July E-Newsletter

(10/07/2013)

1. Your local high street and the relaxation of planning controls 2. Emergency services update and Happy Birthday NHS 3. Costs soar as homelessness bites 4. In Parliament 5. Working in and with local communities

1. How do you feel about your local high street?

Britains high streets are taking a battering on a number of fronts: from the growth of internet shopping to the cost pressures of rent rises, business rates and parking charges, to the fall in demand as the economy fails to grow. Westminster is so dominated by the West End that the pressures facing our local high streets are quite different to the rest of the country- and even to London. But that doesnt mean they dont matter. Thousands of local residents rely on their local shops and amenities, and want their high streets to function properly, even if they are not the only, or even main, places where they shop. I carried out a survey to find out peoples thoughts about the Harrow Road-the link to the report of that survey is here: Harrow Road Report The responses confirmed that most people valued the convenience of the local shops, but concerns were raised about the variety on offer including the numbers of betting shops and fast food outlets. Levels of cleanliness were raised, and this survey echoes a common complaint about the shortage of dog wardens, to help protect against the minority of inconsiderate dog-owners. Unfortunately, a recent relaxation of planning rules, partly intended to cut the number of empty shops on high streets, is predicted to lead to a worsening of some of these problems:, as this article from the London Civic Forum makes clear: FURTHER RELAXATION OF PLANNING CONTROL Posted on: 24 June 2013 at 16:05:24 The Government's consultation has closed on making it easier for mobile phone service providers to put more and larger antennae and cabinets on buildings, including using wall mounted installations, without planning permission. Also, Football stadiums, car plants and exhibition centres can now benefit from a fast-track planning process which will by-pass Councils. See http://bit.ly/14qQ3MB This further reduction in community and local authority engagement in decision making is contrary to localism and follows the permitted conversion of offices to flats, restaurants to betting shops and the other relaxations of planning control that London Forum has been resisting and notifying to its members. Early day motion to cancel recent planning changes Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Hilary Benn MP has introduced an early day motion calling on the Government to cancel it's recent changes to the planning system. Hilary Benn said The Governments latest planning announcement robs local people of their right to have a say over the shape of their neighbourhoods and in particular their town centres and high streets. If left unchallenged, these changes will allow payday lenders and betting shops to continue their sprawl along our high streets, replacing independent retailers, restaurants and cafes, and will further increase the pressures on traditional community pubs. We want to give communities more power to shape their high streets, not less. I urge you to oppose the Governments ill-conceived planning reforms and ensure that local people keep their right to shape their high streets. In addition to supporting more local say and tighter control of these planning rules, I will continue to raise issues such as those highlighted in this report with the Council and others. Please continue to keep me informed of your views.

2. Emergency services update

Police
Harrow Road police station has now closed-following on the closures of Marylebone and St Johns Wood, and are now shortly to be joined by Queens Park/Kilburn police station. Opening hours are also being reduced at Paddington Green. I remain deeply concerned about the extent to which this represents a serious withdrawal of police presence in North Westminster. On the plus side, I am pleased to report that, after months of pressure from me, an agreement has been reached between the Council and the police to have a police presence in the former One-Stop in Harrow Road (now undergoing renovation). This is in addition to the surgery sessions the police plan for St Johns Wood Library and the Beethoven Centre. Please find below a link to find your local Safer Neighbourhoods Team http://content.met.police.uk/Page/TeamFinder?scope_id=1257246669692 The new contact points are Royalty Studios Unit C 105 Lancaster Rd W111QF Beethoven Centre 3rd Avenue W104JL St John's Wood Library 20 Circus Rd St John's Wood Opening times Wednesday and Thursday 7pm to 8pm, Saturday 3pm to 4pm The new local Policing Model which replaces Safer Neighbourhood Teams as we have known them in recent years, has now been launched. This replaces the ward based model of Safer Neighbourhood Team with 5 larger clusters working a 5 week shift pattern covering 7 am to 11pm Sunday to Wednesday and 7 am to 5 am from Thursday to Sunday. My personal view is that this is a less satisfactory system of local policing that the one it replaced, but we will see how it works in practice. http://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/policing-crime/mission-priorities/police-and-crimeplan Feedback on how this new system is working will be very welcome- please e-mail me your thoughts at: buckk@parliament.uk

Happy Birthday NHS

I would like to say a massive thank you for all the amazing work the NHS does day in day out for us over the last 65 years, long may it continue.

3.Costs soar as homelessness bites- and emergency accommodation costs more than benefits savings.
A report to Westminster Council Cabinet says that the cost of Temporary Accommodation for the homeless is predicted to be 6 million above budget this year, as benefit changes have resulted in an 86% increase in homeless acceptances in Westminster between 2010/11 and 2012/13 . The report says; As a result of the 86% increase in homeless acceptances over the last two years, coupled with loss of Temporary Accommodation supply and the increased difficulties in procuring self-contained accommodation within LHA caps, the City Council has found itself with increasing number of families in Bed and Breakfast accommodation and particularly families over 6 weeks, which is in breach of its statutory duties in relation to homelessness A copy the report is attached here: 10 Cabinet Rpt Re Procurement of Temporary Accommodation 24 June 2013-1 and here: 11 Appendix B WCC Temporary Accommodation Procurement Strategy Prior to 2011 homelessness acceptances in Westminster were falling. Acceptances rose by 86% between 2010/11 and 2012/13 (see Table 1). In 2009 only 9% of acceptances came from households living in the private rented sector but during 2012/13 this rose to 65%. The Observer covered this story in detail two weeks ago: http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2013/jun/08/councils-benefit-cuts-families-homes

4. In Parliament

Justice and the future of Legal Aid

Although reductions in the legal aid budget were on the cards whoever had won the last election, we would not have imposed such deep cuts in civil legal aid, nor put forward damaging proposals to remove choice of representative in civil cases. You can read my speech in the recent debate here: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm130627/ debtext/130627-0002.htm#13062761001550

5.Working in and with local communities

Around the constituency:
Lots of local issues, as always, coming in by e-mail, phone and letter and at my weekly advice surgeries:

Flood prevention work by Thames Water and impact on Westbourne Green and Tamplin Gardens

Both Westbourne Green and Tamplin Mews face months of excavation and disruption as part of the essential flood prevention works now being undertaken by Thames Water. A packed public meeting indicated the scale of concern about the temporary loss of, and long term impact on, Tamplin Mews, and Westbourne residents are also very worried about the loss of precious open space over the coming year. We are pressing Thames Water to minimise the time they take, reduce the impact of the works as much as possible, and contribute to the community to offset the effect. Please find below a link to the relevant web page on Thames Waters website outlining the plans, plus a downloadable Frequently asked questions. http://www.thameswater.co.uk/about-us/16934.htm

The Health service in Westminster

The structure of the NHS completely changed this April, following a highly controversial 3 billion reorganisation. I have had initial meetings with both of the New Clinical Commissioning groups covering North Westminster, as well as my regular sessions with senior managers from the Imperial Hospital Trust. You can read my article about the NHS changes here: www.karenbuck.org.uk/atthedawnofthenewnhs;urgentcareisincrisis

Dibdin House, Maida Vale

I organised a (also packed!) meeting of Dibdin House residents, along with the Residents Association, local police and Genesis Housing, to discuss a number of issues including anti-social behaviour, use of the Community Hall, maintenance and childrens play provision.

Amberley

I held a coffee morning at the Amberley clubhouse in June, attended by a number of local residents. In addition to the usual housing concerns, there were lots of health and education issues raised, and worries about the impact of the new school on the site of the Adult Education Service-especially with regards to parking and traffic.

Warwick

Big issue on Warwick is the pending decision of the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal on Major Works charges for leaseholders.

St Johns Wood

Together with members of my team, I have been doorknocking in Scott Ellis Gardens and Wharnecliffe Gardens, and met with residents in Ada Court. Lots of people raising the loss of social care, although individual experiences range from the highly positive to deeply negative, depending on their personal relationships with the care staff and how often staff change over.

Thanks for reading. Yours sincerely,

Karen Buck MP

Website: www.karenbuck.org.uk Twitter: KarenPBuckMP Facebook: KarenBuckMP

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