Residents may remember that Labour Southwark is spending £104,000 on a housing commission quango to pass the buck on the difficult decisions which elected representatives should be making. I recently received a very polite invitation to Somerset House from the ‘Head of the Secretariat’ of the quango. In order to save the council money and to […]

Statement from Cllr Anood Al-Samerai Below is a statement from Cllr Anood Al-Samerai (Leader of the Opposition on Southwark Borough Council) following the hearing into allegations that Cllr Anood Al-Samerai disclosed confidential information at a meeting of Southwark Council in October 2010. The hearing resolved to censure Cllr Al-Samerai and ‘remind her of her responsibilities […]

The Labour budget this week was all about spin. About bribing, blaming and bullying. The bribes are obvious – giving out free lunches, free money and stashing cash for election time. One Labour councillor even admitted in the debate that they believed that was what politicians should do!! But what’s less obvious is that these […]

There has been a lot of talk recently about ‘democracy’ in Southwark. As the Leader of the Opposition on the council, it is my duty to scrutinise the decisions of the Labour administration and hold them to account. Labour say they are more democratic but sadly the evidence simply doesn’t back up their spin. Firstly […]

It is great that cycling is finally properly on the political agenda although sad that it comes after too many tragic accidents and fatalities. On Thursday 8th March at 7pm, Southwark Liberal Democrats are bringing together our local communities to discuss cycling in Southwark and London, and how our streets can be made safer and […]

I’m really proud of the excellent 2011 which Southwark Liberal Democrats have had. From holding our share of the vote in council by-elections; putting forward real alternatives to Labour’s cuts; and proposing excellent new policies about green manufacturing jobs, apprenticeships, parents mentoring, council housing and community councils, we’ve been an extremely effective opposition ensuring that Southwark Labour […]

Last night saw the planning committee meeting to decide on Network Rail’s application to redevelop London Bridge. Although I’m pleased that the station is to be redeveloped (and that the government has committed to the funding even in extremely difficult economic times), local residents, businesses and elected representatives have had some very serious concerns about some […]

At this time of year there are lots of carol services and Christmas events going on. It is really great to see all the talent of our communities on show and I particularly enjoyed hearing the Rotherhithe and Bermondsey Choral Society at St Mary’s Church and the Borough and Bankside Lib Dem councillors! I was […]

Labour seem to spend most of their time writing press releases about letters which they have written to me asking me to write letters to the press. If that wasn’t ridiculous enough, they now are spending Southwark council tax payers’ money on posting letters to me. Even though they have an office in the same […]

I have just had the most fantastic and inspiring visit to the Southwark Muslim Women’s Association. I was so impressed at the work which is done there to empower women through education. There was so much learning going on from basic English to ICT to how to run a business. Everyone in Southwark should be able to […]