LIBERAL DEMOCRATS SELECT CANDIDATES TO CONTEST GENERAL ELECTION

Liberal Democrats are taking the fight to the Tories and Labour across Waltham Forest. The Liberal Democrat candidates in the General Election are below. If you would like to help the Lib Dems in the General Election then please contact any of the candidates.

CHINGFORD AND WOODFORD GREEN

Anne Crook

mobile: 079847 771 487 – email: [email protected]

LEYTON AND WANSTEAD

Carl Quilliam

email: [email protected]

WALTHAMSTOW

Steven Cheung

mobile: 07872 427 778 – email: [email protected]

web: www.stevencheung.co.uk – twitter: twitter@stevencheung

POOL AND TRACK PLANS VOTED THROUGH DESPITE STRONG OPPOSITION

Controversial sports centre plan approved over loss of funding fear

8:18am Wednesday 11th March 2015 – Waltham Forest E Guardian

Plans for new £23million sports facilities in Walthamstow were controversially approved last night after thousands called for further public consultation.

Campaigners packed into council chamber last night heard as the planning committee heard impassioned speeches pleading for further dialogue over plans for the Pool and Track site in Chingford Road.

The proposal from council contractor Greenwich Leisure Limited would see the loss of a 5m diving board, a dedicated diving pool and other facilities for athletes, prompting a campaign backed by coaches, parents and young people.

Veteran diver Jonathon Fox, who travels to the borough from Stansted every week, said the plans have been put forward on a “like it or lump it” basis.

Many of us hoped this council would enter into a meaningful dialogue with the users of the Pool and Track,” he said.

Instead, it’s like going into a restaurant, being given a menu and being told you will have something completely different.

Diver and coach Michael Allen questioned the council’s commitment to the Olympic legacy.
He said:

Last year, I had to console young divers who have had to give up the sport because of lack of transport and additional costs for their parents.

I find it amazing that anybody could argue this is not a loss of amenity.

Mr Allen told the committee a lack of a dedicated diving area would mean swimmers and divers could not train at the same time, which would restrict hours.

Manager of the Waltham Forest Disability Resource Centre, Peri Stanley, said no disability groups were contacted over the project and said the plans undermined access.

She said:

Sport England says portable steps can be used, but this isn’t an existing pool, it is a brand new development and I can see no reason for such a makeshift compromise.

People have to wait and ask for steps is an unnecessary barrier to inclusion.

At the very least disabled users should have been consulted.

Head coach of the Orion Harriers Juniors athletics team, Jane Farrier, who carried the Olympic torch into the borough, said athletes would lose a “vital” stretch room under the plans.

She said:

For months council officers claimed no such stretch room existed. We have pictures of it being used by (Olympic gold medallist) Sally Gunnell.

I urge this committee to reject these plans so that proper and full consultation and designs can be accommodated.

Alistair Gibb, a BMX enthusiast, spoke in favour of the plans.

Chris Simons from Greenwich Leisure Ltd (GLL) told the committee an extra 400,000 people are expected to use the new facility, but drew criticism when he dismissed the 5m diving board as ‘unnecessary’ when a 3m board would be in place.

He said:

This is about creating a five star facility for an affordable price.

We are trying to make this the best facility in London.

I don’t believe the 5m board is an issue.

Having had a 5m diving platform previously hasn’t actually produced any 5m divers at competition standard.

Chapel End ward councillor Steve Terry said it is with a “heavy heart” that he and his colleagues approved the plans, through fear of losing funding.

The plans were voted through by three to one.

Chingford councillor Alan Siggers ensured conditions were imposed to give the Harriers use of a room for stretching and ensure the re-location of toilets to eliminate safeguarding concerns.

£150M INVESTMENT TO TRANSFORM TREATMENT OF EATING DISORDERS

Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg has announced a £150m investment to transform the treatment of children and young people with eating disorders.

Nick has secured the fund in this year’s Autumn Statement and forms part of the Liberal Democrats ongoing campaign to bring mental health services on a par with physical health care.

PLEASE CLICK TO SIGN OUR PETITION:

The Liberal Democrats are determined to change this and to end the stigma around mental health. We want mental health issues to be treated just as seriously as physical health issues.

The fund will be rolled-out over the next five years and paves the way for the introduction of new waiting standards.

Research shows an increasing number of young people, some as young as five are being admitted to hospital for treatment of eating disorders at a cost to the NHS of around £200m a year.

The new funding will focus on channelling money from expensive institutional care to local provision through:

– pilot schemes to get young people with eating disorders early access to services in their communities, with properly trained teams, making hospital admission a last resort.

– extending access to talking therapies so that children and young people have choice of evidence based therapies.

Nick said:

“Too often children with mental health problems are being completely let down by the current system, with many suffering from eating disorders going unreported and untreated.

“We know that if an eating disorder goes untreated for more than 3 to 5 years the chances of recovery are greatly reduced, while incidents of self harm increase.

“That’s why we need to act now to transform the current system, intervening earlier with dedicated and targeted community-based services to ensure that we don’t fail this generation or the ones that follow.”

POOL AND TRACK PLANNING FARCE!

Re-submitted Pool & Track plan ‘would be missed opportunity’

12:33pm Wednesday 4th March 2015 – Waltham Forest E-Guardian

Re-submitted plans for a multi-million pound investment in new sporting facilities will be a ‘wasted’ opportunity, according to campaigners.

Athletes, parents, children, teachers and councillors gathered last night to urge the council to reconsider a proposal for Walthamstow Pool and Track.

The authority and contractors Greenwich Leisure Limited were criticised for deciding not to replace a 5m diving board as part of the £25million scheme in Chingford Road.

In September plans to knock down the existing building and replace it were rejected by the council’s planning committee due to loss of amenity as the diving board, which is said to be vital for training youngsters, would be replaced by a spa and an ‘extreme sports’ arena.

But an application for the same proposal has been made, with the diving board not included.

Campaigners and other clubs say young athletes will also be disadvantaged if the proposal is approved.

A petition calling for further public consultation has been signed by 2,500 people.

Speaking at the Pool & Track last night, Orion Harriers club manager, Jane Farrier, said the planned facility would kill athletics.

A ‘well-used’ strength and conditioning room will be taken away under the new plans.

We were not consulted from day one

They are not integrating this track with the new centre and there are a number of big concerns with the new proposals.

For a start we will now have a safeguarding issue with children having to go right out of our sight to use the toilets and changing rooms.

There will be no track-side first aid.

We have no trust in them whatsoever.

We do not dispute the centre needed to be developed, but the emphasis has been placed on making money not improving what we already have.

We have 400 junior and 350 senior members. None of them were asked.

Is consultation asking people what they want or telling them what they are getting?

Lesley Pearce, the teacher in charge of PE at Parkside School in Chingford, said

There is a desperate need for a large sporting venue for pupils to use.

If the council had consulted primary schools they would know we spend a huge amount of money transporting children to facilities in other boroughs.

With this amount of money they are spending – they have the chance build a major sporting hub and meet the needs of thousands of children.

These plans are not suitable.

Walthamstow resident Amanda Connolly criticised the lack of consultation.

There is no transparency in this project. It should be about investing in the future.

Nobody has a problem with development or enterprise, but we haven’t even been asked what we need.

Green Party candidate for Chingford and Woodford Green, Rebecca Tully, said the council should not expect children to travel to other boroughs for facilities.

There are children having to travel to outside boroughs and are getting home at ten o’clock on a school night. That is not what we want.

Many members of the community in Waltham Forest feel as though they have been ignored.

Jack Byrne, 11, is a member of the diving club. He said:

It’s not just about divers, it’s about swimmers too.

With these plans we can’t use the pool at the same time.

Before I learned to dive I would try the 5m board and it was such a thrill.

I just wanted to do more. If they take it away other children won’t get to experience that.

We don’t need a spa here.

A dedicated planning meeting will be held at Walthamstow Town Hall on Tuesday (March 10).

GLL has not responded to repeated requests for interview from The Guardian.

Please sign the on-line petition below.

View the petition here.

POOL AND TRACK PLANS STALLED BY PUBLIC PRESSURE

Multi-million pound plans to demolish and re-build a ‘state of the art’ sports centre have been axed from the council’s agenda for next week.

Campaigners, parents and budding sports stars had been preparing to protest at the town hall in Walthamstow, on Tuesday, as plans for the Chingford Road Pool and Track were to be debated for a second time.

A petition which has been signed by over 1,500 people was started two weeks ago, calling on the council to consult local people.

The plans, the second ones to reach the planning committee, have been slammed as the new centre will not include a 5m diving board, dive pit and will alter facilities for disabled people.

Waltham Forest council’s contractor, GLL Ltd, said the board is too expensive but are putting spa facilities and a BMX area in the plans.

In September the first plans were rejected over the proposed loss of amenity for local residents.

Today, it was revealed that the meeting has been deferred until March, where the will be a dedicated meeting over the facility.

In a letter to campaigner Ian Capes, a council officer wrote:

Due to the amount of interest in the plans it is important that we can accommodate as many members of the public as possible who wish to attend the meeting and play their part in the decision making process.

The decision comes on the same day the chairman of the planning committee was suspended from the Labour group over a Facebook rant over the words of the Prophet Mohammed.

The petition can be seen here:

https://www.change.org/p/london-borough-of-waltham-forest-lbwf-greenwich-leisure-limited-gll-aka-better-withdraw-planning-application-2014-2399-23m-pool-track-rebuild-and-consult-with-all-local-user-groups-about-the-design-specification

CHRISTMAS GREETINGS 2014

PROTECTING OUR CHILDREN – update

Focus has had a massive response to our petition to get all our elected councillors to have a CRB check (now called a Disclosure and Barring Service – DBS).

Councillors are Corporate Parents to all our children in care and DBS checks should be for all not just a few.

The FOCUS Team says: If you want to click here to sign the petition. You may also see the team in the High Street collecting more signatures.

INFLATION BUSTING PAY RISE!!

Waltham Forest’s Labour run Council has voted to give the Chief Executive of the Council a whopping inflation busting pay rise of £15,000 – an 8% increase.

This makes his salary £195,000! Even the Prime Minister only gets £142,000. Labour councillors said it was reward for overseeing council cuts.

Given that the cuts were a loss of 1,000 jobs plus salary cuts to the rest of the council staff should this have been rewarded?

On top of that, Labour councillors voted to give the redundant deputy chief executive a massive £140,000 pay off.

You can be assured that the staff who lost their jobs did not receive any golden pay offs.
Can you believe the way this Labour Council spends your money. Last year they increased the Deputy leader’s pay by 25%.

Your money down the drain

Focus will keep on reporting the arrogant and wasteful ways that this Council spends your money.

WE NEED TO PROTECT OUR CHILDREN

Council decides to limit child abuse checks

Waltham Forest Councillors will no longer be the subject of checks to protect our vulnerable children and adults unless they meet them once a week or more than 3 days per month or between the hours of 2am and 6am.

All councillors are Corporate Parents to all of the children in Council care, so they should actively safeguard and protect those who are looked after. Abuse of children has now been shown to have taken place for many years in and out of Council homes across the country. It is important therefore that residents are confident that all of our all Councillors should have a criminal records check even if they never work with children or only do so rarely.

Councillors are people who can be trusted with our children.

Liberal Democrat campaigner Sheila Smith-Pryor says, ‘All councillors therefore should be checked.’

PETITION: click here to sign the petition.

England’s population set to soar by 1,000 a DAY for the next decade, but where will they all live as housing crisis grows?

England’s population set to grow by more than four million in 10 years
London expected to near 10m mark by 2022 – with extra 2.5m in South
Number of retired people will increase by a fifth putting strain on NHS
Population boom will increase housing crisis as millions forced to rent
One in five homes now rented out – a 50% rise in a decade
But more than a million homes now lying empty
Tory peer Lord Lamont says immigration costs Government billions

By TOM MCTAGUE, MAIL ONLINE DEPUTY POLITICAL EDITOR

England’s population is growing by 1,000 a day, official figures revealed this morning.

The number of people in the country is expected to soar from 53 million to more than 57 million between 2012 and 2022, according to the Office for National Statistics. This amounts to an extra 384,410 people a year – or a city the size of Nottingham.

But the population boom is expected to add to the growing housing crisis – as fresh figures emerged this morning showing a boom in renting and overcrowding.

England’s population is booming – with every region set to grow between 2012 and 2022

Almost one in five homes in England are now rented – a 50 per cent increase in just 10 years. The number of owner occupied homes meanwhile dropped from 69% to 64% over the same period.

Homes with six or more people also spiked – rising by a quarter in just 10 years, including one in 25 homes in London.

But at the same time 1.1 million homes lay empty in 2011 – a 21 per cent spike in a decade.

England’s population is expected to boom in the next decade – with London, the South East and parts of the East Midlands (coloured in dark purple) set to grow more quickly than elsewhere

Despite a booming population and growing demand for homes the number of people living in each household has plummeted over the last 100 years

The housing crisis is being made more acute by the growing number of homes being left empty. The Office for National Statistics revealed today that more than a million homes are now unoccupied

Dan Wilson Craw, of Generation Rent, said:

‘Today’s statistics confirm that our broken housing market is creating deep divisions in society – wealthy property owners can afford to leave houses to stand empty, while more people who can’t buy are forced to squeeze into overcrowded private renting.

‘The government has no hope of reversing this trend with a scheme like Help to Buy – the nation’s renters need better rights in the rental market if they want to live somewhere they can genuinely call home.’

While an increasing number of homes sit unoccupied, the pressure to get on the housing ladder is expected to soar as the population booms over the next eight years.

London, the South East and East Anglia are expected to take most of the new population.

The capital itself will be home to 9.4million by mid 2022 up from 8.3million in 2012 – an increase of 13 per cent.

South East England will grow by 7.8 per cent and the East of England by 8.6 per cent. The North East will experience the slowest population growth – adding just 2.9 per cent over 10 years.

Soaring house prices have pushed more and more people into rented accommodation, the Office for National Statistics has found. Almost one in five homes is now rented out

As more than a million homes lie empty, people are squeezing themselves into properties. The number of homes with six or more people in them has soared by 25 per cent in 10 years

Of the 13 per cent projected growth in London, almost 90 per cent is because of a boom in the number of babies being born. Just 10 per cent is due to immigration.

Although London is a destination for many people migrating to live and work, both from other regions and internationally, there are also large numbers of people who leave the capital.

One reason for the ‘natural’ population boom is because London has only a little over 11 per cent of its population aged 65 and over – compared with most other regions where 17 per cent of the population are pensioners.

The number of people aged 65 and over is projected to increase in all regions by an average of 22 per cent between mid-2012 and mid-2022. The fastest growth in those aged 65 and over is seen in the East Midlands where the number is projected to increase by 25 per cent from 8.1 million to 10.1 million over the 10 year period.

LORD LAMONT ATTACKS LABOUR CLAIMS THAT ECONOMY NEEDS MIGRANTS

Former Tory Chancellor Lord Lamont today hit back at Labour claims that immigration was good for the economy.

He said it was obvious that the size of the economy would grow if there were more people in the country – but that did not mean people would be better off as a result.

The Conservative peer said ‘most of any benefit goes to immigrants themselves’.

Writing in the Times, he wrote:

‘In judging the pros and cons of immigration what matters is not as they argue GDP but GDP per head.

‘Immigration may enlarge the economy by having more people but that does not benefit the existing population unless it increases living standards per head.’

His remarks came after Lord Hutton and Alan Milburn, the former Labour cabinet ministers, urged the Government not to crack down on immigration.

Lord Lamont said:

‘Immigrants between 1995 and 2011 cost the Exchequer £95 billion.

‘Hutton and Milburn argue that migrants are a “bulwark against an ageing population”, but as our report pointed out immigrants also grow old and trying to deal with that phenomenon through yet further immigration would require ever escalating levels of immigration.’

He added:

‘What cannot be denied is the massive impact of immigration on the size of our population. If we allow it to continue at the average of the past ten years we will add ten million to the UK population in the next 20 years with at least 60 per cent of the increase due to immigration.’
Lord Lamont said ‘practically nobody wants to see this’.

The Tory peer said dismissing ‘genuine and justified concerns’ was ‘simply to play into the hands of extremists’.