Real achievements for residents

In Lewisham, with a directly elected mayor who takes most decisions himself, the only real formal power the full Council has is to vote on the budget. I was leading on the budget amendment for the Green Group; we were the only party on the Council to address the funding gap for adult social care, and we ultimately managed to get all our proposals covering a range of issues accepted. For me the best moment was when the Mayor announced at a public Mayor & Cabinet meeting that he was going to do what we had suggested in our amendment – reverse savings and cuts in adult social care of almost £1.8M for this financial year. I was very tired that day coming back from my day job but I think I must have floated out of the town hall that evening.

Whilst this obviously falls short of the principle of free services at the point of delivery, £1.8M make an enormous difference to the older and disabled residents who depend on this funding for their wellbeing and quality of life, and I am proud of having made a contribution to this.

Since then we have kept up the pressure and liaised with local organisations of older and disabled people. I drafted our formal response to a consultation on changes to the eligibility criteria and charging policy for adult social care (in essence saying that the proposals weren’t good enough and making the case why spending more now would even make financial sense in the long run). The Mayor then made a surprise announcement at a budget summit last Saturday that he would not pursue changing the eligibility criteria.

I also tabled a motion on adult social care referring both to local problems and the fact that this is also a national crisis that affects councils up and down the country. Whilst 6 Green councillors in Lewisham cannot change government funding and priorities, we have successfully tackled the issue within the constraints that exist at local level and will continue to push for better services for vulnerable residents.

Remembrance Sunday

It is a coincidence but does not seem inappropriate that I start my blog shortly after Remembrance Sunday when I participated in the civic event in Lewisham and laid a wreath on behalf of the Green Party Group on Lewisham Council.

Remembrance Sunday is first and foremost a day to remember those who served and died in all wars. In Germany, where I come from, it is also seen as an opportunity to look back on many years of peace in Western Europe since the Second World War and on the cooperation of initially Western European countries and more recently a much larger European Union, and to look into a future that is based on these foundations.

As a citizen I often shake my head in despair about some bizarre decisions taken "in Brussels". But as a historian and with a longer term perspective I also see the benefits of European cooperation - maybe we take them so much for granted now that they seem almost negligible compared to the current business of European politics. And at a personal level, having lived in Belgium for two years and in France for four years before moving to London, I also appreciate the freedom and the opportunities millions of Europeans have today.