“Our members at Ladywood Primary School in Grimethorpe, Barnsley, are in dispute with their employer over proposals to make 9 School Meals Supervisory Assistants (lunchtime supervisors) redundant.
Donate …Read more…
Clear out West Ham CLP HQ aka “the Pie Shop”
Our local Labour headquarters since the 1970s has been sold to a developer who is going to build a high rise block on the site.
It used to be a newsagents and a “fish n chips” shop in the past.
The national Labour Party has a large capital sum and we…Read more…
Paul Cockerell – Life long Socialist, Trade unionist & Hammer fan – RIP
On Friday afternoon I went to pay my respects at Paul’s funeral at Manor Park crematorium.
Paul was a Forest Gate North and West Ham Labour activist who also lived round the corner to me.
A lovely non religious service for a life long socia…Read more…
Turning rubbish into pensions
Picture collage from a visit on Friday with Cllr Joshua Garfield, Newham Council Pension officer and our Canadian fund managers, Fiera Infrastructure (top left) to the Cory Riverside “energy from waste” plant in Belvedere, Bexley, Kent.
New…Read more…
Councillor Report to West Ham Ward 8 November 2018
Councillor Report to Ward As 8 Nov 2018 WEST HAM WARD LABOUR PARTY
tel: 0203 373 3456 or email John.Gray@Newham.gov.uk
Ward issues
· On 4 October after my surgery I attended a meeting of…Read more…
“UNISON celebrates becoming the UK’s biggest union”
“UNISON is marking becoming the UK’s biggest union by launching a month of recruitment activity today to reach out to every worker in the country providing public services.The union has now more than 1.3 million people in its membership who work in edu…Read more…
Happy 101st Birthday Bolshevik Revolution
Today is the 101st anniversary of the Russian Bolshevik Revolution. Who knew? and it is Trotsky’s birthday as well. Today I attended a Newham Council Audit meeting and 3 people present out of 15 or so also had their birthdays today. Spooky or what?
Ha…Read more…
Remembrance services to be held across Newham Sunday 11 November 2018
“Residents are invited to join Mayor of Newham Rokhsana Fiaz and the Royal British Legion at remembrance services to commemorate those who have lost their lives while serving their country.
Services are taking place across the borough and will …Read more…
Darul Jannah Community Centre 2nd anniversary & Student Prize Awards
I was really pleased tonight to be a guest at the Darul Jannah community centre in my ward, alongside Cllr John Whitworth, Cllr Anam Islam and Cllr Shaban Mohammed as well as local Police and other community activists.
The centre has been open for 2 y…Read more…
Out and about Newham Council Housing: Cundy Street Centre, David Lee Point, Janson Close & Park Road
Picture collage from recent visits, talks and walkabouts I have been on as Newham Housing lead with local residents, Council Officers and local Councillors.
While visiting our housing estates and meeting residents I have found lots of things that we n…Read more…
Max Levitas – Battle of Cable Street Anti Fascist Veteran RIP
Life long anti-fascist and former “Red Stepney” Councillor for 15 years, Max Levitas, has passed away aged 103. I first met Max many years ago when he was probably in his late 80s and he addressed a meeting of Tower Hamlets residents opposed to the sto…Read more…
Boleyn (Newham) result:
Boleyn (Newham) result: LAB: 74.8% (+4.3) CON: 14.2% (-4.4) GRN: 7.5% (-3.4) LDEM: 3.6% (+3.6) Labour HOLD.
Well done. Moniba Khan (right of picture next to our Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz) is elected as a Labour Councillor in a by-election last night.
Th…Read more…
Child Poverty in London
This is from a hard hitting report by the Child Poverty Action Group. 37% of children in London (700,000 kids) live in poverty. It is projected to rise 2019-2021 to 41.5%. What a shameful statistic for one of the richest cities in the world. 2/3rds of …Read more…
What is austerity?
“There’s a lot of talk about Tory austerity. But what is it? Let’s break it down, brick by brick”.
Coombe Hill & Chequers Walk 2018 (& 2004)
Off message: Gill and I went for this fantastic 8 mile autumnal walk last Sunday in the Chilterns. The weather was incredibly warm and sunny for the time of year. Many trees were still remarkably green which I put down to the unusual hot summer we have…Read more…
UNISON endorsement for Emma Whysall as Labour Candidate for Chipping Barnet: “Let’s get the job done”
“I’m at least the fourth generation of my family to be a Trade Unionist – back to the blacklisted docker and the miner on strike for the minimum wage in 1912.
Trade Unions are the core of the Labour Movement. I am so humbled by @unisontweets endorseme…Read more…
Newham Dockside Dusk
Off message. There has been some spectacular dawns and sunsets this month. This is view from the Cabinet workstations on the 4th floor, Newham Council Dockside, E16 on 6.12pm, October 5 (Google stylised photo but it was stunning at the time) Read more…
My Tweet Cloud Bot @tweetcloudbot
Love it. NEWHAM GREAT HOUSING COUNCIL. Way to go
If you tweet check out @tweetcloudbot
Hat tip Martin WarneRead more…
Sunday Times on Suicide Bombers: “I don’t really mind if they don’t leave the country, so long as they blow themselves up – somewhere a decent distance from where the rest of us live. Tower Hamlets, for example”
I have just made my first ever complaint to the press regulator https://www.ipso.co.uk/complain/ about the article yesterday in The Sunday Times about suicide bombers blowing themselves up in Tower Hamlets.
I have worked in Tower Hamlets for 25 y…Read more…
Tonwell walk Hertfordshire (Ramblers route) – Big Skies, Slave Trade, Toll roads, Double VC, Harvest Festival
Off message this was a seriously good Sunday walk that Gill & I did late September which is only a short drive from London (apologies to my fellow Newham Cllr Daniel B for using the “D” word). It was the first walk that I had downloaded from the Ra…Read more…