As housing crises spread across Europe I’m discovering that there are whole strands of activity and thinking which I was completely unaware of. Silvia Macchi at the University La Sapienza in Rome invited me to speak in a 2-day even at a squatted social centre in the eastern suburbs of Rome – a mix of young activists in various autonomist movements and intellectuals and politicians. Partly a campain meeting, partly self-education, partly celebration of this squat having lasted a year (though it is now facing the facist mayor’s promise to evict such social centres).This phrase ‘The Art of Rent’, which strikes me as weird, Continue reading “The Art of Rent – Italian meeting Horus Occupato”
Good new book, good publishing story
From: Stale Holgersen
Hi!
Last year I submitted a thesis on the urban development and planning
process at King’s Cross in London. And currently I work as a
city-planner in Norway.
Last fall I received an e-mail from a German publisher – VDM Verlag.
They had read my thesis on the Internet (www.kxrlg.org.uk <http://www.kxrlg.org.uk>), and
proposed to publish it as a book. This book is now a reality, and can
be purchased online. The book is called “Class Conflicts and Planning
– A Case Study of Contemporary Development at King’s Cross in London”.
Ken Livingstone's mayoral term ended by [what? widespread stupidity + the Evening Standard ]
You did a lot of fine things in your 8 years, including
transforming transport from a downward spiral to an upward one,
good anti-war and foreign policy,
good on equalities, the living wage and so on.
But your Faustian pact with big business alienated a lot of your support, made many people grit their teeth while they voted for you, and has actually caused a lot of damage and intensified exploitation.
PGS / roof tax / S106
Mark from This Land is Ours sent round the pnuk list a resume on why the government has rejected PGS. I replied and outlined a better alternative….. (NB if you want to comment send an email to m.edwards [at] ucl.ac.uk because I have switched off the comment facility in this blog to reduce spam.)
Mark from This Land is Ours sent round the pnuk list a resume on why the government has rejected PGS. I replied and outlined a better alternative….. (NB if you want to comment send an email to m.edwards [at] ucl.ac.uk because I have switched off the comment facility in this blog to reduce spam.)
Stopping Crossrail and London's centralised growth
On Thursday 20 Sept the government was reported as making yet another attempt to get private interests, especially those which stand to profit most, to contribute heavily to Crossrail – as a condition for government funding. They published this letter from me next day and we’ll see whether it generates any flow of further stuff, … Continue reading “Stopping Crossrail and London's centralised growth”
On Thursday 20 Sept the government was reported as making yet another attempt to get private interests, especially those which stand to profit most, to contribute heavily to Crossrail – as a condition for government funding.
They published this letter from me next day and we’ll see whether it generates any flow of further stuff, either on crossrail or on what kind of growth London needs…
Continue reading “Stopping Crossrail and London's centralised growth”
Comments on Planning White Paper
Two major criticisms – of the Planning Commission and its powers to replace decisions based on local public inquiries; and of proposals to weaken public participation in planning, Serious failure to create a new emphasis on positice implementation based on collective long-term ownership of land value growth. See the detail below.
Two major criticisms – of the Planning Commission and its powers to replace decisions based on local public inquiries; and of proposals to weaken public participation in planning, Serious failure to create a new emphasis on positice implementation based on collective long-term ownership of land value growth. See the detail below.
King's Cross Judicial Review Fails
Today in the High Court Mr Justice Sullivan decided against our judicvial review of Camden Council’s grant of planning permission for Argent’s scheme. Full details of the judgement will follow. In the mean time…. we have to find £10,000 and you can help with that at http://www.kxrlg.org.uk Some further comments….
Today in the High Court Mr Justice Sullivan decided against our judicvial review of Camden Council’s grant of planning permission for Argent’s scheme. Full details of the judgement will follow. In the mean time…. we have to find £10,000 and you can help with that at www.kxrlg.org.uk
Some further comments….
King's Cross again
March 07: The High Court (Mr Justice Collins) has now approved our request for a protective costs order so we can afford to go ahead (just – if everyone helps by subscribing). Camden tried to prevent this going through but backed off in the end. Argent, the developer, has been trying to get the Court … Continue reading “King's Cross again”
March 07: The High Court (Mr Justice Collins) has now approved our request for a protective costs order so we can afford to go ahead (just – if everyone helps by subscribing). Camden tried to prevent this going through but backed off in the end.
Argent, the developer, has been trying to get the Court to lift the order it made to prevent historic buildings on the site being demolished pending the JR and we are resisting that.
More about all this – and some excellent press coverage secured by our indomitable press officer Diana Shelley – at www.kxrlg.org.uk , including how to donate or pledge.
If you want to comment email m.edwards[at]ucl.ac.uk because I switched off the auto-comment facility in the blog software – it was drowning me in hispanic garden furniture and car insurance.
King's Cross Legal Challenge
Finally, after much backwards and forwards among the campaigning groups, and with marvellous lawyers, the Judicial Review of Camden Council’s ‘fettering of its discretion’ is under way. the phrase is quaint but in effect it means that the proper democratic procedures were suppressed. Lots of detail at http://www.kxrlg.org.uk 18th February: One of the Labour Councillors … Continue reading “King's Cross Legal Challenge”
Finally, after much backwards and forwards among the campaigning groups, and with marvellous lawyers, the Judicial Review of Camden Council’s ‘fettering of its discretion’ is under way. the phrase is quaint but in effect it means that the proper democratic procedures were suppressed. Lots of detail at www.kxrlg.org.uk
18th February:
One of the Labour Councillors at Camden, Theo Blackwell, clearly one of those very committed to Argent’s scheme and proud of the S106 agreement, has written a quite strong attack on the campaign in his own blog which is here I posted a short personal comment and I hope he’ll permit it to appear. (Next day: he did.)
Critiques of Barker
Massimo just gave me a copy of the last issue of The Land number 3 – journal of TLIO This Land is Ours. It contains some fine trenchant material on Barker, well-reasoned and viewing it quite explicitly as part of a strong neo-liberal push. The objections are mainly to the anti-environmental and anti-democratic dimensions of … Continue reading “Critiques of Barker”
Massimo just gave me a copy of the last issue of The Land number 3 – journal of TLIO This Land is Ours. It contains some fine trenchant material on Barker, well-reasoned and viewing it quite explicitly as part of a strong neo-liberal push. The objections are mainly to the anti-environmental and anti-democratic dimensions of her proposals. I am trying to find if there is an online version but in the mean time you can order it by sending £2 for one issue or £10 for three to TLIO at The Potato Store, Flaxdrayton Farm, South Petherton, Somerset TA13 5LR.
Incidentally there is now stuff on the pnuk web site…… www.pnuk.org.uk
michael edwards 