All the union news that's fit to blog...
My speech today at this “Affordable Housing” conference in central London.
“Thank you. As I think I am the only politician speaking today, I hope you will find our perspective of what we are doing in Newham of interest.
First the bad stuff, whi…Read more…
Homeless deaths are more than nine times higher in the poorest areas of England than in the richest, new data shows. Fatalities of homeless people were recorded by 156 local authorities in…Read more…
As sub-zero temperatures continued into last night (January 31) amid the UK’s latest cold snap, battering towns and cities with snow, Unite’s headquarters opened its doors to rough sleepers for the…Read more…
Sub-zero temperatures may be merely unpleasant for many of us, but for some, it can be deadly. As the UK weathered its coldest night of the year last night (January 31) thousands of rough…Read more…
(hat tip “Inside Housing”) Newham’s new mayor has a tough job on her hands to tackle some of the country’s worst housing deprivation. Peter Apps finds out how she plans to do it. Photography by Peter Searle
By several measures, …Read more…
“A fairly shocking housing stat I’ve come across as background to a feature: There are 7,515 children in temporary accommodation within the 36km² which makes up Newham, east London.
This compares to 4,920 across the 40,000km² which makes up the e…Read more…
“Homelessness is an emergency whatever the weather but in winter and freezing weather, people are in even greater danger. Hannah Faulkner, Head of Pan-London Rough Sleeper Services at St Mungo’s explains how we help bring people in from the cold during…Read more…
Apologies to friends, colleagues and family who have sent me Christmas cards and have not received any back.
I have made a donation instead. This year to the Housing and Homeless Charity Shelter. https://england.shelter.org.uk/donate
My first ro…Read more…
“Almost one in five of Britain’s biggest companies paid not a penny of corporation tax in the UK last year, it can be revealed.
The Mail on Sunday has managed to obtain the details of the tax paid by 69 of the FTSE 100 group of largest companies …Read more…
I am back home after a couple of busy days in my role as a UNISON National Executive Committee (NEC) appointed Trustee.
On Tuesday I travelled up to Grantham in Lincolnshire to a meeting of the UNISON Welfare Trustee Board. This board is a mix of…Read more…
At least 450 homeless people in the UK have died on the streets or in temporary housing over the past 12 months, according to an investigation that exposes the “national emergency” of homelessness….Read more…
Recently as Cabinet member for Housing Services I was called to answer questions by the Newham Overview and Scrutiny Committee.
This is a statutory committee of Newham Councillors whose role is to hold the Councils Executive members to account and mak…Read more…
Hat tip Newham Recorder for a pretty full on report on the housing crisis in our borough.
The new mayor of Newham has slammed the loss of nearly 10,000 council homes under Right to Buy since the 1980s – saying the policy has exacerbated the bitter hou…Read more…
Picture college of yesterday’s well attended initial meeting of stakeholders from across Newham including residents who have experienced homelessness, faith groups, Government agencies, NGOs and Council officers. It took place in the historic for…Read more…
For many of us, the UK’s latest cold snap – dubbed the Beast from the East – is an inconvenience of travel delays, school cancellations and slippery roads. But for those sleeping rough, even one…Read more…
Walk past a boarded up or disused building in London and you may spot a sign informing passers-by that the property is “protected by live-in guardians”. Used primarily to deter squatters and…Read more…
A Unite Community activist who volunteers with the homeless has blasted shameful Tory councillors for neglecting rough sleepers and “demonising” them in a tasteless advertising campaign. …Read more…
Swindon Council’s second raid on the housing account As Swindon Council faces the decline of central government Revenue Support Grant year on year, it has scrabbled around desperately looking for ways of saving money. Its imposition of parish councils on the town without a democratic mandate…Read more…
Families evicted by private landlords are becoming homeless in record numbers because they can’t afford a place to live, shocking new government figures show. Nearly a third of the 15,170…Read more…
Sadly although Chancellor Osborne once again asserted that his party were “the builders”, today’s budget largely ignored the housing crisis. The best that can be said is that there bit was a commitment of £115 million to help the homeless and rough sleepers, who must be the…Read more…