The Leader of the Council's online diary - December 2007/ January 2008
27th January – Holocaust Memorial Day
Never again! That’s the message that goes out loud and clear as we mark Holocaust Memorial Day. I was invited to speak at Lambeth’s memorial event in the Assembly Hall on Acre Lane. The room was packed with hundreds of local people, from young children to the very elderly. It was humbling to be in the presence of holocaust survivors, and also survivors of more recent genocides in Rwanda and elsewhere.
Standing in front of the audience, I said how proud I was to be leader of the council in one of the most diverse places in the world. That diversity is what people who live here most love about Lambeth. We all live together here, enjoying and learning from our differences, being enriched by the different cultures and heritages around us. That, of course, is what those responsible for the holocaust hated most. The way we live in peace and tolerance is of itself a daily defiance of those who set out to exterminate millions of people simply because they were different.
I’m proud of how we stand up against extremism in our community. When the London bombers struck, I joined our political, community and faith leaders as we gathered together on the steps of Brixton Mosque. We stood united against those who wanted to tear our community apart. When fascist parties have tried bringing their message of hate to local people, we all stood together to root them out and I was proud to speak out against these vile hate-mongers. The very heart of Lambeth is our diversity. We will never allow hatred and bigotry to stamp out the decent human values of tolerance and respect that make this such a great place to be. For me, honouring the victims of the holocaust is not just an act of remembrance of the past, it is a spur to build a better future.
24 January - Liz Atkinson
Councillor Liz Atkinson passed away this morning following a short period of illness. Liz, a Labour councillor for Vassall Ward in Brixton, was the immediate past mayor of Lambeth and, in that role, won respect and admiration right across our borough.
Personally Liz was always a great support to me, both before but especially after I became Leader of the Council. She was always thoughtful, always reliable, and a remarkably grounded human being whose advice I sought and relied on in many difficult circumstances.
Unusually for a councillor, let alone a mayor, Liz was extremely modest and unassuming. Despite her earlier career as a teacher, she never quite felt comfortable in front of an audience, but I know audiences warmed to her for that because she came across as she truly was – compassionate, caring and unspun. Liz’s good humour, kindness, intelligence and commitment to this part of south London are familiar to all of us who knew her. We will feel her loss keenly.
Liz leaves behind her husband Richard, a daughter, and her brother Peter who is a Conservative MP. I hope that, as the family grieve for their loss, they will be comforted by the many words of affection and respect I know they will hear from the many of us who knew and loved Liz and were proud to have known her.
16 January - £90 million boost for Streatham
Today I approved an agreement that will bring first rate new leisure services to Streatham. At a ceremony in the run-down existing leisure centre, a senior representative from Tesco joined me to agree the deal to build a new leisure centre, ice rink, swimming pool, transport interchange, shops and affordable homes. The deal, worth £90 million, represents the biggest ever investment in Streatham High Road, and it’s a sure sign that Streatham’s on the up again!
As a resident of Streatham, I share local people’s excitement about the new facilities that are coming. I’ve also agreed to work with leisure centre users to make sure there are sports facilities available while the building work is under way.
As Leader of the Council since last May, I have taken a personal interest in bringing the council’s partners back to the negotiating table, and guided our tactics until the deal was ready for signature. I’m proud that we’ve shown we can succeed where progress had faulted before. And I’m proud most of all that local people stand to have some of the best leisure facilities anywhere in London.
1 January – New Year message
It’s looking like a happy New Year ahead for Lambeth. Nearly two years after local people voted in the council elections, Lambeth is on the up with plans for new schools, leisure centres, youth services and affordable homes, as well as tough action to fight crime and tackle climate change.
Later this month, I will be signing off a deal to bring a new leisure centre, ice rink and swimming pool to Streatham. We’re also close to a deal that will replace Clapham’s leisure centre with a brand new facility including a pool, as well as a new library and a theatre space on the High Street.
On schools, too, things are improving fast. Two years ago nearly 500 children were left without any secondary school place at all on the day transfers from primary school were announced. Lambeth has just opened the Elmgreen School in West Norwood and we will open the Evelyn Grace Academy in Herne Hill this year, and we’re working on plans to open a third new school after that.
People are worried about crime, with guns and gang-related violence at the top of many people’s concerns. This month, we’ll publish the report from the Lambeth Guns and Gangs Commission, chaired by Cllr Lorna Campbell. That will form the basis of a borough-wide strategy to tackle the problem of gang-related crime on our streets as well as tackling the social problems of poverty and lack of opportunity that lie behind it. We’ll see action to tackle drug dealing on our streets, and record levels of investment in better youth services to give our young people positive things to do. We’ve already won strong backing from the Home Secretary for our tough approach to crime.
With more money going to improve sub-standard housing, the toughest carbon reduction plan in London, more money for older people’s services and a brand new strategy to tackle child poverty, I know 2008 is going to mean big improvements for our borough. I’d like to wish everyone in Lambeth a very Happy New Year.
19 December Home Secretary backs Lambeth’s plans to tackle street crime
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith spent today in Brixton. I met her at the Police building in Kennington where we had a chat with the Borough Commander about crime issues in Lambeth. We talked about the gang-related shootings that have been a big concern in south London over the past year, and about Lambeth’s approach to tackling the problem. Jacqui was interested in our work on a guns and gangs strategy, that will see a tough crack-down on drug dealing and violent crime as well as an assault on the poverty and lack of opportunity that leads some young people into gangs in the first place.
Then I introduced Jacqui to some of the young people on Brixton’s Moorlands Estate, and met young people involved in the X-it Programme. The project is a council-funded scheme that trains young people to work with other youngsters who are getting into trouble, helping to steer them away from gangs and crime. The project has a 70 per cent success rate and was recently awarded the prestigious Guardian Public Services Award. The young people we met were incredibly impressive. They were very clear that kids from deprived backgrounds don’t want to get involved in gang-related crime, it’s just that too often they don’t have access to the kind of positive opportunities that other children expect as a right. The young people were bright, articulate and passionate about making the most of their lives, and they were adamant they were going to help other young people in their community do the same. The Home Secretary was clearly impressed and invited two of the young people to join one of her task-forces. They were delighted to be asked.
At a private briefing, I explained to the Home Secretary how the council is getting drug dealers off the streets by serving them with ASBOs and naming those responsible for buying and selling drugs. We also discussed the special Guns and Gangs Commission, to find local solutions to the problems of gang-related violence including gun and knife crime.
Finally, we went to a venue in central Brixton for a meeting with a big crowd of local residents. After introductions where the Home Secretary and I both spoke, Jacqui fielded questions on a range of issues including youth services, improving education and immigration. Afterwards she spent some time talking to people before her car whisked her back off to the Home Office. We were very grateful for the long time Jacqui Smith spent with us in Lambeth.
4 December 2007
Satya Panigrahi is Lambeth's first-ever Youth Mayor. Satya, aged 14, is a year-10 student at Dunraven School in Streatham. He was elected Youth Mayor by other young people at who live or go to school in Lambeth and takes up his post on 1 January.
The Youth Mayor elections were a great lesson in democracy for young people. The 34 candidates worked hard on their campaigns with leaflets, posters and promises of what they'd do if they won. On election day itself, young people could either vote online or use one of the voting booths set up in all Lambeth's secondary schools. Turnout was much higher than expected, showing that young people want to have their say about the kind of services available to them. What a great way to show young people how the voting system works while at the same time saying that we, as adults, care about them and their views.
Satya's victory was announced at a special event in the town hall. All the candidates were there with friends and family members. Satya was immediately whisked off for official photographs and then invited to say a few words for a video on the YouTube website. His victory was pretty convincing - Satya got 750 votes, with his nearest rival on 269. He will now work with the Youth Council to decide how to spend £25,000 on youth projects, and will also help decide how to spend the £1.7 million extra the Council's earmarked to improve youth services.
I'm looking forward to working with Satya, and I wish him all the best as he embarks on his year as Lambeth's first-ever Youth Mayor.