have come forward to seek elections to the ALMO board. They need 15 people to stand to ensure proper elections. But I hear that only 10 have come forward.

Kazantzis' response is typical. Instead of listening to this message from tenants he's extended the deadline for people to apply. A funny way to run an election if you ask me.

Secondly there are his plans to cut back on funding for the estates run by tenants themselves: the TMOs.

All but one estate walked out of a meeting with Cllr Kazantzis. The one that stayed to listen to his arguments weren't impressed.

But the most startling thing was Kazantzis' excuse for cutting their funds. From what I hear he departed from his usual script and said the TMO funds should be cut because the rest of the Housing department had saved money with its Reframing scheme.

Saved money John? That isn't your usual line. But it is a welcome admission of the facts!

Read "Kazantzis Latest Problems".

First Post

Speech delivered on Sat 27th Jan 2007

Here's the first message in my Blog!

Read "First Post".

Archive of earlier Speeches.

Speech Feed(v1.0).

Contact Ashley Lumsden:

alumsden@lambeth.gov.uk.