This page was last edited at 0940 GMT on Wednesday 8 October 2008
Gordon Brown - and UK finance minister Alistair Darling [yes the same one who put the CRASS Crossrail Bill into UK Parliament in February 2005]- failed to show at their news conference this morning that the UK Govt was getting to grips with the IRRESPONSIBILITY of Big Business. Despite the repeated utterances of stock phrases suggesting that they were, there was not one word delivered at that news conference that showed that Brown or Darling was concerned about the core of the crisis. That core IS greed. That core is capitalistic corruption. That core is Thatcherite disregard for society.Brown remains a prisoner of Big Business despite suggestions to the contrary.... [To be continued]
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Is Gordon Brown at last doing the decent - 'prudent'- thing? SCRAPPING the obsolete, the wasteful the irrelevant CROSSRAIL? [161]
This page was last edited at 1340 GMT LONDON TUESDAY 7 OCTOBER 2008:
Is Gordon Brown at last doing the decent - 'prudent'- thing? SCRAPPING the obsolete, the wasteful the irrelevant CROSSRAIL? [161]
Has KHOODEELAAR! No to “CRASSrail hole plot...” CAMPAIGN an authoritative source inside the London EVENING STANDARD? Ooooooops! EVENING nostandards STANDARD! There must be, mustn’t there? For at 1030 GMT today Tuesday 7 October 2008 KHOODEELAAR! published on the AADHIKARonline a campaign commentary about an item which had this headline, “ KHOODEELAAR! 'anticipates' a headline like this ,' End of line for city’s Crossrail'' . That item was about a miniature ‘Crossrail’ at and around the Scottish town of Aberdeen......Within minutes of our publication, the London EVENING nostandards STANDARD, which has been THE propaganda organ for peddling the Big Business London CRASSrail for at least the past 6 years, published an item with the following headline, “Crisis puts the Crossrail sums on wrong lines”. And their story, PRINTED at page 34 [‘Business’ ‘City SPY’] of the early editions, read as follows: “ Anxious times for those involved in the Crossrail project, where key funding documents remain unsigned and the downturn and falling property values have put major question marks against some of the calculations.There are doubts about the predicted profits from the redevelopment of land at the bottom end of Tottenham Court Road belonging to Transport for London. Meanwhile, airports operator BAA and the City Corporation have yet to finally sign off their contributions towards the £17 billion bill.
TfL is also to raise a £2.7 billion contingency fund, secured against future fares — something that looks precarious in the current climate. Then there is the planned £3.5 billion levy from London businesses. It seems hardly the right moment to be asking small shops and firms for cash when they are struggling in the credit crunch.
Over and above all that, there is the suspicion that Gordon Brown may wish to delay the development. Building a new express-link for City banks, which are hardly popular in the country at present, could be the last thing he needs as he copes with public finances that are shot to bits.
The counter-argument says that the Prime Minister would not dare to lose face with the City by backtracking on Crossrail, and that a further postponement of the long-fought-for scheme would send a terrible signal about London's claim to be the world's leading financial centre. The last few weeks have shown, if nothing else, just how vital a dynamic City is to the economy and that therefore he will push ahead.
But Brown has also got an Olympic Games to contend with, which just happen to be in the same part of the UK as Crossrail. That too is suffering, with the financing of the 2012 Olympic Village provoking alarm in Whitehall.
City Spy would not be surprised at all if Crossrail was to slow... ”
[To be continued]
Is Gordon Brown at last doing the decent - 'prudent'- thing? SCRAPPING the obsolete, the wasteful the irrelevant CROSSRAIL? [161]
Has KHOODEELAAR! No to “CRASSrail hole plot...” CAMPAIGN an authoritative source inside the London EVENING STANDARD? Ooooooops! EVENING nostandards STANDARD! There must be, mustn’t there? For at 1030 GMT today Tuesday 7 October 2008 KHOODEELAAR! published on the AADHIKARonline a campaign commentary about an item which had this headline, “ KHOODEELAAR! 'anticipates' a headline like this ,' End of line for city’s Crossrail'' . That item was about a miniature ‘Crossrail’ at and around the Scottish town of Aberdeen......Within minutes of our publication, the London EVENING nostandards STANDARD, which has been THE propaganda organ for peddling the Big Business London CRASSrail for at least the past 6 years, published an item with the following headline, “Crisis puts the Crossrail sums on wrong lines”. And their story, PRINTED at page 34 [‘Business’ ‘City SPY’] of the early editions, read as follows: “ Anxious times for those involved in the Crossrail project, where key funding documents remain unsigned and the downturn and falling property values have put major question marks against some of the calculations.There are doubts about the predicted profits from the redevelopment of land at the bottom end of Tottenham Court Road belonging to Transport for London. Meanwhile, airports operator BAA and the City Corporation have yet to finally sign off their contributions towards the £17 billion bill.
TfL is also to raise a £2.7 billion contingency fund, secured against future fares — something that looks precarious in the current climate. Then there is the planned £3.5 billion levy from London businesses. It seems hardly the right moment to be asking small shops and firms for cash when they are struggling in the credit crunch.
Over and above all that, there is the suspicion that Gordon Brown may wish to delay the development. Building a new express-link for City banks, which are hardly popular in the country at present, could be the last thing he needs as he copes with public finances that are shot to bits.
The counter-argument says that the Prime Minister would not dare to lose face with the City by backtracking on Crossrail, and that a further postponement of the long-fought-for scheme would send a terrible signal about London's claim to be the world's leading financial centre. The last few weeks have shown, if nothing else, just how vital a dynamic City is to the economy and that therefore he will push ahead.
But Brown has also got an Olympic Games to contend with, which just happen to be in the same part of the UK as Crossrail. That too is suffering, with the financing of the 2012 Olympic Village provoking alarm in Whitehall.
City Spy would not be surprised at all if Crossrail was to slow... ”
[To be continued]
KHOODEELAAR! updating the evidence of CRASS conduct by the CLEGG-ed Lib Dems acting as stooged tools for Big Business [160]
This page was last edited at 1050 GMT Tuesday 7 October 2008
KHOODEELAAR! updating the evidence of CRASS conduct by the CLEGG-ed Lib Dems acting as stooged tools for Big Business [160]
The question is; What are the Lib Dems about? And the answer is, as it has been for the best part of a 100 years: Not much! And that is putting it most generously!
Which is odd. Very odd in view o the preponderance of appearance by Vince Cable on the media networks and platforms!
Why?
Because Cable evidently has significant things to say on the current state of the looters crisis. As compared to any counterpart that they could find in either of the ‘mainstream’ parties in Britain.
As is, to a similar extent, Brian Paddick. Who has made noticeable comments about his filed of knowledge, the policing problems in London.
That is it. There is not even a third one from the overall Lib Dem s party that could be found to match the two named here.
And the placing of Norman Baker as a spokesman on transport is not helping at all...
Baker is not an expert or an enthusiast on transport. His field is constitution and the absence of accountability and democracy. That the Lib Dems have found nothing like that to give Baker a platform shows the shallowness of the Nick Clegg ‘leadership’!
It looks as if Clegg is already confused about his own role, and NOT just about the state of the pensioners! plight....
[To be continued]
KHOODEELAAR! updating the evidence of CRASS conduct by the CLEGG-ed Lib Dems acting as stooged tools for Big Business [160]
The question is; What are the Lib Dems about? And the answer is, as it has been for the best part of a 100 years: Not much! And that is putting it most generously!
Which is odd. Very odd in view o the preponderance of appearance by Vince Cable on the media networks and platforms!
Why?
Because Cable evidently has significant things to say on the current state of the looters crisis. As compared to any counterpart that they could find in either of the ‘mainstream’ parties in Britain.
As is, to a similar extent, Brian Paddick. Who has made noticeable comments about his filed of knowledge, the policing problems in London.
That is it. There is not even a third one from the overall Lib Dem s party that could be found to match the two named here.
And the placing of Norman Baker as a spokesman on transport is not helping at all...
Baker is not an expert or an enthusiast on transport. His field is constitution and the absence of accountability and democracy. That the Lib Dems have found nothing like that to give Baker a platform shows the shallowness of the Nick Clegg ‘leadership’!
It looks as if Clegg is already confused about his own role, and NOT just about the state of the pensioners! plight....
[To be continued]
Thursday, October 2, 2008
KHOODEELAAR! updating the evidence of the Crassness of hyping up 'Canary Wharf’ and other CRASSRail scam destinations [146]
This page was last edited at 2010 Hrs GMT London Thursday 2 October 2008
KHOODEELAAR! comments on each of the components of this evidence [below] will be pub shed in the next 24 hours
'
HEADLINES:
Mayor forces Met chief out of job..... PM praises Sir Ian's leadership..... Two charged over banker's murder..... Mixed fortunes for bank stocks..... Banks expect to cut back on lending..... Burglar steals MI5 device from home..... MS sufferer's assisted suicide plea..... Water firms plan big price hike..... Cabinet reshuffle is delayed..... Million more homes in fuel poverty.....
Grand design: Irish developer Sean Mulryan and an artist's impression of his Pan Peninsula towers at Canary Wharf
Credit Crunch Towers
Keith Dovkants
02.10.08
A deathly hush has fallen over the Pan Peninsula. Until recently it was one of the noisiest areas of the property boom. Now the only clamour is the sound of buyers stampeding for the exit.
Few places in London characterise so completely the gloom that has overtaken the recent exuberance of the property market, and for good reason. The development, which broke all records for apartment prices in Docklands, was a product of the off-plan phenomenon. It attracted speculators in droves. They saw an opportunity to buy at a discount before even a brick was laid and dashed to place deposits. Now the rush is in the opposite direction.
It's happening all over London. Buyers are walking away from deposits rather than completing on properties now worth far less than they agreed to pay for them. In many cases, even if they wanted to complete the deal they can't, because mortgage funds have dried up. This is the unseen side of the property crash and its full effects are yet to be felt.
The Pan Peninsula project is due to be completed early next spring, ahead of schedule. For months, a sign has hung outside the towers boasting that all flats are sold. The sign is a relic of better times. One property website alone currently has almost 100 advertisements selling flats in the development. Many are being sold by investors hoping to recoup what they have spent on deposits. In some cases, the sums are over £100,000 and hopes of recovering anything like this amount are fading fast.
The man behind Pan Peninsula is Sean Mulryan, one of Ireland's richest tycoons. A stonemason by trade, he named his company, Ballymore, after the town in Co Kildare where he started his building firm in 1982. In 10 years, he had moved to London and Ballymore is now one of the major developers in Britain and Europe, with a property portfolio valued in excess of £1 billion.
Mulryan is among the most successful of the current generation of Celtic tigers. Like his contemporaries John Magnier and JP McManus, he has an impressive string of racehorses and has invested in English football, taking a stake in Sunderland FC.
When he launched the Pan Peninsula development three years ago, there was intense interest, especially among property professionals. Ballymore's daring new towers, one standing 50 storeys tall at 489ft, the other a little lower, were not just the highest of high-rises, they also promised to be the best.
Every apartment, from studios to the penthouse, was designed with floor-to-ceiling windows. The views from the riverside blocks were exceptional, with a glimpse of the sea possible from the upper floors. The fitting-out was exceptional, with high-quality kitchens and bathrooms.
Even more impressive was the marketing. Pan Peninsula was sold not just as a place to live, but as a way to live. Residents of the 762 apartments were promised a “signature” restaurant, a health club and spa, a private cinema and a cocktail lounge on the 50th floor.
They were also offered an entrée to the Quintessential concierge group which links its clientele to the world's most exclusive and expensive shops and services.
Docklands property prices have always lagged behind London's more established areas such as Chelsea and Mayfair but the two towers helped the area stage a quantum leap. The £1,000 a square foot barrier was broken for the first time in sales at Pan Peninsula. Just before Christmas 2006, Ballymore announced it had sold the penthouse for £7 million, believed to be a record for east London.
Mock-ups of the apartments were created on a barge floating on the Thames close to the rising towers. Plans of the development were on display and purchasers were able to choose their flat from those that remained. In those early days, studios were selling for around £299,000, one-bed flats cost around £400,000 and larger ones clustered around £700,000 and above.
At the time, London property prices were rising at a giddy rate. Some estimates suggested gains of 20 per cent a year. Buying off-plan at a place like Pan Peninsula seemed a one-way bet. Soon the website carried a notice advising everything had been sold. The marketing suite number was disconnected.
For those who had bought in, by placing a 10 per cent deposit, it seemed all they had to do was wait for prices to rise sufficiently and then “flip” the property by selling the option for a profit. Some did. Pan Peninsula attracted investors from the City and Canary Wharf, most of whom were financially astute.
It was estimated that 65 per cent of those buying off-plan were single men looking for an investment. Around 20 per cent were single women professionals keen to acquire a smart Docklands home. There was an unconfirmed report that 50 per cent of the purchasers of the flats in the second tower, located to the west of the site, were Irish investors.
In the City bonus frenzy of early 2007, money poured into Ballymore. The company planned another huge tower, this time at Piccadilly, Manchester. That project has now been shelved.
As a development, the future of Pan Peninsula is assured. Work is said to be several months ahead of schedule and the towers appear to be almost finished. But as an investment, the immediate future is far less rosy. A local estate agent revealed that a client bought a one-bedroom flat two years ago, off-plan, for £420,000. So far he has paid two deposits totalling 20 per cent of the price, just over £80,000. Now the flat is thought to be worth only £375,000. He is trying to sell for that price. If he can sell, it will limit his loss to £45,000. If he cannot, he faces losing his deposit of more than £80,000.
“He has to make a decision,” the agent said. “Does he complete and wait for the value to go up, or does he walk away, sacrificing his deposit? Our advice is to go through with the deal and rent out.”
This was the advice being given by Foxtons, who are trying to sell nine flats in the development. If possible, a spokeswoman said, it was better to complete and rent out until values recovered.
Not everyone can afford this option. A Russian investor who is trying to sell two flats privately at Pan Peninsula said the downturn had thrown his investment plans into chaos.
“I bought two two-bedroom apartments, one quite large for £770,000. Now I'm trying to get £775,000 for it but it's not looking good. To be honest, I'm very disappointed. I can't afford to wait for the market to recover. From what I can see now people are not buying because they think the market still has some way to go before it bottoms out. I just don't know how much I'll lose. My strategy now is to try to get buyers in Russia or perhaps Kazakhstan. If the worst came to the worst, I suppose I could live there.”
The off-plan phenomenon was more a feature of the recent property boom than any other. The incentive for buyers, in a decade when prices trebled, was huge. Between reservation, exchange and completion, properties were soaring in value. Speculators had no intention of moving in. Hundreds of thousands of pounds were to be made without so much as lifting a tea chest.
The idea also spawned much-criticised “investment clubs”, which persuaded people of limited means to invest in unbuilt property on the understanding that they would profit from big price rises before they needed to pay up.
In a block of flats near Victoria, two-bed flats were available off-plan for £650,000 in October 2006. At the time of their completion, a year later, local agents were quoting £950,000 with a waiting list. Now owners looking to sell are receiving offers no higher than the £650,000 they paid.
At Arsenal's old stadium in Highbury, now a 700-unit residential development, off-plan buyers have been walking away from their deposits. As the Evening Standard revealed last week, a large number of those who paid 10 or 20 per cent deposits have seen their £500,000 flats plummet in value to around £400,000. Buyers have lost interest and investment clubs have all but disappeared.
Ballymore declined to give details of how the Pan Peninsula development is working out. A spokeswoman said the company was “comfortable” with progress and interest remains high. It was, she added, “virtually sold out”.
Workmen are finishing off the health club and cocktail lounge. Whatever the market does, the view from this 50-storey eyrie will be undiminished, even if some residents find themselves sipping their caipirinhas through gritted teeth.
Link to:
Reader Views (6) Add your view | Show all
Here's a sample of the latest views published. You can click view all to read all views that readers have sent in.
What does the fire brigade say about these and similar height flats and offices?
- Helen, Norwich
Seems like we're all discovering that home is the place where you live, not a cash machine that you get free money from. It's hard to feel sympathy for people who are now suffering financial hardship when they were originally motivated by greed.
- Paul, London
'
KHOODEELAAR! comments on each of the components of this evidence [below] will be pub shed in the next 24 hours
'
HEADLINES:
Mayor forces Met chief out of job..... PM praises Sir Ian's leadership..... Two charged over banker's murder..... Mixed fortunes for bank stocks..... Banks expect to cut back on lending..... Burglar steals MI5 device from home..... MS sufferer's assisted suicide plea..... Water firms plan big price hike..... Cabinet reshuffle is delayed..... Million more homes in fuel poverty.....
Grand design: Irish developer Sean Mulryan and an artist's impression of his Pan Peninsula towers at Canary Wharf
Credit Crunch Towers
Keith Dovkants
02.10.08
A deathly hush has fallen over the Pan Peninsula. Until recently it was one of the noisiest areas of the property boom. Now the only clamour is the sound of buyers stampeding for the exit.
Few places in London characterise so completely the gloom that has overtaken the recent exuberance of the property market, and for good reason. The development, which broke all records for apartment prices in Docklands, was a product of the off-plan phenomenon. It attracted speculators in droves. They saw an opportunity to buy at a discount before even a brick was laid and dashed to place deposits. Now the rush is in the opposite direction.
It's happening all over London. Buyers are walking away from deposits rather than completing on properties now worth far less than they agreed to pay for them. In many cases, even if they wanted to complete the deal they can't, because mortgage funds have dried up. This is the unseen side of the property crash and its full effects are yet to be felt.
The Pan Peninsula project is due to be completed early next spring, ahead of schedule. For months, a sign has hung outside the towers boasting that all flats are sold. The sign is a relic of better times. One property website alone currently has almost 100 advertisements selling flats in the development. Many are being sold by investors hoping to recoup what they have spent on deposits. In some cases, the sums are over £100,000 and hopes of recovering anything like this amount are fading fast.
The man behind Pan Peninsula is Sean Mulryan, one of Ireland's richest tycoons. A stonemason by trade, he named his company, Ballymore, after the town in Co Kildare where he started his building firm in 1982. In 10 years, he had moved to London and Ballymore is now one of the major developers in Britain and Europe, with a property portfolio valued in excess of £1 billion.
Mulryan is among the most successful of the current generation of Celtic tigers. Like his contemporaries John Magnier and JP McManus, he has an impressive string of racehorses and has invested in English football, taking a stake in Sunderland FC.
When he launched the Pan Peninsula development three years ago, there was intense interest, especially among property professionals. Ballymore's daring new towers, one standing 50 storeys tall at 489ft, the other a little lower, were not just the highest of high-rises, they also promised to be the best.
Every apartment, from studios to the penthouse, was designed with floor-to-ceiling windows. The views from the riverside blocks were exceptional, with a glimpse of the sea possible from the upper floors. The fitting-out was exceptional, with high-quality kitchens and bathrooms.
Even more impressive was the marketing. Pan Peninsula was sold not just as a place to live, but as a way to live. Residents of the 762 apartments were promised a “signature” restaurant, a health club and spa, a private cinema and a cocktail lounge on the 50th floor.
They were also offered an entrée to the Quintessential concierge group which links its clientele to the world's most exclusive and expensive shops and services.
Docklands property prices have always lagged behind London's more established areas such as Chelsea and Mayfair but the two towers helped the area stage a quantum leap. The £1,000 a square foot barrier was broken for the first time in sales at Pan Peninsula. Just before Christmas 2006, Ballymore announced it had sold the penthouse for £7 million, believed to be a record for east London.
Mock-ups of the apartments were created on a barge floating on the Thames close to the rising towers. Plans of the development were on display and purchasers were able to choose their flat from those that remained. In those early days, studios were selling for around £299,000, one-bed flats cost around £400,000 and larger ones clustered around £700,000 and above.
At the time, London property prices were rising at a giddy rate. Some estimates suggested gains of 20 per cent a year. Buying off-plan at a place like Pan Peninsula seemed a one-way bet. Soon the website carried a notice advising everything had been sold. The marketing suite number was disconnected.
For those who had bought in, by placing a 10 per cent deposit, it seemed all they had to do was wait for prices to rise sufficiently and then “flip” the property by selling the option for a profit. Some did. Pan Peninsula attracted investors from the City and Canary Wharf, most of whom were financially astute.
It was estimated that 65 per cent of those buying off-plan were single men looking for an investment. Around 20 per cent were single women professionals keen to acquire a smart Docklands home. There was an unconfirmed report that 50 per cent of the purchasers of the flats in the second tower, located to the west of the site, were Irish investors.
In the City bonus frenzy of early 2007, money poured into Ballymore. The company planned another huge tower, this time at Piccadilly, Manchester. That project has now been shelved.
As a development, the future of Pan Peninsula is assured. Work is said to be several months ahead of schedule and the towers appear to be almost finished. But as an investment, the immediate future is far less rosy. A local estate agent revealed that a client bought a one-bedroom flat two years ago, off-plan, for £420,000. So far he has paid two deposits totalling 20 per cent of the price, just over £80,000. Now the flat is thought to be worth only £375,000. He is trying to sell for that price. If he can sell, it will limit his loss to £45,000. If he cannot, he faces losing his deposit of more than £80,000.
“He has to make a decision,” the agent said. “Does he complete and wait for the value to go up, or does he walk away, sacrificing his deposit? Our advice is to go through with the deal and rent out.”
This was the advice being given by Foxtons, who are trying to sell nine flats in the development. If possible, a spokeswoman said, it was better to complete and rent out until values recovered.
Not everyone can afford this option. A Russian investor who is trying to sell two flats privately at Pan Peninsula said the downturn had thrown his investment plans into chaos.
“I bought two two-bedroom apartments, one quite large for £770,000. Now I'm trying to get £775,000 for it but it's not looking good. To be honest, I'm very disappointed. I can't afford to wait for the market to recover. From what I can see now people are not buying because they think the market still has some way to go before it bottoms out. I just don't know how much I'll lose. My strategy now is to try to get buyers in Russia or perhaps Kazakhstan. If the worst came to the worst, I suppose I could live there.”
The off-plan phenomenon was more a feature of the recent property boom than any other. The incentive for buyers, in a decade when prices trebled, was huge. Between reservation, exchange and completion, properties were soaring in value. Speculators had no intention of moving in. Hundreds of thousands of pounds were to be made without so much as lifting a tea chest.
The idea also spawned much-criticised “investment clubs”, which persuaded people of limited means to invest in unbuilt property on the understanding that they would profit from big price rises before they needed to pay up.
In a block of flats near Victoria, two-bed flats were available off-plan for £650,000 in October 2006. At the time of their completion, a year later, local agents were quoting £950,000 with a waiting list. Now owners looking to sell are receiving offers no higher than the £650,000 they paid.
At Arsenal's old stadium in Highbury, now a 700-unit residential development, off-plan buyers have been walking away from their deposits. As the Evening Standard revealed last week, a large number of those who paid 10 or 20 per cent deposits have seen their £500,000 flats plummet in value to around £400,000. Buyers have lost interest and investment clubs have all but disappeared.
Ballymore declined to give details of how the Pan Peninsula development is working out. A spokeswoman said the company was “comfortable” with progress and interest remains high. It was, she added, “virtually sold out”.
Workmen are finishing off the health club and cocktail lounge. Whatever the market does, the view from this 50-storey eyrie will be undiminished, even if some residents find themselves sipping their caipirinhas through gritted teeth.
Link to:
Reader Views (6) Add your view | Show all
Here's a sample of the latest views published. You can click view all to read all views that readers have sent in.
What does the fire brigade say about these and similar height flats and offices?
- Helen, Norwich
Seems like we're all discovering that home is the place where you live, not a cash machine that you get free money from. It's hard to feel sympathy for people who are now suffering financial hardship when they were originally motivated by greed.
- Paul, London
'
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
KHOODEELAAR! updating the evidence of the serious flaws in peddling for Crossrail London at the expense of the needs of the North of England [145]
This page was last edited at 1858 Hrs GMT London Wednesday 1 October 2008
KHOODEELAAR! updating the evidence of the serious flaws in peddling for Crossrail London at the expense of the needs of the North of England [145]
http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/opinion/Chris-Leslie-The-North-deserves.4544759.jp
"
Chris Leslie: The North deserves a transport renaissance
Published Date: 01 October 2008
By Chris Leslie
POLITICIANS from both Labour and the Conservatives will have spent some of the past couple of weeks travelling north up the West Coast Mainline on route to their respective party conferences.
I hope that such journeys gave them a chance to reflect on the transport needs for the North of England and in particular how to make sure that the focus on major infrastructure problems doesn't solely focus on London and the South East.
It would ADVERTISEMENT
seem that the Conservatives may be heading in this direction of travel, albeit perhaps taking a little longer in their journey than some of us would have liked. Their announcement this week
that a Conservative government would build a high speed North-South rail link instead of adding a third runway at Heathrow will be
seen as a canny political move. Ruth Kelly's successor as Transport Secretary will need to act swiftly to catch up on this agenda.
It is a truism to say that London remains the economic powerhouse in the UK and its public transport infrastructure must, of course, remain modern and efficient.
However, northern eyebrows should be rightly raised at the sheer scale of investment that is routinely lavished on the capital city by Treasury decisions across the decades.
Just compare the painfully slow time it took to decide and deliverthe upgrades to Leeds City Station or the Bingley Relief Road in my former constituency –following literally decades of campaigning – with the far speedier billions of pounds prioritised for the new Jubilee line and the Crossrail project.
Step on most trains during the day and it becomes quickly apparent that Britain's railways are almost at capacity.
We have seen passenger numbers double in the past 10 years, meaning that more passengers are now travelling by train than at any time since 1946.
If a community can offer a clean, efficient, comfortable and convenient means of linking into the main centres of economic activity, it will boost its prosperity manifold.
Modern rail links could revitalise the North, taking pressure off an already overheated South-East and offering businesses a viable option of investing where costs are more competitive rather than automatically gravitating towards the capital city.
The impact would be astounding – some estimates even suggest fast-rail link journeys from Leeds to Manchester could take as little as a breathtaking 17 minutes, while travel time from Leeds to London would be shaved by over half an hour.
I would go further. At the moment it is quicker and easier to reach the North-East from Lancashire by road than by rail. A complicated system of changing trains at York can sometimes lead to journeys exceeding four hours.
Linking together direct routes to the main northern cities would offer a viable alternative to air and rail travel and encourage better
trade between Yorkshire and the rest of the North. The success of Greater London has been built in part on the infrastructure of the underground network.
A transport network connecting northern cities should surely not be too much to ask.
There are also other issues where the North needs a fairer deal. Unlike the rest of the country, London benefits from a regulated bus
service, ensuring that the Mayor enjoys key strategic power over its services.
There remains a glaring disjoint in the fact that local authorities outside London don't benefit from similar powers. The Government
has relaxed the rules and given council leaders at least a say in
where bus routes should be allocated but a surely more effective solution would be to devolve the entire power to local elected leaders.
Links towards Europe should also be explored. Currently, access to the Eurostar is based on London and Kent, meaning that whole swathes of the country have to travel south just to get on the train.
Local leaders and business in our region should lobby for better links from the North, which would open up new opportunities for business and travel.
Following the notorious Policy Exchange report earlier this year which advocated a mass emigration from northern cities into the "successful" South, the rail link policy is a shrewd move by David Cameron aimed at replenishing his credentials within Yorkshire and the North.
I hope, though, that the fast rail link issue won't become a party political issue. Rather, it should begin a serious debate within Westminster about how we can achieve a renaissance of public transport in the North of England and how economic prosperity can be encouraged in all corners of the country.
Chris Leslie was MP for Shipley from 1997-2005. He is director of the New Local Government Network.
KHOODEELAAR! updating the evidence of the serious flaws in peddling for Crossrail London at the expense of the needs of the North of England [145]
http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/opinion/Chris-Leslie-The-North-deserves.4544759.jp
"
Chris Leslie: The North deserves a transport renaissance
Published Date: 01 October 2008
By Chris Leslie
POLITICIANS from both Labour and the Conservatives will have spent some of the past couple of weeks travelling north up the West Coast Mainline on route to their respective party conferences.
I hope that such journeys gave them a chance to reflect on the transport needs for the North of England and in particular how to make sure that the focus on major infrastructure problems doesn't solely focus on London and the South East.
It would ADVERTISEMENT
seem that the Conservatives may be heading in this direction of travel, albeit perhaps taking a little longer in their journey than some of us would have liked. Their announcement this week
that a Conservative government would build a high speed North-South rail link instead of adding a third runway at Heathrow will be
seen as a canny political move. Ruth Kelly's successor as Transport Secretary will need to act swiftly to catch up on this agenda.
It is a truism to say that London remains the economic powerhouse in the UK and its public transport infrastructure must, of course, remain modern and efficient.
However, northern eyebrows should be rightly raised at the sheer scale of investment that is routinely lavished on the capital city by Treasury decisions across the decades.
Just compare the painfully slow time it took to decide and deliverthe upgrades to Leeds City Station or the Bingley Relief Road in my former constituency –following literally decades of campaigning – with the far speedier billions of pounds prioritised for the new Jubilee line and the Crossrail project.
Step on most trains during the day and it becomes quickly apparent that Britain's railways are almost at capacity.
We have seen passenger numbers double in the past 10 years, meaning that more passengers are now travelling by train than at any time since 1946.
If a community can offer a clean, efficient, comfortable and convenient means of linking into the main centres of economic activity, it will boost its prosperity manifold.
Modern rail links could revitalise the North, taking pressure off an already overheated South-East and offering businesses a viable option of investing where costs are more competitive rather than automatically gravitating towards the capital city.
The impact would be astounding – some estimates even suggest fast-rail link journeys from Leeds to Manchester could take as little as a breathtaking 17 minutes, while travel time from Leeds to London would be shaved by over half an hour.
I would go further. At the moment it is quicker and easier to reach the North-East from Lancashire by road than by rail. A complicated system of changing trains at York can sometimes lead to journeys exceeding four hours.
Linking together direct routes to the main northern cities would offer a viable alternative to air and rail travel and encourage better
trade between Yorkshire and the rest of the North. The success of Greater London has been built in part on the infrastructure of the underground network.
A transport network connecting northern cities should surely not be too much to ask.
There are also other issues where the North needs a fairer deal. Unlike the rest of the country, London benefits from a regulated bus
service, ensuring that the Mayor enjoys key strategic power over its services.
There remains a glaring disjoint in the fact that local authorities outside London don't benefit from similar powers. The Government
has relaxed the rules and given council leaders at least a say in
where bus routes should be allocated but a surely more effective solution would be to devolve the entire power to local elected leaders.
Links towards Europe should also be explored. Currently, access to the Eurostar is based on London and Kent, meaning that whole swathes of the country have to travel south just to get on the train.
Local leaders and business in our region should lobby for better links from the North, which would open up new opportunities for business and travel.
Following the notorious Policy Exchange report earlier this year which advocated a mass emigration from northern cities into the "successful" South, the rail link policy is a shrewd move by David Cameron aimed at replenishing his credentials within Yorkshire and the North.
I hope, though, that the fast rail link issue won't become a party political issue. Rather, it should begin a serious debate within Westminster about how we can achieve a renaissance of public transport in the North of England and how economic prosperity can be encouraged in all corners of the country.
Chris Leslie was MP for Shipley from 1997-2005. He is director of the New Local Government Network.
Monday, September 29, 2008
KHOODEELAAR! updating the evidence of the crassness-beyond-the-pale plugs by Big Business CROSSRAIL scammers [139]
THis page was last edited at 1545 GMT 1645 Hrs UKTime London Monday 29 September 2008/29 Ramadan 1429 AH:
KHOODEELAAR! analysis of the Big Business-promoted looting-the-public scam Crossrail has been vindicated in everything that has been happening in the banks and in the bankruptcy of the robbing capitalist operations and raids... But the DAILY MAIL seems to be on another planet.... If the following item taken from its web site is any guide as to any ‘thinking’ that occurs in the ‘editing’ of the publication.... They say that the ‘south east’ of England has been subsidising the ‘north’ of England to the tunes of £Billions... So what do they provide as the answer to that? They don’t say that the ‘saving’ should be spent in improving the EXISTING services and the quality of life of the people whose are let down by the ‘health’ ‘education’ ‘housing’ service providers. They don’t say that crime and social deterioration should be addressed they do not say any of that. The Daily MAIL says ‘build CROSSRAIL’! Now there is a limit to tolerating idiocy... But the DAILY MAIL is behaving even more irrationally than the word CRASS can denote....[To be continued]
KHOODEELAAR! analysis of the Big Business-promoted looting-the-public scam Crossrail has been vindicated in everything that has been happening in the banks and in the bankruptcy of the robbing capitalist operations and raids... But the DAILY MAIL seems to be on another planet.... If the following item taken from its web site is any guide as to any ‘thinking’ that occurs in the ‘editing’ of the publication.... They say that the ‘south east’ of England has been subsidising the ‘north’ of England to the tunes of £Billions... So what do they provide as the answer to that? They don’t say that the ‘saving’ should be spent in improving the EXISTING services and the quality of life of the people whose are let down by the ‘health’ ‘education’ ‘housing’ service providers. They don’t say that crime and social deterioration should be addressed they do not say any of that. The Daily MAIL says ‘build CROSSRAIL’! Now there is a limit to tolerating idiocy... But the DAILY MAIL is behaving even more irrationally than the word CRASS can denote....[To be continued]
Friday, September 26, 2008
Gordon Brown acted irresponsibly in making that 'commitment' of £Billions for London Crossrail! He lacks credibility for doing that [130]
2150 GMT London Friday 26 September 2008: KHOODEELAAR! No to “Crossrail hole Big Business City of London looting of the public” CAMPAIGN....Gordon Brown acted irresponsibly in making that 'commitment' of £Billions for London Crossrail! He lacks credibility for doing that.. [130]. KHOODEELAAR! Organiser MUHAMMAD HAQUE has this evening told the London timnesonline the following in response to their report on Gordon Brown’s utterances in the USA of the need for responsible acton by the bankers and financial traders: “Gordon Brown may recall the fact that he contributed significantly to the further stooging of the Houses of UK Parliament to suit Big Business agenda. The ‘commitment nt’ that he made of £Billions of public funds for Crossrail was made without allowing Parliament to examine the evidence to justify the irresponsibly contrived project. The main propaganda came from the very City of London interest and Big business elements ‘against’ whom Brown is now floating his own image as a belated and opportunistic backer of ‘integrity and responsibility’! Is Brown going to correct his record of irresponsibility and imprudence in peddling Crossrail and scarp that scam now? [To be continued]
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