online versionDear Maggie,
Hope you are well.
You might remember our conversation about the Robin Hood Tax at the Croydon Summer Festival (Mela day).
If Labour is a progressive party and not a party that will bend over backwards to accommodate the banks, why won't it adopt the Robin Hood Tax as party policy?
Many more international organisations now feel it is increasingly feasible. See the link below:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/sep/05/eu-imf-robin-hood-tax
Yours sincerely
Shasha Khan
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On Fri, 1 Oct 2010 09:37:04 +0100, "Mansell, Maggie" wrote:
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I think maybe you might have accidentally deleted part of your response to me. Can you explain why Labour won't support the Robin Hood Tax? By the way, the NHS white paper indicates how far this government will go with their destruction of our services. As you know, they are planning on full privatisation of NHS service across England, a move utterly opposed by us. Their agenda is hidden under the guise of Foundation hospitals and Social Enterprises.
Best wishes,
Shasha
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From Croydon Guardian 
As a co- founder of Croydon Save Our Schools, the Croydon Guardian invited me to comment on a letter Anthony Miller, Norbury, had received from Harris Academy Crystal Palace. In short, he was told that his daughter Idayah had been refused admission, but curiously they cited both her wheelchair and her academic ability in the letter."There has always been a concern that some Academies are operating quotas limiting numbers of children with Special Education Needs. I have to say that I am surprised Harris Academy is not DDA compliant. Does this mean a disabled teacher who uses a wheelchair cannot apply for a job? What if an existing able-bodied pupil was suddenly wheelchair bound?
"The reference to “performance” as well as "corridors" in this letter suggests that maybe there are other reasons, possibly educational attainment, behind this decision. Yet, Harris claim they admit pupils from all levels of educational ability.
"One wonders if Harris Academy would have sent out such a letter if the applicant were a teenage Dr Stephen Hawking."
These letters appeared in the Croydon Guardian on 10th November. Very kind of Jim Clugston to send a response too.
Text for my letter is below:
Dear Editor,
In response to my letter on Labour councillors taking their voters for granted in Selhurst, Councillor Gerry Ryan has offered sections of his ‘appointments diary’. I might remind him that the residents in the ward that he is elected to represent were against the now approved application to erect a mobile phone mast directly opposite one nursery and across the road from another, especially as the OFCOM report advises a precautionary approach to masts near schools. If Selhurst had an active residents’ association there would no doubt have been a coordinated campaign to oppose the mast. In the absence of such organisations, it is incumbent on our paid councillors to have a sense of duty to empower the residents. Therefore, are we to infer from Councillors Ryan’s letter that he and the other two Labour councillors were too busy to represent their anxious constituents? Alternatively, are the councillors safe in the knowledge they can do what takes their fancy trusting they can continue to take Labour voters in the safe seat of Selhurst for granted? Knocking on doors galvanising support for a campaign may not be as glamorous as having meetings in the town hall but it needs to be done.
Clearly the election he and his Labour colleagues most need to win is not the local council election, but in fact the ballot of forty odd Labour members who reside in Selhurst to win the nomination. Arguably, if we had proportional representation elected politicians would be compelled to be more active.
Yours sincerely
Shasha Khan
Croydon Green Party
A few people have contacted me about Councillor Ryan's letter. 
Please can you advise how much the 'My Council....'
advertising campaign has cost.
Display advertisements appear all around the town.
I have attached an example (top photo was sent as an
attachment).
Dear Mr Khan,
Thank you for your email dated 23 September 2010 in which you have requested to be advised how much the 'My Council....' advertising campaign has cost. We have considered your request under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
We have conducted a search into our records and confirm we hold the information you have requested. Decaux boards are largely concentrated around the town centre, with a few in district centres. There are around 60 boards in total, with two sides to each board. One side is used free of charge by Croydon Council and the other by commercial advertising sold by JC Decaux.
The only costs incurred by the Council are for design and print. Total production costs this financial year for the “My Council” campaign have been £5,139.75 for six lots of posters which run for two-week periods. The “My Council” campaign was developed by the Local Government Authority on behalf of all councils, so substantial research and development costs have been paid for by them. The campaign seeks to increase public awareness of the wide range of services provided by the council, and to signpost the public to council departments for more information. Since the campaign began, it has contributed to an 8% increase in resident satisfaction through raising awareness of our frontline services.
If you are dissatisfied with the way the department has handled your request under the Freedom of Information Act you may ask for an internal review. You can do this by outlining the details of your complaint by either:
emailing us at information@croydon.gov.uk
faxing us on 020 8760 5661
writing FOI Complaints, London Borough of Croydon, Democratic & Legal Services, Croydon CR9 3JS
If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. The information Commissioner can be contacted at:
Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF
Yours sincerely
James Derby
Corporate Solicitor
Legal & Democratic Services
London Borough of Croydon
Taberner House
Park Lane
CR9 3JS
