Quiz the Leaders
Friday October 30, 2009
More than 130 residents gathered to grill council, health, police and fire leaders at H&F’s first ever ‘Quiz the Leaders’ borough summit meeting on November 10.
BBC heavyweight John Humphrys, who is also a borough resident, chaired a lively debate about some of the big issues affecting the borough.
The panel included H&F Council Leader Councillor Stephen Greenhalgh, NHS Hammersmith & Fulham Chairman Jeff Zitron, Detective Superintendant Steve Cassidy and Borough Fire Commander Steve Lumb.
To see the questions sent in to the council, with answers, click on the topic links below.
Health and social care
Council tax and finance
Housing and planning
Crime
Transport and parking
Other
See edited highlights on H&F tv
Q&As
Health and social care
There was no consultation with service users before the Tamworth Day Centre was closed down, nor was there any before the decision was made to close down Wood Lane Hostel. Do their views not count?
Recent changes to mental health services have been designed to improve the service for individual users. We make every effort to involve individual people in plans for their care and we appreciate that all change for people with metal health issues is difficult, but standing still is not an option if we are to improve services.
There are four people currently living at Wood Lane - two of these are moving on anyway. Individual discussions will take place with the remaining two people about suitable alternative accommodation.
The Council wants to ensure these contribute to regeneration of the area, especially with new housing; that there is a high standard of urban design and that development does not exceed transport capacity.
Council tax and finance
Why is H&F cutting council tax again when this will mean more cuts in staff and cost increases for residents using services such as meals on wheels, sports facilities, home helps, registration service?
Let us not forget that it is people on the lowest incomes who suffer the most when it comes to council tax - which is for most the second biggest household bill. By cutting council tax we are helping these people the most.
Only people who can afford to make a contribution on Homecare will do so - we are continuing to protect those who who cannot make a contribution. All but a handful of councils now charge for Homecare and because we have a wider eligibility criteria 800 people get a service in H&F that they would not be entitled to in many other boroughs.
Generally when it comes to fees and charges we are only bringing our charges in line with other local authorities. We are not the cheapest but we are certainly not the most expensive. Everybody pays council tax and that is why I want to make it as low as possible. No one uses all the services for which there is a charge. Is it right that a pensioner has to subsiside someone's marriage license or trade waste collection?
Why has the Council introduced 500 'stealth taxes and charges'?
It is absolute nonsense to suggest there are 500 taxes or stealth charges - like all authorities we impose a charge for certain services. Our charges are not the lowest but they are certainly not the highest.
People can choose whether they access services like marriage license registration or trade waste disposal. However, they don't have a choice when it comes to paying their council tax and that is why we will continue to try and keep it as low as possible.
I am sure our residents will welcome some of the supposed 500 'stealth taxes' - for example we now charge utility companies more if they overrun when it comes to digging up the roads.
I would like to know how you can justify cuts to Council Tax at the cost the welfare of the elderly within the Borough - particularly when it comes to changes in sheltered housing wardens which will make the service far worse.
We current have 1,400 residents living in 37 sheltered housing schemes, many of whom do not need additional housing support from their wardens. This means some sheltered housing residents have to pay for a service they don't want or use.
On the other hand, we have 16,000 older people living in their own homes, who are currently not entitled to the extra housing support sheltered scheme residents get. That is not as fair as it should be and I am very pleased that local people have largely supported moving to a fairer system."
Plans to change the way housing support and home care are provided have been broadly welcomed by H&F residents.
A 12-week consultation with elderly and disabled residents has shown 84% of people broadly support the changes.
Yes, I know there are some objections from sheltered housing residents who fear they may lose out, although many people in sheltered housing recognise that changes for them will bring benefits for other people.
We will be asking the landlords to enhance their scheme management and keep a familiar face on site wherever possible. This does not, therefore, necessarily mean sheltered scheme wardens will be moved out of their current premises, only that housing support will be extended to help more of the people who need it most."
Councils across the country are making similar changes as a result of the government introducing 'personalised budgets' where each service user has control over how their care budgets are spent, choosing their own service providers, rather than having to 'get what they are given' by the council.
What are the views of the panel on H&F Council selling off H&F News?
The Council is proud of H&F News - it is a great local paper that is very popular in the area with both readers and advertisers. We're proud of the fact that it doesn't cost taxpayers anything to produce. We need it in order to communicate with our residents because, sadly, we cannot relying on our traditional local papers to do that here given their low circulation. We need it to support businesses, community groups, the arts scene and sports groups - as they, overwhelmingly, take up much of the editorial content, not the Council.
Would we sell it? (apparently there has been a very informal approach)
If it is in the interests of our taxpayers we would be mad not to consider offers.
Why is this leadership proud of cutting jobs in H&F council, when it has resulted in local low paid residents being unemployed in a recession and the transfer of services to Rochdale, Manchester?
We are not proud of cutting jobs but our residents - especially in this time - rightly expect quality, value for money services and that is what we are focused on delivering. That means we need to look at how some services are provided. Local authorities are not experts in running call centres.
There are companies which are experts and companies which can do it at lower cost. That has to be a good thing for our residents - better services at lower cost. Our residents do not expect to pay their council tax bills for us to employ local people for the sake of it.
I have it on good authority that certain departments within the Council, when staff leave, retire or are made redundant, go on to ask these same staff back again to work on a consultancy basis paying high and extortionate consultancy fees for access to knowledge and expertise it already had within the Council. I am not prepared to say source or department but would like to know how much of this occurs across all areas of the Council. I do not believe this is good use of public money and it is just an exercise in massaging head-count figures.
This is very rare and only when the expertise is greately needed.
Why did the Council spend money enveloping their recent recycling letter when it didn't have personal address details. This is a blatant waste of money - and leads to more waste!
Recycling is a major issue for us. The need to cut down on the amount we send to landfill is important for our taxpayers and the environment as a whole. We need to get that message across. There are many leaflets distributed with H&F News and residents can be forgiven for missing some of them.
We wouldn't want our message to be lost amongst takeaway menus from the local Chinese restaurant. The fact you are raising it now means that you have read it - that is a good thing. Spending a thousand pounds or so on enveloping could potentially save tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of pounds if people get the message that recycling is not an choice - it is a duty.
Housing and planning
Why has there been such a large influx of Somalis in the borough, how many are there and who is responsible for housing them and what is the total cost to the Borough?
Asylum seekers are not entitled to council housing. Accommodation and support for people seeking asylum is provided from a range of accommodation providers including private sector landlords and registered social landlords.
This accommodation is provided under contract with the Home Office and all costs are met by central government. Once people seeking asylum have been granted leave to remain in the UK they have the same rights as other citizens and will have to queue up on the council housing waiting list.
Why are you knocking down West Kensington Estate and where will we live?
No decision has been made about the West Kensington estate.
We are talking to other landowners about how we can use the planned redevelopment of Earls Court to bring significant improvements to the area which could involve building new homes for people already on the estate.
If this happens - where would you live? Pretty much where you are already living but in a better home in a better housing environment. We have issued a cast iron guarantee that all tenants will be rehoused in the same area. We want to enhance the community, not destroy it.
One thing I must stress is that nothing will happen without the involvement of local people and the Council will not support anything we do not believe is in the interests of local people.
Does that mean you will give them a veto?
I am not going to make that commitment now - but I will tell you one thing - we will be very much listening to the views of local people on the estate over the next few months. No plans have been agreed - nothing has been decided on West Ken.
Given some of the development plans have stalled due to the economic climate, can we use undeveloped sites such as Hammersmith Embankment as temporary parks - Hammersmith Embankment is on the river.
It is a good idea but this site is privately owned.
Now that development schemes such as Westfield and Frank Banfield park are making our borough a much more distinctive and pleasant place to live is it time for a significant rebranding?
It's great that you recognise the improvements that we have seen in this borough - but the short answer is that, no, I don't think we need to think about rebranding. I think H&F has always had a reputation as being a good borough to live in. We're just trying to make what we have already got even better by spending money on our parks, improving transport, opening a new library, making our streets cleaner, improving schools and putting more bobbies on the beat.
How can you justify spending money re-developing the riverside playground next to The Black Lion when the facilities are already perfectly adequate for the area?
Defer to Paul Bristow
What are the Council's plans for the Queen Caroline estate - right up to the area around Fulham FC?
We have set out an ambition to look at ways we can improve QC estate if the right opportunity arises - however there are no current plans or proposals nor are in discussions about any plans or proposals. It doesn't mean to say that we haven't spoken to people in the past in the same way as we may in the future. but any future plan has to be right to the area and right for local residents.
We do know that a company called A2 Dominion has bought the site and sought guidance from the Council on what kind of development would be appropriate on that site. The developer has outlined an intention to build 100 new homes and that is in no way linked to the Council's vision to bring long-term improvements to Queen Caroline estate. We would expect A2 Dominion to put together a planning application which the Council would consider as a planning authority.
Many estate agents and property developers in H&F are taking advantage of the affordable housing scheme - what will be done by the Council at planning level to ensure this will not be to the detriments of social housing residents.
H&F Council is proud of our record and our future plans for delivering affordable housing in our borough. Our housing targets are 33% above the previous Mayor of London's own targets. We are planning for 6,500 homes in ten years with 50% affordable.
Since 2006 1,625 units of affordable housing (gross) have or will be built (Source HSSA returns to the DCLG and projected completions for 2009/10). Out of those 870 are or will be social rented housing
(gross).
Social housing remains an important component of our affordable housing policy.
Crime
I have concerns about ASB and want to know what the Council's priorities will be for future spending.
We have recently conducted a major crackdown on anti-social behaviour which has seen some 700 complaints resolved in the last six months.
Meanwhile dozens of radios, guitars, speakers and computers were seized by Hammersmith & Fulham Council from five addresses across the borough during the summer. The hotter months of the year are when noise problems are traditionally at their worst, often due to open windows and outdoor parties.
We understand how ASB blights lives and I can assure you we have a zero tolerance attitude to it and will continue with a zero tolerance attitude.
Transport and parking
I'd like to ask about the parking zones. Why are borough residents not free to park anywhere in the borough when they paid the permanent parking fee like Chelsea and Westminster Borough?
When the Council undertook a borough-wide consultation exercise on its parking controls in 2002, 72% of residents supported the division of the borough into zones.
We have a large number of heavily used Underground stations and if the whole borough were to consist of one parking zone, large numbers of borough residents would drive to the stations, causing problems of congestion and parking stress to those residents who live near the stations and other attractions such as shopping centres. The vast majority of boroughs, including Wandsworth and Ealing, have a zonal system similar to our own.
Other
Is it not possible to ban the use of To Let & For sale signs? As living near a Park vandals seem to take delight in setting them on fire. They seem to be made from a material that is highly combustible?
The clampdown on estate agent boards in Hammersmith & Fulham could be extended to further areas of the borough.
Following complaints from residents about the visual eyesore of the boards, H&F Council imposed a blanket ban on displaying them in the Barons Court and Sinclair Road/Gardens conservation areas in 2006. The scheme has proved so successful that the council is now considering extending the blanket ban to other areas in H&F.
The council is also coming down hard on illegal advertising outside the existing banned areas - in the past six months, more than 400 'sold' and 'let by' signs have been removed across the borough.
According to advertising laws, boards can only be displayed where a property is for sale or for rent, and must then be removed within 14 days of the house or flat being sold or let.
The four potential new zones where displaying boards would be illegal are Avonmore Road and Harwood Road and the conservation areas of Hammersmith Grove and Gunter Estate. Other problem places could also be added to this.
Any new designated areas would first have to be approved by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and the proposals would need the backing of local residents.
A consultation with local residents is expected to be launched at the end of October and a decision on whether to apply to the Secretary of State for permission to extend the ban is expected to be made before the end of the year.
If you would like to suggest an area that is particularly blighted by estate agent boards or report an illegal board, email boards@lbhf.gov.uk
Does the Council derive any revenue from the vast advertising hoarding that has covered St. Paul's Church, St Paul's Green for some years? If not, why not?
No - and the Council cannot derive revenue because it is not our land.
How does the Leader define a Decent Neighbourhood?
A decent neighbourhood is one where residents have access to good schools, open spaces, community and health facilities and one where people's lives are not blighted by crime or anti-social behaviour.
A decent neighbourhood is one where there is a mixture of housing to cater for people's changing needs - and housing which is up to the standard that people should expect today.
A decent neighbourhood is one where people have access to local employment opportunities and a range of local shops. A decent neighbourhood is a place where I like to think local people support each other and look out for each other.
I am not - in any way - suggesting any of our neighbourhoods are not decent already. The vast majority of our residents are proud to live in H&F and rightly so. All I am suggesting is that there are areas in the borough where we may really be able to make a difference to people's lives by using development opportunities to bring millions of pounds of investment. That's what we are focused on over the next 20 years.
What is H and F doing to improve allotment and other public growing spaces. And is growing space being provided at the new College on the old Stamford House site?
We only have two allotments - Emlyn Gardens and Bishops - and this is a difficult for us because open space is at such a premium in Hammersmith & Fulham. There are no easy solutions. However, I am pleased to say..
I am concerned about the decline in cleaning services since outsourced to contractors. Some cleaning no longer gets done - e. g. the underpass between the upper end of Fulham Palace Road leading into the Underground. The part belonging to the Council no longer gets cleaned. Why is this decline happening and will you put it right?
This element of cleansing is now being carried out, in-house, by the Council's Graffiti Action Team, for whom this type of work is routine. Jetwashing of the subway normally takes place on the first weekend of each month.
What provision is there in H&F for out-of-school youth activities, and how many young people are participating? Is there more youth provision and are more people participating now than five years ago?
The short answer is yes - there is more provision and we have tracked a steady increase in participation levels. What we have got much better at is telling people about it as well.. The Council launched a campaign to highlight youth provision a few months ago and there is now a Youth Life directory on the website.
