Progress on my High Street campaign?

As someone who has been campaigning to improve the state of Putney High Street for almost three years, I welcome the Council's announcement of new repaving.

Of course, this work isn't being funded by them - it's money provided by Transport for London approved when Ken Livingstone was Mayor - but new paving will have a big impact. That is, if the Council keeps it cleaner than the current greasy, grimy pavements.

Likewise, if the Council is now serious about clearing away the clutter that congests the High Street's pavements for pedestrians, then that could actually be a second item ticked off from my ten point plan to save our High Street.

But are they just going to tinker or are they serious about taking out the control boxes, the pedestrian barriers, the signposts, the rubbish bags and the bike racks (that should be relocated to side street corners) that clog our pavements?

It's a shame it's taken the Conservatives three years to catch up with the Putney Society, the hundreds of Putney residents who've filled in my High Street surveys and my Labour campaign team. I wonder if they are yet willing to admit there's a problem and that there is a role for local government in rectifying it? And will Putney's Conservative MP break her vow of silence on this issue to help us wield more influence with her friends in the Town Hall?

If not then we're not going to make any progress on the remaining problems: high levels of street crime, flyposting, grotty shopfronts, getting a better mix and quality of shops and improving traffic flow.

You can have your say on the state of the High Street by taking my online survey here. And you can read more about my ten point plan to transform our high street here.
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A decade of the minimum wage

One of the most significant things Labour has done since 1997 has been to introduce a national minimum wage.

We've now had a statutory minimum wage for a decade, and it's one of those policies that's become so accepted that it's now hard to remember what life was like before Labour introduced it.

So let's travel back in time 10 years. In 1998, when the Conservatives were aggressively opposing the introduction of the minimum wage; claiming it would lead to a million workers being sacked (this from the party that drove unemployment up to almost 4 million, incidentally), employees were earning as little as £1.20 an hour. Today, the minimum wage guarantees an income of at least £220 a week.

This is another reason why we still need a Labour Government. The Tories voted against the minimum wage. They tried to scare people that it would cost jobs. They were wrong. There's no reason to imagine their judgement is any better a decade later.

You can find out more about Labour's National Minimum Wage here.

Veterans Badges
Stuart visits two Putney pensioners to help them claim theirs Click here

Hidden homes here please
Stuart's campaign to get new affordable homes in Minstead Gardens Click here

Green tax: wrong conclusions being drawn
Click here

Don't forget Cockpen House
Putney Place isn't the only high-rise threat to our area Click here

Queen Mary's Place
Roehampton Lane gridlock looms as 450 home development starts receiving residents Click here

Putney's grand designs No.3
Know where this is? Click here

June crime figures
Putney stays safe Click here

Mayor's high-rise signals should worry Putney
Stuart's real-time blog as the news broke Click here

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Summer break

I'm off on holiday for a fortnight, so the next of these e-news bulletins will be in three weeks' time.

But we're overhauling and upgrading my website while I'm away, so do visit the new look site and let me know what you think.

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Published and promoted by Adam Gray on behalf of Stuart King, both of 35 Felsham Road, Putney, London SW15 1AY