Monthly Archives: April 2012

Labour gives away buildings worth £1.5m for nothing

Posted on April 27, 2012 | 1 Comment
Lib Dem GLA Leader Caroline Pidgeon, Brent and Harrow campaigner Charlotte Henry and Councillor Paul Lorber joined library campaigners at the Kensal Rise pop-up library

London Assembly candidates Caroline Pidgeon and Charlotte Henry show their support for Kensal Rise library campaigners.

Labour Leader Councillor Ann John and her Labour Executive have been accused of giving away two taxpayer paid for buildings worth £1.5 million without lifting a finger to prevent their loss.

The transfer of Kensal Rise Library and Cricklewood Library to All Souls College has deprived the local community of facilities valued at £1.5m by Brent Council officers. According to the report presented to the Executive on 15 November 2010 (section 4.2) Kensal Rise Library has a building market value of £772,034 and Cricklewood Library has a value of £724,765.

The buildings were erected on land provided by All Souls College Oxford using funds contributed by Willesden Urban District Council taxpayers, a donation from philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and public donations. The terms of the land transfer meant that local people could use the land to provide libraries for ever for the benefit of local people.

Despite explicit assurances from All Souls College that it was open to the idea of members of the community providing library services from the two buildings under the umbrella of Brent Council, the Labour councillors responsible for closing half of Brent’s libraries have been determined to see the end of book borrowing at Kensal Rise and Cricklewood.

Liberal Democrat Group Leader Councillor Paul Lorber outside the closed Cricklewood Library

Labour councillors rejected proposals to keep Cricklewood Library open and involve the community in running the service.

Labour councillors refused to respond positively to the well thought out bid from local residents to run their own Volunteer Library at no cost to the Council. As a result assets worth in excess of £1.5 million were lost to the Brent community and reverted back to All Souls College – not to mention the damage done to the community by the closure of the libraries.

The loss of these two buildings is massive blow to the people of Kensal Rise and Cricklewood and a massive financial loss to the Council. I wonder if the Labour Councillors would have given up so easily on buildings worth more than £1.5 million if it was their own money at stake?

said Liberal Democrat council group leader Paul Lorber.

This is yet another example of Labour’s waste. The council is still paying the £55,000 per year rent due on Neasden Library and the costs of rates and security at other empty library buildings in Brent.

ENDS

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Labour Failure, Libraries

Brent Council at top of list of library closing authorities

Posted on April 25, 2012 | Leave a comment

Liberal Democrat research reveals that more than 40 libraries were closed by Conservative and Labour councils last year. In stark contrast, for the second year in a row, no Liberal Democrat-controlled council in England and Wales closed any library.
 
Labour controlled Leeds council closed the most libraries, shutting 13 out of the 53 libraries they control, but Brent Council closed the highest proportion, shutting six out of twelve libraries in the borough.

Liberal Democrat-controlled Cardiff is opening five new libraries and Portsmouth and Bristol are also opening new libraries.

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Party President, Tim Farron said:

While Conservatives and Labour councils cut their budgets without regard for the most vulnerable, Liberal Democrat-controlled councils know how to protect essential services.

Encouraging and enabling reading is vital to the development of children and adults alike. If we don’t give our children the opportunity to practice and perfect their reading skills at a young age, they will struggle to catch up later in life.

Cutting services like Labour and Tory councils are doing will do long-term damage. Liberal Democrats are doing the right thing thanks to our financial competency in the councils we run. That is also the reason why not only have Liberal Democrat councils kept libraries open, but councils in England have also frozen council tax and are most likely to be giving the lowest-paid council workers a pay rise.

 Brent Liberal Democrat Group Leader Paul Lorber added:

Libraries are a life-line for local communities – providing access to the internet and study space as well as books. Keeping libraries open was a priority when Liberal Democrats led Brent Council. Local residents won’t forget the damage that Brent’s Labour councillors have done.

A list of library closures is below:

Council        Party    Closures
Leeds          Lab      13
Brent          Lab       6
Bolton         Lab       5
Warwickshire   Con       3
Doncaster      Ind       2
Flintshire     Ind       2
Hartlepool     Lab/Ind   2
Manchester     Lab       2
Waltham Forest Lab       1
Barnet         Con       1
Bradford       Lab       1
Cumbria        Con/Lab   1
Lambeth        Lab       1
Lewisham       Lab       1
North Somerset Con       1
Shropshire     Con       1
Westminster    Con       1

According to the Office of National Statistics, only 77% of households had access to the internet in 2011. Nearly a third of those without internet access, stated that the reason was that access or equipment costs were too high.

All Liberal Democrat Councils in England have frozen their Council Tax and, according to the Local Government Chronicle, Liberal Democrat-run councils were more than twice as likely to give the lowest paid workers a pay rise compared to Labour, and five times more likely than Conservative run councils.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Libraries

Tagged ,

Council figures show massive drop in number of Brent book borrowers

Posted on April 11, 2012 | Leave a comment

The number of library visits and the number of active library borrowers have both dropped following Labour’s closure of half Brent’s Libraries, according to Brent Council’s own figures tabled at the One Council Overview & Scrutiny Committee last month. 

The reduction in the number of active library borrowers is especially marked. In March 2011, nearly one in five of Brent’s population (19%) were active library borrowers. This figure has now plummeted to 14% meaning that Labour’s closure plan appears to have led to the council losing a quarter of its active borrowers in less than a year. Row 1 shows the number of library visits per 100,000 population as 6660 in 2010/11, 4606 three-quarters of the way through 2011/12, and current target 4834. Row 2 shows active library borrowers as a percentage of the population at 18.6% in March 2011, dropping to 13.81% in December 2011 against a target of 16.4%.

As the table published by the council shows (above) the number of library visits per 100,000 population was 6,660 in 2010/11 but only 4,606 three-quarters of the way through 2011/12 against the current target of 4834, so the indicator has been given an amber (below the level of expected performance but within tolerance of the target) status by the council. If current trends continue there will be just over 6,100 library visits per 100,000 population by the end of the year – a big drop compared to before Labour’s library closures.

Row 2 shows active library borrowers as a percentage of the population was 18.6% in March 2011, dropping to 13.81% in December 2011 against a target of 16.4%. This indicator has been given a red status by the council, suggesting that council managers do not expect to reach the target (which had already been set as a level less than that achieved the previous year). 

The figures are in line with library visit figures released by the council that show on average there are now around 20,000 fewer library visits in Brent each month following the closure of Barham Park, Cricklewood, Kensal Rise, Neasden, Preston and Tokyngton libraries.

Brent Liberal Democrat Leader Paul Lorber said:

These are shocking and saddening statistics – and exactly what was predicted by everyone in the Brent Save Our Libraries campaign.

The only positive point is that Brent has not disposed of any of the old libraries. It’s still not too late for Labour councillors to listen to local people, end their intransigence and start planning the re-opening of our vacant libraries.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Libraries

Tagged ,

Alison Hopkins says thank you to Dollis Hill residents.

Posted on April 11, 2012 | Leave a comment

Alison Hopkins wrote to local residents via the local press following her election as Brent Council’s newest councillor. Her letter was published in the Brent & Kilburn Times and the Wembley and Willesden Observer.

Dear Editor,

I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to all those in Dollis Hill who voted for me to be their new councillor at last week’s by-election. Having lived in Dollis Hill all my life, it is such an honour to represent my community on Brent Council. It is a real responsibility to be elected to serve my fellow Dollis Hill residents and I take it very seriously. I would also like to thank all those who helped me to win here.

During the election campaign I spoke to many people who are disillusioned and fed up with the decisions that Brent Council’s Labour administration is taking. Whether the issue is the closure of half of our libraries or the rubbish on the streets, there is an overwhelming impression that Labour is no longer interested in listening to what ordinary residents have to say.

 I am determined to be a councillor for everyone in Dollis Hill, not just those who voted for me. Along with my fellow Liberal Democrat councillors Javaid Ashraf and Jack Beck, I will be on the side of Dollis Hill residents. I will work to represent their concerns and will continue to fight for cleaner streets, to save our school crossing patrols and to cut waste not services at Brent Council.

Yours faithfully,

Alison Hopkins
Liberal Democrat councillor for Dollis Hill

Dollis Hill residents can contact Councillor Alison Hopkins by email at Cllr.Alison.Hopkins@brent.gov.uk, by phone on 07917 717797 or by post at  9 Humber Road, London, NW2 6EH.

Along with Cllr Javaid Ashraf and Cllr Jack Beck, Alison holds a regular surgery for residents on the 1st Saturday of each month from 11am to 12 noon at Comber Close Community Hall, Comber Close, Dollis Hill, NW2 7EG.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Elections, Liberal Democrats

Tagged , , , , ,