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| ON MY SIDE? |
Dear Dame
I write as a one
time member of the local Conservative Party though, at a national level, I still
vote Conservative.
However, the way things are going in RBK&C I am
having doubts as to whether I shall continue to do so.
One assumes an
alignment of interest between residents and the councillors representing them.
Such an assumption
would seem be wrong headed.
Even the resident associations spend much of their time fighting resident unfriendly plans.
There are
honourable exceptions but, in the main, Conservative councillors fall into a
couple of categories: those that do their best to stand up for those they
represent and the others who enjoy a cosy relationship with powerful
developers.
For councillors, whose lives have been lacklustre, there is a frisson of excitement in hobnobbing
with shark like developers.
Pooter Cockell was
a prime example. Nothing gave this nonentity a greater thrill than summoning up
the personalised number plated Bentley for a trip to the Ritz to lunch with the
Barclay brothers, It’s that 'small boy' syndrome writ large.
Worse still, we
find councillors so incapable of grasping detail they become putty in the hands
of the officers.
The situation is
now so dire natural Conservative voters are lining up against the council.
Crossrail2, Marlborough
Primary School and the Odeon, High St, Ken are just a few examples.
Residents drove
even the revision to the basement planning laws-against much initial opposition from
the Council.
And the Tri
Borough fiasco has succeeded in damaging the quality of services, with little
financial saving.
The next election is
a few years off, but there will be by elections in the interim.
This is the moment
to start fund raising and developing an organisation capable of putting up
independent candidates able to break the political stranglehold so
damaging to the day to day interests of residents.
Yours etc
RBKC is corrupt because despite their complaints, resident vote Tory on autopilot, or these days stay home. In most wards anyone wearing a blue rosette is elected. One able young Tory councillor was unable to tolerate a system in which Tory planning committee members are told how to vote before the PAC meetings. He kept his mouth shut and quietly resigned. This is unfortunate. He should have shared his concerns with his fellow residents.
ReplyDeleteThe number of people voting Conservative locally is rapidly shrinking. The once great local party now has only a rump of elderly members. There are no young volunteers to pound the streets. To ensure Pooter's seat at the last local election, young Hammersmith Tories were sent to his ward. As a result, Hammersmith & Fulham went Labour. RBKC is an empty shell, lacking the confidence of residents because it represents developers rather than the community.
Well said, none of the officer live in K&C so have little aligned interest with residents,
DeleteI live in Stanley Ward where Pooter languished for god knows how long picking up allowances which he would not have been able to earn in the labour market. I did not see hide nor hair of him during the election campaign nor any of his Hammersmith helpers.
DeleteHow could we continue to vote Conservative when they demolish our homes for profit ?
ReplyDeleteWe feel betrayed.
ReplyDeleteThe majority of residents continue to ignore the connection between the council and the developers who are destroying the borough. It's the homes of the poor that are being destroyed, to build empty flats for money launderers. Meanwhile the rich largely sit in their comfortable houses, working out the profit they'll make when they eventually sell up and move to the Cotswolds or Tuscany.
ReplyDeleteIt was always thus.
DeleteI wholeheartedly agree with all the above. Rather nice letter, I say...
ReplyDeleteThe Leader of Hammersmith and Fulham Council has forbidden officers and Labour councillors from taking any kind of hospitality from developers, potential or actual. This edict arose from experience during the last Administration (pre 2014) when Conservative councillors were wined, dined and treated by developers. An obvious invitation and one which should have been avoided.
ReplyDeleteCllr Stephen Cowan has also obtained over an extra £50mill from developers since the Council elections of 2014 – money which would otherwise have stayed in developers’ pockets. How did he do it? He called in developers and asked for it.
I should say that I do not vote Labour.
I understand that you think the tri-borough arrangement is a waste of time and money. I do not think so. Kensington and Chelsea Council can learn a good deal from Hammersmith and Fulham.
It is helpful to address matters to officers in Hammersmith and Fulham who are not under the thumb of our councillors.
DeleteCllr. Maighread Simmonds has been known to put pressure on honest officers to turn a blind eye to complaints from residents with regard to her friends.
.
Delete. I have heard about Condon Simmonds, please tell us what . . . she has done
But Tri-borough has not actually saved any money; it has added costs that are concealed from view. It was a vanity project to push Cockell's peerage. It failed on all counts.
ReplyDeletePerhaps things are being cleaned up a bit now as far as H&F councillors are concerned, but their officers are even more bent and incompetent than the home grown specimens. It's only bi-borough anyway. WCC wisely keeps it's distance. Senior H&F officers have taken over previously reasonably well run RBKC departments and ruined them. Money grabbing and bullying of existing staff are the priorities. Needless to say, not a penny has been saved. As everyone knew would happen, the whole thing is a shambles, with some officers pocketing double dosh.
ReplyDeleteAlan Brown built his reputation at Schroders on good governance in the companies they invested in. Did he realise when he joined the Westway Trust board that Angela McConville wouldn’t know what good governance was if she saw it?
ReplyDeleteDid Alan know that Ang put through the alteration in the objects of WT last year when it decided to stop using the land it was given to provide amenities for the local community as originally intended and to become a property development business with no regard for local needs? Not only was there no public consultation beforehand, but they didn’t even hold the community engagement event that they had told the RBKC they’d hold! I expect they held some little private event as a fig leaf but I know they never told the community about it, let alone engaged with the community to explain their intentions.
The meeting at the Tab would have been the first real community engagement event by the WT executive and it was disgraceful that Ang said she’d come then pulled out on a spurious reason. (Alan Brown will soon realise she has a track record of agreeing to things when it suits her and then doing a U-turn a few days later….) What a lost opportunity!!!
If Alan Brown is going to come away from his time with the WT with his reputation intact, he needs to stand up and act now, introducing transparency and proper governance from today. He needs to make contact with the North Kensington community immediately to agree a way forward that includes reinstating the amenities Ang has closed or is closing down and improving the 23 acres in partnership with them (everyone agrees the area needs improvement, just it doesn’t want the good things there swept away and replaced with Ang’s sterile vision). Another meeting at the Tab would be a good start. Meanwhile, he should scrap the “Destination Westway” idea which offers nothing to meet North Kensington’s needs, and (in the views of professional property developers, as opposed to the WT jokers) will not succeed so close to Westfield (currently being extended) and the Old Oak Common development.
How about it, Alan?
The Dame agrees and will feature it. An excellent comment.
DeleteThis is an excellent post, but is on the wrong thread.
ReplyDeleteIt's been put across a few threads
DeleteIt is helpful to address matters to Hammersmith and Fulham officers who are not under the thumb of our councillors.
ReplyDeleteCllr. Maighread Simmonds has been known to put pressure on excellent RBKC officers to ignore complaints by residents in order to protect her special friends.
Please tell us more about Simmonds and the protection afforded to her special friends. There is no point insinuating. We need it out in the open if Simmonds is to get the bird at the next election.
DeleteSpecial eating places where she is favoured. Those canvassing for her. Officers are told not to implement table and chair licences, electrical inspections, etc, etc,
DeleteThose residents which canvass for her are afforded special favours.
Simmonds has become very toxic for the Tory Party. She might resign.
DeleteShe has been toxic for a very long time.
DeleteShe grooms residents on council estates to vote and do special favours for her.