Author: iwin1961

Writer. Communications professional. Policy wonk. Problem solver. Father. Cyclist. I like the music I like and playing football.

HS2, Colne Valley and the threat to London’s water supply

Published on by iwin1961

The chalk hills of the Chilterns act as a giant reservoir, with water slowing seeping down into streams in the Colne Valley and onwards into the Thames Valley to London. The crowded South East often has periods of being low on water and with the area around the Colne Valley supplying 22% of London’s water, the threat of water pollution is a major concern. There is an obvious danger to drilling down 70m near a landfill site in the Colne Valley, which has been declared a special site of pollution. Despite previous leaks from this landfill site leading to the contamination of a local river and the permanent closure of a pumping station, HS2 think it is worth risking London’s water supply.  Local people, such as Green Party campaigner Sarah Green, disagree strongly. Continue reading “HS2, Colne Valley and the threat to London’s water supply” →

The Heathrow question

Published on by iwin1961

The government can’t push ahead with Heathrow, unless they reject the latest advice from the Committee on Climate Change (CCC). In 2016, the Airports Commission used evidence from the CCC to state that Heathrow expansion was OK if we stayed within national limits for carbon emissions, but the CCC now want the UK target changed to zero emissions by 2050 and have stated that aviation expansion will have to be curbed. Continue reading “The Heathrow question” →

Green win: rights for Property Guardians

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It’s not often that a Minister starts a sentence by thanking a political opponent for introducing an issue and then says “How right she was to raise it in the way she did in October. I’m grateful for her for that and our subsequent meetings.“ The Minister then promised action to address my concerns over the exploitation of thousands of people who act as Property Guardians. These are people who protect a property by living there with the agreement of the owners, but have none of the legal rights enjoyed by those paying rent. Continue reading “Green win: rights for Property Guardians” →

Podcast: Sian Berry and green achievements

Published on by iwin1961

Elected greens always tend to punch above their weight. Whether it is a local council chamber, the London Assembly, or Parliament itself, a Green in the room will change the dynamic of most conversations. Sian Berry has a string of successes from her time as a member of Camden council and the London Assembly. This podcast (on Podbean) talks about some of the key changes Sian has achieved and gives a taste of what will happen in the 2020 Mayoral campaign. Continue reading “Podcast: Sian Berry and green achievements” →

Question to Minister on protecting the right to protest

Published on by iwin1961

Today around 3pm I’ll be raising the issue of freedom to protest with questions to the Government in the House of Lords about the Court of Appeal’s striking out an injunction obtained by INEOS in a secret court. The successful appeal was brought by two individuals and Friends of the Earth, representing an enormous victory for the right to protest. It will hopefully pave the way for more successful appeals by peaceful protestors who have had their human rights restricted by the frackers and other environmental vandals. Continue reading “Question to Minister on protecting the right to protest” →

A week in my life: Feb 2019

Published on by iwin1961

I recently wrote an article for the Parliamentary House Magazine describing a regular week in my working life – except, nothing is regular here at the moment. I left a debate on Lords’ Reform to go meet school children on their Climate Strike and to get the police to let them use a sound system. I did the BBCR4 review of the papers on Broadcasting House. Oh, and I had to apologise after I got annoyed in the Chamber about silly things being said about incinerating plastic and referred to Conservative Lord Ridley as that ‘fellow over there’.

JJ diary article Feb 2019

 

 

Minister agrees to examine police whistle-blower claim on child spies

Published on by iwin1961

I have asked the government to investigate a claim by a whistle-blower that the police are setting targets for regional police services to increase the use of juveniles as Covert Human Intelligence Sources (CHIS) as part of their efforts to combat county lines drug gangs. The whistle-blower approached my office with the information, but I can not verify the claim and have asked the Minister in the Lords to find out if this is happening. Continue reading “Minister agrees to examine police whistle-blower claim on child spies” →

Government will count number of spy kids used by police

Published on by iwin1961
At last, after much nagging, the government is starting to count the number of juveniles used as police spies, or as they call them, Covert Human Intelligence Sources (CHIS). In a Lords’ debate, peers criticised the government for extending to four months the time that children can be used by the police before the operation is reviewed and can be extended. I have organised another airing of this issue with an oral question to the Minister on 18th March. 

Continue reading “Government will count number of spy kids used by police” →