File under "You couldn't make it up". The Labour Party was founded by Trades Union members and the Unions pay the bills for the party, regardless of whether the Leader is Jeremy Corbyn or Tony Blair. Whilst the root and branch membership of the Labour Party are proud of this association, it seems that as soon as Labour Politicians get their hands on the levers of power, they somehow seem to have a conscience bypass. Back on the heady night in 2022, when Labour took power and booted the Tories out, I spoke to the rather shell shocked Leader of the Barnet Labour group and the new leader of Barnet Council, Barry Rawlings. I made a note of his exact words. I didn't do this so I had a rod to beat him with, but because I thought what he said was important and I was impressed by his sentiments.
Barry said "We won't get everything right, I am sure we will make a lot of mistakes on the way, but whatever we do, we will put fairness, equality and decency at the centre of it" He then went on to say "I expect you to hold us to account and remind us of this when we do get things wrong". Although Labour has made many mistakes, I've had no reason to remind Barry of his pledge. Until now. Today, two days after the Lionesses amazing victory, where we are all basking in the reflected glory of our amazing female team, a dispute has been launched by the Public sector workers union UNISON, alleging that Barnet Council and its Labour bosses are acting in a discriminatory manner towards their own female employees. The Press Release says:-
"Barnet UNISON is urging its female members in the London Borough of Barnet (LBB) to come forward as the union prepares to launch a collective legal challenge over potential equal pay breaches by the Council.
The move follows extensive investigations into pay practices within LBB, particularly in relation to the use of “task and finish” arrangements in the Waste & Recycling service. UNISON believes there is now sufficient evidence to support equal pay claims with reasonable prospects of success.
John Burgess, Branch Secretary of Barnet UNISON, said:
“The possibility that staff – the majority of whom are women – may have been underpaid for years is deeply concerning, especially in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis. Equal Pay is not just a legal right, it’s a fundamental matter of fairness. UNISON is committed to ensuring our members receive the pay they are legally and morally entitled to.”
The union is now asking affected members to complete an Equal Pay case form detailing their job roles, grades, and employment history. This information will allow UNISON to assess each claim and proceed with legal and procedural steps, including lodging a collective grievance and initiating early conciliation.
Barnet UNISON is also reminding staff of the strict six-month legal time limit for making an Equal Pay claim. Anyone who has recently left the Council or changed roles is urged to act quickly.
UNISON has led the fight for Equal Pay in local government for over a decade, winning millions in compensation for underpaid workers. The union will continue to engage in constructive dialogue with Barnet Council while preparing to take legal action where necessary."
It really is appalling that now, of all times, such inequality is happening in Barnet, especially with a Labour Council. Now we all know there is no magic money tree and with cash tight at Barnet Council, it is hard to sort these sort of matters out. However, not only is it morally wrong to pay discriminatory pay rates, it is against the law. Any legal action will cost taxpayers money, and I for one, resent my hard earned cash being spent to defend the indefensible.
I sincerely hope that Barry Rawlings now picks up the phone to Unison branch secretary John Burgess, who is decent man and an excellent Union Rep and gets him around a table to resolve this. The people who are suffering as a result are amongst the lowest paid employees on the Borough payroll and if Barry really is a Labour politicians, he should start acting like it and sort this out. If you see Barry out and about, please ask him if he still believes what he told me on the night he was elected.
--------------------------------------------------------- Guest Blogs are always welcome at The Barnet Eye Blog. Please send your submissions. Blogs must be Barnet related.
Devastated to hear the tragic news that one of our great mates, Jock McDonald of punk legends, The Bollock Brothers has passed away. The False Dots played with the Jock and the Bollock Brothers many times over the years, at such Camden haunts as The Dublin Castle and The Purple Turtle, as well as other venues around town, most recently on the 22nd June last year at the Charly Records 50th anniversary party at the Dublin Castle.
The band, especially our drummer Rambo were involved in all manner of rock and roll shenanigans, going back to the 1980's with Jock. Life was never boring with Jock around!
Anyone who knew Jock will know he was a larger than life character, who embraced the punk ethic and chaos. He was also a great front man and someone who made things happen.
This week we saw Jeremy Corbyn launch a new political party. Rather imaginatively named "Your Party" it has certainly caught the attention of those on the left of the Labour Party (and those who left the party because they were on the left and had had enough). It now has an email list with half a million signed up supporters. That is more than twice the number of people who have PAID to join Reform. If they all dig into their wallets, when the party actually starts to exist and you can join, it will be the biggest party in the UK. It will still only be around 1% of the population, but my guess is that they will largely be politically motivated people, who are willing to work hard as activists. What does "Your party" actually stand for? Despite Jeremy Corbyn being leader of the Labour party for several years, it occurred too me that most of us don't really know what he stands for. Is he pro or anti rejoin? Who does he support in the Ukraine war? Does he support Hamas, or is he simply someone who wants to see Palestinians have a nation? Would he renationalise water, rail, BT, gas & electricity? Does he support mass immigration, or as a Union man would he restrict it to maintain members pay & conditions? Does he think women can have a willy? You may have your own opinion of what Corbyn believes on these matters, but I have keenly watched Corbyn and I am not at all sure. It is pretty clear what many of his supporters views are on these matters, but Corbyn has been far less vocal publicly than you would imagine. I suspect this is because he hoped to be let back into Labour. Unlike when he was Labour leader, he can actually speak his mind. I'd love to interview him for the Barnet Eye and ask him directly. I think that a hard left approch to some of these, such as Nationalisation would be big vote winners. Issues like support for trans people would be more divisive for his supporters, as some are very pro trans rights and others are militant left wing feminists. When Hamas launched the October 7th attacks, Corbyns views on Israel seemed to be at the absolute margins of British politics.What has transpired since, with the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, has lead many corades of Corbyn to proclaim "Gezza was right". I am not sure the majority of British voters are behind Corbyns traditional pro Palestinian viewpoint, but it is clear that many who were horrified by the 7th October attacks have lost sympathy and patience with the policies of the current Israeli government. I was chatting with someone who had been four square behind Israel until relatively recently, who said that he simply couldn't support a regime in Israel that lets babies who were not even born when Sept 7th happened starve. The current Israeli regime had until recently been able to claim that if you didn't support the policies of the current regime, you were an anti semite. It appears to me that this has worn thin. In the last week or so, I've seen more than a few Jewish friends on Facebook, who have never been critical of Israel previously saying "not in my name". Of course there are plenty who still support the regime, and claim that Hamas are entirely to blame, but my reading of the room is that this view is rapidly losing traction. The harsh truth is that the goodwill towards the Israeli regime, which followed the 7th Oct attacks is dissipating amongst those who are not hardline supporters of either Israel or the Palestinian cause.
My view? The Netenyahu regime does not represent all Jews or even all Israelis. It failed massively in letting the 7th October attacks happen. I have spoken to an Israeli friend, familiar with their army and seccurit, who tells me that he is familiar with the region and the location of the attacks. He says that the idea that Hamas could run riot for so long is incomprehensible. The Israelis have all manner of security measures in place to ensure such a thing simply cannot happen. They had informers in Gaza, listening posts, drones, watchtowers, sensors, army units on 24 hour standby, attack helicopters ready to take off. His view was that if the Hamas breach lasted for more than ten or fifteen minutes, without a massive response, something was simply not right. I am not going to speculate as to what, but he tells me that the fact that the current regime did not lose power immediately was a disgrace.
As to Hamas. They are not Palestine or the Palestinian people. They do not stage elections and God help Palastinian in Gaza who opposes them. I have no sympathy with the apologists who excuse them. As best I can tell, they launched the attacks as they knew what the Israeli reaction would be and they are happy with it. They gambled, correctly it seems, that if they hung on long enough, sooner or later world opinion would swing against Israel. The fact that the French have said they will recognise the state of Palestine confirms that this strategy is working.
I can't see how there can ever be peace when you have Hamas and Netenyahu. I simply don't think the world would support the complete destruction/relocation of Palestinians in Gaza. I don't think Netenyahu can back down from his policies as the consequences for him personally would be rather difficult, to say the least. I see no way out of this with the current players controlling the chess board. However, history tells us that sometimes the likes of Gerry Adams and Ian Paisley can work together and sort things out, so maybe there is a glimmer of hope. Donald Trump needs some good news. He is, perhaps, the only person who can broker a deal. If he succeeds, he surely will get the Nobel prize, to gold plate and hang on the wall. But only the greatest optimists on the planet expect that to happen.
But this blog is not about the Middle East. It is about the UK and our politics. My purpose for giving my analysis, is that charges of anti semitism destroyed Corbyn as leader of Labour. It is really important to understand that if Corbyn plays his cards right, he can make the case that he wasn't being anti semitic in his criticism of Israel and what has happened has justified this. I am not passing an opinion on whether this is correct, simply predicting that this is the line he will take. It is no coincidence that he has chosen this moment to launch his new party. If Corbyn has read the British public well, this may bear dividends for him. In short, what seemed to be a Kryptonite spear through his heart may have become his secret weapon.
If his new party gets its act together, he may get 30-40 defections from his colleagues on the left, some of whom are already suspended. Labour activists and branches are far more left leaning that Keir Starmer and his cabinet. There are plenty of trades unions with cash to fund a new left wing party and activists and resources to staff it. If Corbyn can persuade them to jump ship, then Starmer is in huge trouble. If, and this is a big if, the British public decides Corbyn is not the anti semite bogeyman we were warned about and he was actually right about Israel all along, then we may well see the biggest Political resurrection in 2000 years. The launch of "Your Party" has been ridiculed, but I would caution anyone who dismisses it as a bunch of fringe loony lefties, that there are a huge number of people on the left who do not like Starmer and would be more than happy to cheer Corbyn at Glasonbury again.
And then there is the right. Reform are ahead in the polls. We are seeing riots outside asylum hotels. We are seeing councils calling for the closure of these hotels. The hard right have successfully managed to conflate asylum seekers with rapists and child molesters. Whilst the British re tolerant and would never riot against refugees fleeing tyranny, no one wants a hotel full of rapists and nonces on their doorstep. I doubt that any of the protestors really think all of the residents of these hotels are sex offenders, but no one can blame people for feeling uneasy about the fact that some may be. I happen to think that the hard right and the protestors have not thought this through properly. If the hotels close, no one will be deported any quicker. They will simply be given council housing and dispersed and will be even harder to track. But Nigel Farage and Reform don't care about this obvious problem with their protests. In fact it plays well to their agenda. They are happy to shaft British working class people in need of social housing, if it plays well to their political agenda. Whereas we are not sure what Corbyn's answers were to the questions posed - Is he pro or anti rejoin? Who does he support in the Ukraine war? Does he support Hamas, or is he simply someone who wants to see Palestinians have a nation? Would he renationalise water, rail, BT, gas & electricity? Does he support mass immigration, or as a Union man would he restrict it to maintain members pay & conditions? Does he think women can have a willy? - I think we all know exactly where Farage stands on most of these (possibly with the exception of Ukraine and Nationalisation).
I am going to say something that may be shocking about Nigel Farage. I do not think he would become a dictator if he ever got into No 10. I think he'd be a disaster, because he is, like Corbyn, a perennial oppositionist. A man who exists to say the horrible things that the likes of Starmer are too scared to elucidate. I believe a Reform government would be complete chaos, spooked markets, eternal legal challenges, cabinet reshuffles, MP's resigning over scandals, etc. Unless they can attract a few decent Tories, they will have no real experience of government or dealing with the Civil Service.
But, and here is the big problem. Reforms biggest problem is that it is a one man band. Farage is a good communicator and a larger than life figure. His party has no one else anywhere near his stature. It has all manner of characters who are completely unknown to us. I don't think anyone would disagree that they do not attract people from the Centre of British Politics. It is people from the right of the Tories who largely make up the numbers of members and activists. Of course in the Red Wall seats, many of the voters are disaffected leftists, who feel shafted by the establishment. If Corbyn gets his act together, he may shaft Reform by giving these voters a home back on the left, but it is far too easy to say.
But my big fear is that Reform will be the largest of many parties, Farage will cobble together a government that falls apart, he will resign and then what? The next election will be in 2028-29. My big fear is not what happens then, but what happens in the election after that one. I can see a scenaruo where a Reform government is formed, implodes and what follows it the last British democratic election and a dictatorship. I have no idea what shape that will take. I dount we've even heard of the players who may emerge. But with the fragmentation of the right and left, we might see a situation where the only way to form a government is with a coalition of half a dozen parties, where nothing can be done. The one thing we know about Farage and his party is that he loves a referendum. It may well be that the next one is to abolish democracy in the UK.
Any regular reader will know that I play guitar and sing in a band called The False Dots. It may (or may not) come as a surprise to know that I've played plenty of other instruments, mostly rather badly, over the years. I thought it might be a good list to put together a list of some of the other instruments, which I've mangled on our recordings over the years.
1. Mononphonic synthisiser on Fog (Our 2nd demo in 1980). My mate Joe Malone had bought a synth. I asked if I could borrow it, as we were recording a demo. Joe kindly lent it to me. We recorded the song at Alan Warner's Lane Studios. As it was an 8 track studio, I took the executive decision to remove Craigs guitar and replace it with the synth. Craig was very unhappy with this, but it actually worked really well and Craig admitted it was the right decision. It nearly got us a deal with Chiswick Records, but as we only had Fog with synth on, they asked us to go back and record some more songs. We couldn't as I didn't have one and they were expensive. Sadly I don't have an online copy to play you! It was actually the first time I'd played a keyboard. I think I did \ok.
2. Prophet V electric keyboard. Fast forward to 1982 and the False Dots recorded Memory for You at a studio in Sydenham, South London. It was our first release. The studio had a Prophet V keyboard on. We had spare time, so I added the keyboards. Craig was again cynical, but we kept his guitar so he warmed to it. Given that I couldn't play the instrument and did it on the spot, I think I did OK.
3. Conga's. Back in 2008, when Paul Hircombe and Tony Cavaye were in the band, we recorded a five minute long instrumental called Pauls Song, as Paul wrote it. I didn't think the intro worked, so I put a Conga on it. I quite like it. Tony gets cross because in the video we used footage of another drummer miming his track.
4. Tambourine. I also played Tambourine on the track.
5. Bass guitar. During lockdown, I made this song as a response to the BLM protests. I rather like it. Charlie Honderick sung it, it has programmed drums and I played Bass and Lead.
6. Whistling. One way you can make your own body into a musical instrument! I did some whistling on the track Dublins Finest Castle.
The False Dots have a new album coming out later in the year. We are in the final stages of recording and mixing it. Who knows, there may be more to add to the list. Have a great weekend,
I think many readers will sympathise with this little cracker from our Twitter friend Robert Wilkinson (his Dad jokes books make great stocking fillers)
If my memory was any worse, I could plan my own surprise party.
Saturday 26th Butchers Arms 9pm – 11.30pm Horizon (Rock Covers and original) The Lord Kitchener 8.30pm - late Karaoke with Johno East Barnet RB Legion 8.30pm – 11.30pm Red Herring (Rhythm and blues) The Arkley Club 8.30pm – 11pm£5 cash on door Karaoke and Disco The Three Wishes, Edgware Scratch (Rock Covers, 4 piece)
Sunday 27th East Barnet RB Legion 2 – 5pm Dave Collison's Roy Orbison Tribute & Human Jukebox Ye Olde Monken Holt 7pm – 9pm Smokin Whiskers (Acoustic covers) Butchers 8.30 – 11.30pm Butchers Arms Jam Electric/Blues/Rock (Full backline available) Toolans 8.30pm Finbarr Black The Bohemia 7.30pm – 10pm £10 online or at bar Bespoke Pedal Club (Jazz Funk Country Blues)
Monday 28th The Three Wishes, Edgware - Jan's North London Jam Ye Olde Mitre Inn, High Street 8pm – 11pm (stables room) Barnet Acoustics Session
Wednesday 30th Toolans 5-8pm Billy Heneghan Ye Olde Monken Holt 8.30 – 11pm Open Mic Night
Thursday 31st Ye Olde Monken Holt 8.30 – 10.30pm Irish Session Maddens 9pm Ronnie Gordon Legacy Band
August Friday 1st August Lord Kitchener 8pm - late - Ela (Solo Artist) Butchers Arms 9.30pm – midnight - Lord Algae (Rock covers) 3 piece Barrington 8.30pm – midnight Karaoke with Neil The Haven 8pm – 11pm Dennis Cook – (Musician, vocalist and DJ)
Saturday 2nd Butchers Arms 8.30pm – midnight Groove Rats (Rock/blues) 4 piece East Barnet RB Legion 9pm – 11.30pm Leech (Rock and pop covers) Ye Olde Mitre Inn, 8.30 Mary's Exit (Rock & Pop Covers) Maddens 9pm - 99 Bucks (Blues) Sunday 3rd Ye Olde Monken Holt 7pm – 9pm The Sequels (60s/70s covers) Butchers Arms Jam Electric/Blues/Rock (Full backline available)
Monday 4th Ye Olde Mitre Inn, High Street 8pm – 11pm (stables room)- Barnet Acoustics Session
Wednesday 6th Ye Olde Monken Holt 8.30 – 11pm Open Mic Night
Perhaps the aspect of Rock and Roll that is least talked about is the process of songwriting. It is the most important aspect of music. Without songs, Rock and Roll would be a fashion parade. I've been writing songs almost since I was able to speak. When I started, it was very much simply changing the words to the songs of other artists, usually to annoy my sisters, or to amuse my mates at school. My best mate at the time was one Pete Conway. In 1974, when we were twelve, we both rather liked Sparks. Their single 'This town aint big enough for the both of us' was a classic and we loved it. It had gun effects and was very different from everything else in the charts. I don't normally like such songs, but it is an epic song. They then released a follow up, Amatuer Hour. Shall we say, it didn't catch our imagination in the same way. Pete and I discussed the matter and decided that we needed to save Sparks. We wrote a couple of 'decent songs' and sent them to the label, with a letter explaining that they'd gone downhill and needed some proper songs. I wish Pete hadn't thrown the letter we got back in the bin! Lets just say they didn't feel the need to avail themselves of our services.
Four years later, we started to write songs for our own band. The False Dots. We were punks and the songs were highly political. They weren't exactly catchy. Recently, we revived the very first of these. It's called Wrong. It lasts 47 seconds and we brought it back for our 46th Birthday show!
Within a year, we scrapped all of these songs and started again. With a little help from Hank Marvin, we wrote our first classic, Not all she seems, that we re-recorded for last years album.
We made a conscious decision to try and make every aspect of the song interesting. It has a catchy riff, a story, and is a powerful song. It has always been a favourite. At the time, Pete and I would sit in my bedroom with ideas and our instruments and go through it line by line. We really made an effort to ensure that every song had great lyrics, an interesting arrangement and something quirky. The only real issue was that we hadn't really bothered to study song structure or arrangement. I think Not All She Seems and the other songs do stand up, but when we perform them, we have different arrangements now.
When Pete left the band in December 1980, I lost my co-collaborator. We were fiercly critical of each others output. We took great pleasure in destroying each others work, but we were also good at pulling the best bit out of the bones. In hindsight, although we were officially mates, I don't think we really liked each other, but knew that we had a strong musical bond. Pete's departure meant that I spent four years writing songs that weren't very good. Sometimes they worked, almost by accident. From that era, the only song we still do is Action Shock. I wrote it and discarded it. I didn't like it, but when Venessa Sagoe joined the band, she found the lyrics in the lyric box and liked them. I'd not even written a proper tune. Venessa made it into a classic. I was struggling with writing but was to arrogant and stubborn to admit it. When that iteration of the band split up in September 1984, I decided to do a songwriters course. This was the best thing I ever did. I realised why the post Pete material was rubbish.
In 1985, Poet Allen Ashley joined the band. Allen was brilliant at making words work. He will probably disagree, but he wasn't really much good at the musical side of the songs. We soon had a rather good selection of numbers, which to me were sort of in the style of The Smiths. The stand out number was Winter in Your Heart.
Allen tells me that he got fed up with me nagging him to write a middle eight. When he finally did, he realised I was right! Allen departed in early 1986 and the band entered a bit of hiatus. I wrote a few songs that I think are pretty good, but we rarely performed. One of the songs nearly made an appearance on an album by one of the UK's most loved artists, but I rather stupidly refused to allow him a co-write, so it didn't happen. Here is a rather poor version of it with me singing as we emerged from lock down. This was our first rehearsal after lockdown. Graham (our drummer had recently lost his son, which made us emerge from the ashes of covid to do this).
In 1990, the False Dots were put on ice until 2002. Having stopped writing songs for twelve years, I had lost my songwriting mojo. I think I'd sort of forgotten the lessons I learned on the course. We had a few OK tunes, but listening to them now, I realise that I was making the same old mistake of not properly writing them, and not making sure they worked. The arrangements were lazy. A couple of the songs emerged that were pretty strong, with my favourite being I'm the man.
It is a simple song, but I happen to think it is a great Rock and Roll song. It was inspired by watching Gene Hunt in 'Life on Mars'. I liked the theme of a man doing things that are killing him, simply to stay alive and survive. Of that era, it is by far my favourite song. It is one of the few songs, that I didn't try and over-complicate in that period.
When Connie Abbe joined the band in 2009, I realised I had to up my game. I co-wrote and arranged Put me in the Spotlight with Connie, which I think is perhaps the best song I've ever written.
It really has it all. I wrote the lyrics for the chorus and Connie wrote the verses. We wrote it all in the studio. I wrote the dynamic intro so that it was suitable for use in TV, especially sport. This worked and the song was used by Manchester City FC, being the soundtrack for their website goal of the month show in 2012.
When Connie left the band, Allen Ashley rejoined. Allen reminded me of the need to properly craft lyrics. We wrote some banging songs. Perhaps the best of these was Saturday, a football song, Lee Thompson of Madness played sax on.
I wrote the first two verses and the chorus, Allen wrote the middle eight and the third verse and edited a few lines elsewhere. We have rewritten it a couple of times since Allen left, but Allen will always retain a credit.
In 2020, Allen left, and I was back in the hot seat. The band started to develop what has become our current set. I changed my songwriting style significantly and deliberately. I returned to the style of the Pete Conway era, where every song was a story, rather than the 'stream of consciousness' style of writing I'd adopted. I also introduced a healthy dollop of dark humour. The advent of mobile phones has been a blessing. If I get an idea, I will record it on the phone and then arrange it later. This could be lyrics or a whistled melody. I have had strange looks whistling into my phone on the tube. I realised that a big strength was my ability to write songs people connect with and that puts a smile on their face. Perhaps the best example (so far) is 'We All Love a Party".
This song tells the story of a party my parents had in 1974, to raise funds for the local Catholic Church. What is interesting is that everyone can connect with the characters and stories in it. I actually wrote the song verses whilst walking the dogs on Lundhurst Park. The chrous was really a nod to the TV series Shameless. Having got the basic lyrical structure, I changed it. The chorus line "Do the conga, drop your draws" was a late addition, as was the end of the chorus "But Aunty Dot is here, so you better hide the gin". That was a little homage to my mum and her sisters. Her eldest sister loved the G&T's and mum would always get bladdered when they went out (or stayed in). Mum's yougest sister didn't have my mums tolerance for alcohol, and would always end up in the loo, when the "girls got together". My Dad would always joke "Margo is coming, hide the Gin". Mum never found it funny. I loved my Mum, but in truth she never really found anything very funny, which was offset by my Dad, who found everything hilarious!
In 2023, Tom Hammond joined the band on Trumpet. This brought new opportunities and challenges. I'd never really composed trumpet lines before, Tom reads music, but I don't write it, I play by ear. So I did what I've learned to do. I spent a month listening to the best songs with cool brass and trumpet arrangements. The fruits of this show in our new single, Groovetown.
It is important to realise that music is always a work in progress. Things can always be improved and your next song may be your best (or your worst). What I've learned is that the best songs you can wrote are ones that you love. If writing a trumpet part, a vocal line, a clever lyric, etc gives you a buzz, you have succeeded. I don't write songs to become rich or line my pocket. I write songs to make people happy and put a smile on their face. Sometimes, I try and make a point about something I care about in a song. No one wants to be preached at by musicians, but I think if you listen to the False Dots music, especially the recent material, you'll have a pretty good idea of where we stand on most issues. If you just want to enjoy the tunes, that is great.
I had a wonderful evening on Saturday night. A good friend of mine asked me around for a barbeque. This is probably my favourite way of eating on a Saturday night. We have a long standing in joke about Nigerian Guinness and Jerk Chicken. We have often joked that if ever The Bridge Tavern in Mill Hill closes, we'll reopen it as a Nigerian Guinness and Jerk chicken bar. I shared my Jerk Chicken sauce recipe with him and it was excellent. In the course of the evening I got talking to one of his friends. We were discussing food. I expressed an opinion that if you don't know how to cook, you never really know if something tastes good. When I cook I am a serial expermineter. Like my friend, I am always keen to try new recipes. I was explaing to the guy I was chatting to that for me, a real eureka moment was chatting to a friend, who happens to be and elderly academic of Palestinian heritage. He told me that when he first arrived in the UK, the food always tasted very bland to him. He'd go to top restaurants, get the finest cuts of meat, but there was no flavour. Then he went around to his Palestinian mates for a barbeque and found the food was far more delicious than the top London fancy restaurants.
He realised that this was because they always cooked the food on the bone. The English have an aversion to bones in food. We'd happily eat something bland and tasteless, if it had no bones. This is why we are so keen on chicken nuggets. Te coating makes up for the flavour we remove by taking the bones out. The same is true for fish. This is a major cause of consternation in my house, as my wife hates fish with bones. If I cook fish, I have to fillet it for her. Invariably miss a bone and she berates me. Much to my wife's irritation, I also do not share her obsession with knives and forks, a very English foible. I am happy to pick up a chop and knaw the meat off it. She thinks this makes me an ignorant savage and suggests that I am akin to Fred Flintstone. I am somehow not upset by such comparisions. Of all the figures in modern TV and Film, I think Fred Flintstone is one of the happiest and there is much to admire about him.
One key feature of proper Palestinian cooking is that they use a firepit (known as a Zarb oven) to cook in. As I understand it, you dig a hole, line it with rocks, then fill it with charcoal and lit. The vegetables, juices and meat are all put in and the food cooks slowly. I need to try this. I quite like the concept of cooking a whole chicken in a firepit, it is one sort of cooking that London doesn't seem to be blessed with a huge selection of restaurants who do this. In principle, I love the idea of simply putting the food in a hole, going off for the day and coming back and it's cooked to perfection and delcious, but clearly there is more to it than that. Anyway, this is my big plan for the summer. To do this and get it right.
On Wednesday, Barnet Council will vote on whether to approve the massive Ballymore regeneration scheme in Edgware. This will change Edgware forever, if it is approved and comes to fruition. The developers, Ballymore will make a very large amount of money from the scheme. As for the existing residents of Edgware, the people who pay their council tax bills, lets be generous and say that the benefits will be far less obvious. Let me share with you the claimed benefits - My observations are in red italics
Town Centre
We intend to build a new Town Square - a destination where people can come together. It will form the centrepiece of the re-development, which will take its inspiration from local architecture, honouring Edgware’s character and heritage. - I am interested to see how shops underneath huge tower blocks 'honour Edgware's character and heritage'. I suppose you could claim that the large Green Sheild House has long been part of the Edgware landscape, but I am far from convinced that this rather dull piece of 1960's utilitarian design is necessarily something Edgware residents want to see used as a model for the rest of the town. I'm yet to be persuaded that this claim means anything beyond an idea in the mind of a marketing person, who obviously assumes the residents of Edgware are a bit dim and will fall for such old tosh.
Public Transport
To reduce congestion and to make crossings safer, we plan to move the bus garage underground, with the passenger terminal remaining at street level and sheltered bus stops dispersed along Station Road. This will support the future electrification of the bus network, reducing noise and pollution. There will also be new and improved connectivity to the Underground. - The idea of putting electric buses in an underground garage is insanity, given the problems with their batteries catching fire. The claim that the putting the gragae underground will reduce congestion is absolutely ridiculous. However you look at it, the existing garage is far safer. There is good interchange with the tube. Given the huge number of new flats, this scheme will clearly make congestion on the Northern Line worse, not better and to claim otherwise is simply dishonest. There are no new transport links.
Meanwhile, pedestrians will find it easier to get around with more paths and safer crossings. And those on bikes can look forward to over 500 short term cycle parking spaces across the scheme. - Given that the new 'safer' crossings are a key benefit, I am surprised that there is no real information on the website explaining how these will be safer.
Homes
We want to deliver 3,365 new homes of different types and sizes. Up to 35% of homes will be affordable - subject to GLA grant funding - making a significant contribution to Barnet Council’s housing waiting list. These homes will be designed for everyone, from students, families, and those later in life, in an array of tenures including market sale, rental, shared ownership, and affordable rent. We also want our new homes to look contemporary while being sympathetic to other buildings in the area. - The wording here troubles me. It doesn't say 35% of homes will be affordable. It says "up to" meaning far less may be actually delivered, and this is contingent on public money supporting the scheme. Given that the developers will make a lot of money, I am not entirely comfortable with the fact they are getting a bung from taxpayers (most or whom are opposed to the scheme). Anyone familiar with other schemes in Barnet know what happens in the real world when the buildings start going up.
Shops & Restaurants
At the centre of the town will be a new, larger, Sainsbury’s (without a day of trading lost during construction), accessible by the new Sainsbury’s car park and transport links. We'll have big high street brands plus independent shops and restaurants, so there is choice and variety for everyone. - When they talk about transport links, these are the buses and tubes that already exist. Sainsburys already has a car park. This is not a new benefit
Leisure
We’re pleased to announce that Edgware will get a new cinema. We have pop-ups and a food market planned. And there’ll be community leisure spaces to enjoy - including playgrounds, a new library, gym and swimming pool for families and beyond to enjoy the area. - Excuse my cynicism. I asked Google where the new swimming pool would be. The answer "The new swimming pool, part of the Edgware redevelopment project, will be located at the expanded leisure center near Edgware. The redevelopment plan also includes a gym and fitness studio according to Minuteman Press. The project will also deliver new homes and green spaces, including a nature park according to Ballymore. "
Healthcare
We’ve set aside 20,000 sq ft for health and wellbeing, which could include GP surgeries and dentists. We’re also talking to the NHS about their requirements. This will result in an offering bespoke to the needs of Edgware and its residents. - What exactly does this mean? I note the "could include GP Surguries and dentists" a long way from a firm commitment.This should be a ring-fenced condition of planning.
Open space
We want to make Edgware a greener place with better air quality. We will create 4.8 ha of open space, plant 400 more trees, introduce a new public park with pedestrian-friendly routes linking neighbourhoods, and reinvigorate the nearby Deans Brook Nature Park, opening up parts which have been closed for 100 years. - When they talk about 'creating 4.8ha of open space' this does not mean that there will be a net increase of 4.8ha in undeveloped land. I accept that there will be some improvement in quality and usability of some green space, but I am rather less convinced that this is actually what it is being sold as.
Office space
Besides being a great place to live, we want to make Edgware a great place to work. That’s why we are also planning a mixed-use building with over 50,000 ft sq of flexible offices, workspaces and hotel rooms - perfect for small businesses – right in the centre. - I know a fair few businesses owners in Edgware. They tell me that Edgware is a great place to live in and work in, but they are less than convinced that this will be improved for them, existing residents and business owners, who have paid their taxes for decades.
In short, many of the most important benefits, such as new affordable housing are not guaranteed. The underground bus station is a bonkers scheme that the Fire Brigade have expressed concerns about. I am not anti development. If this whole scheme wasn't riddled with if's, buts and convenient get outs for the developers for important commitments, I may support it. The truth is that if there own PR material is riddled with claims that don't stand up to scrutiny, what chance is there that this scheme will actually be good for Edgware?
But what concerns me more than the scheme is the way it has shown the uttwer hypocrisy of our local politicians. Prior to 2022, when Labour won in Barnet, they were very sceptical about this scheme. The Tories, on the other hand, where totally behind it. As soon as they lost, the position reversed. There has been absolutely no change in council policy towards the scheme and Ballymore as a result of regime change.
Let me ask you this. Who elects our local politicians, who pays their 'allowances', who are they meant to serve? The answer is us, the voters. They are meant to be on our side, and they are meant to ensure that council officials work for us, as residents and tax payers. What we actually have is a bunch of people, who seemingly despise the voters. When I attended a recent Council cabinet meeting, I was truly shocked at the way things are under Labour. They are not rude and revolting to the public, as the Tories used to be. They are polite, but they made it absolutely clear that they had no interest at all in the views of the public. So who's views are they interested in? Well they seem very interested to cosy up to big developers. I do not think that the relationship should be hostile, we are all grown ups and we know that we need more housing. What, however, we should expect is for councillors to be our advocates. They should be on our side and be making sure that when developers submit schemes, they take account of existing residents and minimise impacts on them, as well as maximising benefits.
It's all rather sad. I won't be going to Wednesday's meeting. I have tickets for a concert. One thing I learned at the cabinet is that Labour 'sort business out' before the public are involved.
In an idle moment yesterday, I was thinking back to my very first girlfriend. I think we were both about six years old and we met on the set of a commercial we were both acting in, we really hit it off. We were the only kids amongst a lot of very serious adults, working hard on the production. We spent three days together and got on like a house on fire. After the shoot finished, we never saw each other again. Anyone who has ever participated in a TV advert shoot in the 1960's will know that you have a lot of time on your hands. We spent a lot of time discussing what we'd do when we grew up. She told me that she planned to be an actress and write books. I said I wanted to also be an actor and be in James Bond films. She told me that she wanted to live in a big house with apple trees. I told her that I wanted to live on a boat, keep dogs and cats and dress like a pirate. I wanted a parrot to sit on my shoulder.
I've no idea whether she achieved her dream. I can't recall her surname. I have never starred in a James Bond film, I don't have a boat, dress like a pirate or have a parrot to sit on my shoulder. I've had a cat and we've got two dogs, so I am living a little bit of the dream. There is still a little bit of my that would quite like to live on a canal longboat, with dogs and cats. I am not really sure that I want to dress as a pirate anymore. I think I'd probably just seen Long John Silver in Treasure Island at the time and it must've had a big impact on me. I quite liked the idea of being a buccaneer and sailing the world, looking for treasure.
Several members of my family are very much into boats. Sadly none of them dress like a pirate or have a parrot. I have come to realise that owning a boat is less about sailing the world, looking for lost treasure and a lot more about spending your life (and most of your cash) working on the boat, getting it ready for journeys that never seem to happen. But unlike a lot of people, they are at least living their dream.
My dream changed. When I was fourteen, I discovered rock and roll. For me, the dream is playing in a band, playing gigs and making recordings. When my children were small, I very much put my dream to one side. I think that your first priority is to fulfil your responsibilities, but now they are adults, I've thrown myself back into my music. I see so many of my friends and peers, who seem totally unable to give themself permission to enjoy themselves. People sometimes ask me about my bucket list. It is short. I've made sure I've done most of the things I want to do in life. I think that going to see Boz Scaggs live is perhaps one of the few things yet to be ticked off.
I've been to all of the places I had a burning desire to visit, I've seen just about all of the bands I want to see. Back in 1990, I went through a spell where I got into boats and sailing, but realised I am only really interested in the sailing part. Actually owning a boat is far too much hassle for a lazy git like me.
I was chatting to a friend earlier in the week. He was telling me about his aspirations for his forthcoming retirement. I was struck by the fact that he's spent the last 30 years not doing things he wanted to do. He has more than enough money to have done all of them, but seems unable to give himself permission to enjoy himself. I asked if he was now going to have a big splurge on holidays. His reply shocked me. He said "Well now I've not got cash coming in, I've got to be careful financially".
I do get that we all have to budget, but there are so many people I know who are well off enough to do all of the things that they'd like to, but are too risk averse and cautious with cash to enjoy themselves. Whilst dressing up as a pirate and living on a boat is not everyone's idea of fun, we all have our dreams. Our time on this planet is limited and we can't take our cash with us. Of course, we all have to decide what the right balance is for us. My friend is right to be careful with his cash and ensure he can make ends meet. I just hope that in a few years, he doesn't have regrets about the holidays he didn't have, the gigs and football he didn't go to and the restaurants he didn't visit.
We are lucky to live in London, the world is on our doorstep. My friend is planning to downsize, move out to the country, where he can have a nice house, with a nice view and a big nest egg. He was shocked when I said that if ever I moved, I'd move into town, so I could be even closer to all the things going on and an even quicker commute home. I don't really understand why anyone would want to live somewhere with nothing going on. But the beauty of life is that we are all different and see the world in different ways. Ultimately, when you are an adult you can do what you want, be it dress, like a pirate and live on a boat, move to the country and spend your life admiring the view from your living room or playing gigs in Camden Town. If it works for you and you are happy, then you've done something right. If you aren't happy, then maybe you need to have a look and make some changes. One thing I've become increasingly aware of is that you have to do things now. If you put it off, then the sands of time may run out. If you need to make changes, now is the time to do it.
