Joanne Cash

Open Letter to Post Office Network Change Team

Re: the proposed closure of the Formosa Street, Harrow Road and Lisson Grove Post Offices

Ms Turner,

I write to oppose the closure of three post offices in the Parliamentary Constituency of Westminster North and to ensure that you are aware there is a case to answer for each of these branches.

Reasons not to close the Formosa Street, Harrow Road and Lisson Grove Post Offices

1)  For small post offices, each with two serving positions, these branches serve a substantial number of customers every week (Formosa Street 1000-1499, Harrow Road 1000-1499 and Lisson Grove 1500 – 1999).

2) These post offices provide vital services to people living in deprived areas; their closure will have a devastating effect on some of our most vulnerable residents and significantly inconvenience the entire community.

- The post office on the Harrow Road serves the Warwick Estate. Many people in this area do not have a bank account and the presence of a post office in the local community is a lifeline for them.

3) Following the closure of the Clifton Road Post Office in 2005, residents were assured that Formosa Street would remain open. This blatant breach of trust has led to uncertainty amongst local residents regarding the long term security of the post offices nominated as alternative branches in this round of closures.

4) Westminster North has a very high population turnover and the census figures from 2001 cannot be treated as reliable. It has been indicated that the closure of the Formosa Street post office may not adhere to the government’s access criteria. Any decision to close this branch will therefore be open to legal challenge.

Flaws in the consultation process

1) The post office access reports are based on misleading data and do not reflect the reality on the ground.

- This was highlighted when, in the face of sustained local pressure, the alternative branches for Formosa Street were changed. The proposed alternatives were clearly unacceptable and the suggested replacements are not much of an improvement.

i) The Kilburn Park branch has no other shops or local facilities around it and therefore does not represent a natural journey for Formosa Street customers. Local residents will have to travel a significant distance with the sole purpose of using the post office.

ii) To use the branch at Edgware Road, residents have to cross several main roads in order to visit a post office already overwhelmed with customers that regularly requires people to queue for more than forty minutes. Edgware Road has already been earmarked to take up the excess from the closure of Lisson Grove.

2) The Government has issued a request to freeze the consultation period for the duration of the London Mayoral Election; post office closures are a politically sensitive issue and Labour are worried that it could become an election liability. The nature of any freeze in consultation must be made public and the consultation period must be extended accordingly.

3) The viability of Edgware Road as a sustainable alternative branch for customers of both the Lisson Grove and Formosa Street post offices is questionable. The consultation period for the Lisson Grove post office should be extended following the changes to the Formosa Street branch access report.

Finally, priority must be given to the support that residents have demonstrated for their local post offices during the decision making process.

I look forward to receiving your response in the near future.

Yours sincerely,

BORIS JOHNSON: COMMUNITY SERVICE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ABUSE FREE TRAVEL

The Conservative Candidate for Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has unveiled a new policy called 'Payback London' - a scheme whereby under-18's will have their bus passes permanently withdrawn for breaking the Behaviour Code and the only way to earn it back is to participate in Community Service.

At present, under-18s can travel on buses for free in London. This is a great investment and has provided welcome financial relief to parents across London. However, there are still problems with a minority of under-18s who abuse their privilege.

Commenting on the launch of the scheme, Boris said: “As I visit London Boroughs, there is one thing that continues to stand out in every area, whether Hillingdon or Harrow, Edmonton or Enfield - and that is the abuse of free travel by a minority of young people on our buses. It is unacceptable that in some parts of London, buses are intimidating places. Under a Johnson Mayoralty, the passes will be taken away and only given back when community service has taken place. I will end the something-for-nothing society culture for those who abuse it.”

Joanne added her support for Boris’ ‘Payback London’ scheme: "Free travel for children throughout London is not a right, but a privilege. I believe this scheme will help to curb the anti-social behaviour that is blighting London’s public transport system and demonstrate to the small minority of teenagers responsible that bad behaviour will not be tolerated.”

Joanne Disappointed by Karen Buck's Support For Post Office Closures

- Joanne dismayed by the contradictory behaviour of local MP

- Karen Buck has publicly assured residents that she will try and save Formosa Street Post Office and signed an Early Day Motion expressing her concerns about the consultation process

-  Last Week, Buck backed the Government's post office closure programme in the House of Commons

Joanne has expressed dismay over Karen Buck’s decision to support Labour's post office closure programme in the House of Commons last Wednesday. At least 20 Labour MPs, including two former ministers, failed to support the Government as a Conservative motion calling for post office closures to be halted was narrowly defeated.

Buck has offered repeated assurances that she is committed to saving the Formosa Street Post Office and was recently entrusted with a petition that contains the signatures of more than 2,300 local residents determined to save their local post office.

On 21st February, Conservative MP Nigel Evans introduced an Early Day Motion that expressed regret about the proposal to close up to 2,500 post offices, concern over the nature of the consultation process and a belief that alternative options for business expansion should be explored further. Karen Buck signed this Early Day Motion on 25th February.

Last week’s Conservative motion, tabled before Parliament by Alan Duncan MP, again expressed regret about the proposal to close up to 2,500 post offices, concern over the nature of the consultation process and a belief that alternative options for business expansion should be explored further. Karen Buck voted against this motion.

In the course of the Parliamentary debate, Alan Duncan compared the Early Day Motion to the motion before the House of Commons: "It (the Early Day Motion) is pretty well word for word the motion before the House today. The only respect in which I have heard that it is thought to be different is the use of the word "instruct" in the context of instructing the Post Office to suspend its consultation. That is dancing on the head of a pin. It would be intellectually dishonest of any Member to think that that gives them a let-out clause."

Joanne is concerned by Karen Buck's contradictory behaviour: "It is incredibly disappointing for local residents that our elected representative has passed up the chance to show her support for our local post offices. In public, Karen Buck claims that she is doing everything in her power to save the Formosa Street Post Office but her decision to vote in favour of this government's post office closure programme suggests that this is not the case. Having signed an Early Day Motion that sought to suspend the consultation process, put a stop to post office closures and search for a positive alternative, Ms Buck was presented with the opportunity to do exactly that. Regrettably, when faced with one of the biggest rebellions of Gordon Brown's premiership thus far, Karen Buck chose to toe the party line."

Boris Johnson Visits the Harrow Road

- Boris Johnson speaks to traders on the Harrow Road about the western extension of the Congestion Charge zone

- Local retailers suffering as loyal customers take their business elsewhere

- New £25 Congestion Charge hits large families the hardest

Boris Johnson, the Conservative candidate for London Mayor, visited the Harrow Road to speak to local traders about the impact that Ken Livingstone's western extension of the congestion charge zone has had upon business in the area, and on the community as a whole.

Ken Livingstone introduced the western extension in February 2007. The revised boundaries split the Harrow Road in two; residents on one side of the road now live within the congestion zone and thus pay reduced charges, residents who live on the other side do not. A number of shops have closed on the Harrow Road in the past year and local traders are convinced that the western extension has contributed to a noticeable decline in business during this period.

Following his visit to the Harrow Road, Boris said: "Speaking to the Harrow Road traders, it is clear that Ken's western extension of the congestion zone has driven business away from the area and is ripping the heart out of the local community. Small, family run shops have been starved of trade because loyal customers are unwilling, or unable, to pay for the privilege of visiting their local retailers."

Outlining his congestion charge policies, Boris continued: "The congestion charge must be reformed; the western extension has dramatically increased the volume of traffic in the original central zone and we must get rid of it. I pledge to introduce a fairer system that makes use of better technology, and a system which doesn't penalise people who just nip in and out, while some people pay the same for going in eight or nine times a day."

Joanne Cash claims that Livingstone's new proposals will hit large families the hardest: "Mayor Livingstone's £25 levy will not improve congestion or emissions and will affect families throughout Westminster North, regardless of their income. Wealthy Londoners will be able to pay the charge or buy a smaller car which they will now be able to use, free of charge, throughout London. It is hard working families who cannot afford to buy a new car, or to pay this exorbitant tax, that will suffer the most."

Joanne Campaigns Against Formosa Street Post Office Closure

- Joanne Cash, Kit Malthouse and Little Venice Councillors show their support for resident’s campaign to save the Formosa Street, Post Office
- Following Clifton Road closure, residents were assured that Formosa Street branch would remain open.
- Closure would have a devastating impact on Little Venice’s most vulnerable residents and significantly inconvenience the entire community.

Joanne Cash, this week, urged the Post Office Network to reconsider proposals to close the Formosa Street Post Office. Joanne was joined by London West Central GLA candidate Kit Malthouse and Little Venice’s Conservative Councillors Melvyn Caplan, Ian Adams and Margaret Doyle on a street stall designed to raise awareness amongst residents about the nature of the Post Office Network’s consultation process.

The Post Office on Formosa Street is one of three branches in Westminster North earmarked for closure under the Post Office’s Network Change Programme. This decision has caused outrage amongst local residents who, less than five years ago, were assured that this branch would remain open following the closure of the Post Office at Clifton Road.

Joanne said: “A tremendous number of local residents have been working extremely hard to ensure that this Post Office remains open. The Formosa Street Post Office provides an invaluable service to the entire community and, if it were to close, many of our most vulnerable residents would be forced to use the St John’s Wood or Queensway branches. For the Post Office Network to suggest that elderly people, local businesses and those with disabilities should have to make such a journey on a regular basis is utterly unacceptable.”

Pledging to do her utmost to save the Formosa Street Post Office, Joanne said; “It is fantastic to see so many people engaging in the political process and, regardless of political affiliation, fighting to reverse an unpopular decision that would impact on the entire community. It is an unfortunate fact that 2,500 branches of the Post Office across the country WILL close as a direct result of this Government’s Post Office closure programme; it is up to us to make sure that Formosa Street is not one of them.”

Yet Another Broken Promise

Manifesto - noun (pl. manifestos) a public declaration of policy and aims.

-The Oxford English Dictionary

"We will put it (the European Constitution) to the British people in a referendum and campaign whole-heartedly for a ‘Yes’ vote to keep Britain a leading nation in Europe."

-The Labour Party Manifesto 2005. P.84.

In British Politics, a general election manifesto outlines the policies that a political party will seek to pursue if they are elected to government; this document forms the basis of the government’s democratic mandate. Prior to the last General Election, all three major political parties made an explicit commitment to hold a referendum on the European Constitution.

In the House of Commons yesterday, MPs had an opportunity to honour the pledge they made in their election manifestoes; the majority of Labour MPs, including Karen Buck, declined to do so. Conservative MPs demonstrated that they alone would uphold their promise to the British people by voting overwhelmingly in favour of holding a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.

We must not allow the terms of this debate to become blurred; it is an issue of trust, of honouring promises and of treating the British people with the respect that they deserve. Yesterday’s decision in the House of Commons left voters feeling cheated and further reinforced the air of cynicism that surrounds politics today.

Gordon Brown insists that there is no need to hold a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty because it no longer has the characteristics of a constitution and does not represent 'a fundamental change' in Britain's relationship with Europe. This argument was utterly undermined by Jack Straw who, in his role as Labour’s Foreign Secretary, informed Parliament that:

"Those points (The creation of a Foreign Minister and a European President) are central to the European constitutional treaty, and of course I see no prospect of their being brought into force, save through the vehicle of a constitutional treaty."

It goes without saying that the Lisbon Treaty would see the creation of both a European Foreign Minister and a European President.

Personally, I agree with David Cameron’s comments at yesterday’s Prime Minister’s Question Time that: "If it LOOKS like the constitution, if it SOUNDS like the constitution, that’s because it IS the constitution."

The one and only one reason why Labour refuses to hold a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty is that they cannot face the prospect of losing. This remarkable insight into our government’s attitude towards democracy is yet another damning indictment of Gordon Brown’s Premiership and is indicative of the broken promises that have characterised Labour’s decade in power.