Under the Tories everything's been cut. Except waiting times. Your vote can save the NHS

#YourVoteCan

West Hammers on "dog & bone" for Labour #GE2019

Picture from last nights telephone phone canvass of marginals using the Labour Party software "Dialogue" with our candidate Lyn Brown and Newham Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz. There were a few "teething problems" but when it was up and working you can contact many voters. 

Tackling Rough Sleeping at Newham Stepping Stones

Today I went on a visit with Cllr Zulfiqar Ali and Cllr Shaban Mohammed to our newly opened Newham temporary assessment centre for Rough Sleepers. The centre is called "Stepping Stones" and is staffed 24/7 and can house up to 20 people and another 5 when it gets very cold.

It is basic but clean, warm, dry and much safer than the streets. Food is donated by a number of local stores and charity foodbanks. Local Charities are also arranging for hairdressers to attend while specialist housing, medical & advocacy services are being brought in.

Some of the residents were previously sleeping in tents at Stratford. We spoke to Council officers, centre staff (ThamesReach) and to residents. All of whom were positive about the centre.

"Stepping Stones" is a temporary fix and not a solution to Rough Sleeping but will make a big difference. Already it has achieved 4 positive "move on's" in the last 2 weeks of rough sleepers being brought from the street to the centre to other more suitable accommodation.

We need a permanent assessment centre in Newham. In the Newham Council budget consultation for the next 3 years there will be proposals for such a centre and appropriate specialist support for it. 

Labour is on the side of the tenants: Tories are on the side of BAD LANDLORDS

ITS TIME FOR REAL CHANGE

Chipping Barnet East End team

Today I went with on a canvass team for Labour Candidate, Emma Whysall, in Chipping Barnet. Newham Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz also joined board Leader, Graham Taylor, who is the Parliamentary agent from Bethnal Green & Poplar. I have known Graham for many years and as a former Tower Hamlets Council Housing officer, I even used to manage the tower block that he lives in.

Around a hundred canvassers met outside Cockfosters underground station. After a short speech from Emma and her organiser we set off.  Lots of first time canvassers had turned up and were welcomed and reassured that they would be looked after. Two first time canvassers from Waltham Forest joined our team.

We were in classic outer London suburbia with lots of large houses. I spoke to a number of residents who I think were genuinely undecided. Sometimes when door knocking you feel that people say they "don't know" just to get rid of you. I didn't think so on this occasion. Remain/Brexit is obviously an important issue and some made it clear that they were considering tactical voting. 

I knocked on the door of a family who explained they will probably not vote Labour this time because they want to send a message to the Party about antisemitism. They fully accepted that Emma was an excellent candidate and that they may still vote for her since the right wing Tory candidate is so "awful".

While this is obviously an affluent area to live in there were homes which had been converted into HMOs (Houses of Multiple Occupancy) and others which were clearly in a state of disrepair. Owners may have a property which is worth a lot of money but no income to maintain it.

We finished off canvassing a newly refurbished Council housing estate (Barnet Homes ALMO) which reminded me of similar blocks back home in Newham. The Mayor and I were impressed with their stair rails and flooring which I will investigate further for use back in Newham.

After the canvass I went back to West Ham to pick up and deliver "Vote Lyn Brown" leaflets to activists for them to leaflet their local streets, railway stations and school gates next week.  While we will be campaigning daily in West Ham, we want as many activists as possible to go to nearby Labour marginals. The next few days will be key and we simply have to win the marginals to form a Labour Government. I firmly believe that we can still do it and that there is still everything to play for.  

"The scariest kind of operation? One that's cancelled" Your vote can save the NHS

Speaking at Trades Council Rally Against Cuts

This afternoon I was invited by Redbridge Trades Council to speak at their rally outside the Town Hall in Ilford against public service cuts & in support of postal workers.

As Chair of London UNISON Labour Link (our union Labour Party supporting political fund) I offered solidarity to Postal workers and spoke about the Tory cuts to the NHS which has resulted in:-

horrendous reductions in services such as the longest ever waiting times for GP appointments & A&E admittance, Cancer patients not being seen in accordance to targets (and 10,000 fewer doctors).

As a Housing trade union activist I was also able to point out that this current Tory government has since 2010 built the least homes in the country since 1923; in the last 5 years they have only built 40,000 Council or Housing Association Homes compared to the 142,000 that the last Labour Government built in their last 4 years.

Labour are committed to building an average of 155,000 social housing homes per year with 100,000 being Council houses at Council rents. 

It was good to meet up with Redbridge trade union and Labour comrades as well as our Labour Candidate for Ilford South, Sam Tarry. Hat tip to Pushpa for photos and video.

It was great to be invited to such a well organised trade union rally.

Newham & Sadiq supporting Jon Cruddas as Labour Candidate for Dagenham & Rainham

Today I was with Newham Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz & comrades from East & West Ham (and other parts of London) to support Jon Cruddas, Labour Candidate in Dagenham & Rainham. London Labour Mayor, Sadiq Khan, was also there.

After the obligatory photos, we went off in a Newham campaign team. I was "running the board" (giving out names and addresses for canvassers to call upon to see if they are supporting Labour and then recording the result).

We only got hopeless lost once (I blame google maps). We found our destination the traditional way by asking a local shop keeper!

The round was mostly blocks of flats which are notoriously hard to get through the entry door but residents were (mostly) happen to "buzz" us in so we were able to talk properly to them.

Dagenham & Rainham is a Labour held "marginal" and Jon has been the MP for the area since 2001 (obviously he is now not an MP following the dissolution of Parliament for the General Election but the Labour Candidate).

I found support for Jon and Labour to be strong and he is obviously respected as a hard working Constituency MP but we should not take any marginal for granted. I left slightly early to be a UNISON speaker at a Trades Council Rally against public sector cuts.

Why are we waiting? Your vote can save our NHS

Thanks to the Conservatives, seeing your GP can feel like mission impossible. They are destroying our NHS. Your vote can save it. Find out more at
unsn.uk/NoMoreWait #YourVoteCan

The average wait for a GP appointment is now the longest it’s ever been.

But this election your vote can change that.

You can use your vote on 12 December to save our NHS and make a real difference to the people you care about.

It’s not just GP appointments:

• The NHS’s ability to meet waiting time targets has sunk to an all-time low under the Tories, putting patients at risk.
• More than 2 million adults in England are unable to see an NHS dentist
• In October 2019 the NHS witnessed the lowest performance across all A&E departments since records began
• More than 3,000 patients are now failing to receive their first treatment for cancer on time
• In the past year more than 78,000 operations have had to be cancelled at the last minute due to issues such as equipment failure or a lack of staff.

This hasn’t happened by accident, years of underfunding, a lack of investment in staff, and an emphasis on profit over care have pushed the NHS to the brink.

We represent people working all across the public sector, and they tell us that the last 10 years have been grim. It’s not just the NHS, it’s schools, councils, police and more that are also suffering from devastating cuts.

That’s why this election has to be about more than Brexit

Your vote can make sure that the voices of the hard-working people delivering public services are heard.

The Conservatives are destroying our NHS. This can’t go on.

Please vote on 12 December to save the NHS, schools, public services and social care.

Redbridge Trades Union Council Rally 2pm Saturday 7 December

Looking forward to speaking about cuts to NHS and what we need to do to solve the housing crisis