Weekly Update From Councillor Guy Lambert

Getting thrown out of Stonehenge on a technology free weekend

Off I troddled to Hounslow House and a small voyage of rediscovery. Eventually worked out how to get in, put my hand in front of what The Beano would have described as a Ray Gun and discovered my temperature was OK and by the by arrived on a deserted sixth floor. I tried to get the technology to work, but failed. Eventually managed to get my laptop working via a telephone hotspot so I could join the latest “Tackling Inequalities” session – some plans are beginning to emerge.

Then it was planning committee. There were only two items on the agenda and I have been so closely engaged with the development of proposals for the New Road Triangle site in Feltham by Lampton Development 360 that I had to declare an interest and absent myself from the discussion. So back to the Labour group room to watch it on YouTube, or MeTube as us baby boomers prefer to think of it. There was passionate debate about this application – debate that continues on social media.

These buildings are quite tall, and a lot of people are just unhappy with tall buildings. I’m not a great fan myself, but we have to deal with realities and the reality is that we have a desperate housing shortage and too many people in temporary and/or inadequate and/or overcrowded accommodation. People who live in ‘traditional’ houses with gardens are the ones who often say that living in a flat is unsuitable for families. That’s a reasonable argument, but it’s a lot less unsuitable to live in a modern, well designed, decently sized flat with secure tenure than in a precarious, inadequate, overcrowded home as the majority of the tenants in these blocks will be currently exposed to. I’m proud of the council houses we have built in Brentford on Herings Hall Close (the former Acton Lodge) but that is 19 homes on a site more than 75% the size of New Road Triangle, where we will provide 88 Council homes, another 46 for genuinely affordable rent and 46 for market rent.

In the end the application was approved, with only my friend Tony Louki abstaining. I thought this was the planning committee doing its job: a lot of searching questions and what I believe was the right conclusion.

Enough already. The second application was also contested, though this was a very different application, essentially to extend the temporary permission for Quattro to carry on dealing with commercial waste in Southall Lane. This is the outfit that used to operate on what is now the pitch in Brentford Community Stadium, though I doubt anyone will suggest commemorative plaques. It was all rather confusing, to do with dust affecting a local data centre business and potentially the Costco store, so I moved deferral so that the potential harms could be properly assessed.

On Friday morning a discussion with Green Party people about recycling. I had got upset with them for asking some public questions which I felt would feed the unhelpful mantra that there’s no point recycling because the council dumps it in the sea. It does nothing of the sort, and we are gradually updating the Hounslow website to give greater clarity about where it does really go.

In the afternoon a brief update with Hounslow’s Promise to discuss a funding application we are putting in to support mentoring of young people.

I woke up on Saturday all excited because I was off to Thruxton to watch old cars going round in circles, one of my favourite pastimes of which I have been starved these 18 months. But first, a trip to Carville Hall Park North to meet with the Spartans amateur football team. It was a happy scene indeed, with dozens of small persons kicking footballs around and going through various drills in the glorious sunshine. The club have ambitions to grow further and I need to work out how we might assist.

So, Thruxton. Very hot and sunny and I ended up with red flesh where my extended hair didn’t suffice to meet the neck of my T-shirt. It was fab to be out and about though and I enjoyed the racing and this old Lagonda

And its story, pinned to the windscreen.

You could have bought something similar on the Great West Road, where Toyota now is, for £350 in 1950.

Would have been a decent investment – one went for auction last October for £191,250. As to my ridiculous car, which I hope one day may rise in value to £350, it seems to have an aversion to Thruxton. Last time I went it had to be towed following its first ever breakdown. This time it decided it had a fault and would drive (literally) at 5mph. This was a bit scary as I was on a narrow A-road near Stonehenge so I popped into the Stonehenge car park to work out what to do, but was fiercely ejected as I had no booking. They directed me towards a service station ‘just up that way’ and about a mile (and 20 minutes) later I saw a hill ahead and thought it’ll never make it up that, Pulled into a farm gate and turned the engine off whilst I pondered. After 2 minutes I tried it again and everything was restored to perfection, and it didn’t miss a beat thereafter. Phew.

For once in my life I took no Hounslow enabled technology for my weekend so it was a blessing that Monday, and most of Tuesday were meeting free.

On Tuesday evening we had a discussion in cabinet about our council tax support scheme. Ours is generous to those in the deepest need but the advent of Universal Credit, when many are still on the old benefits regime, has made the scheme unfair. The idea of Universal Credit is to simplify the benefits regime, which is actually a worthy aim. Unfortunately it was designed by Iain Duncan Smith and has been carried forward by 6 other deadbeats in the last 5 years and still isn’t fully implemented with the result that everything is now doubly complicated. Redesigning the scheme to make it fairer and easier to understand is – shall we say – tricky so we will be taking our time designing a revised scheme.

After that it was Cabinet. Quite a lot of things on the agenda with my item being the Trading companies’ quarterly update. Not a huge amount to say, but the report we get is much better than it used to be, and the companies are doing very well in terms of service, and financially.

Wednesday morning I’m off to Hounslow Highways’ HQ at Jubilee House, Depot Road. This is to introduce Raghwinder Siddhu, who is working with me on my cabinet portfolio, to the operation there. It was good for me, too, because (for obvious reasons) I haven’t been there for a while. Very few people on site with most working on the streets somewhere and those that are normally office-based now mostly in their home office.

The team at HH have built this little oasis where there used to be parking spaces, to give themselves an outdoor space to chat. They have been great throughout the pandemic, with service not affected at all and their MD remarks that team spirit is brilliant and has actually developed in adversity. Unsung heroes. That’s Raghwinder in the oasis, looking relaxed!

In the evening we have a meeting with Overview and Scrutiny committee, to help them decide what they are going to view over and scrutinise over the next year.

West London Waste this morning and at lunchtime I have two webinars about recycling and associated matters so the rest of the day is recycling and cycling.

STOP PRESS

Message from Director of Public Health, Kelly O’Neill:

Brentford and Chiswick have seen a small but noticeable increase in cases in the recent weeks, many linked to schools in and outside of the Borough, many cases have been asymptomatic.  

To encourage as many residents in Brentford and Chiswick to get tested we are working with Brentford Football Club and together offering PCR testing and a visit to the ground on Saturday between 11am and 6pm.  

Cllr Guy Lambert

June 18, 2021