Defend Our Public Services - Rally @ Full Council

Fightback Together Against Council & Government Attacks
On Our Services, Our Facilities, Our Rights & Our Communities!
Defend Our Public Services - Rally @ Full Council Meeting
Wednesday 27th February, 6.30pmCivic Centre, High Rd, N22 Stop cuts to our services, benefits and facilities – Affordable and secure housing for all - Defend the NHS – No to privatisation of our public services – No to property speculators imposing unwanted ‘regeneration’ schemes on our neighbourhoods - We demand the resources our communities need - Its OUR Haringey!Called by Haringey Alliance for Public Services. All welcome


KEY COMING EVENTSSave The Whittington Hospital Coalition  No to cuts, land sales, ward closures & 400 staff sackings. Tuesday 12th February 7.30pm: Public meeting. Archway Methodist Hall, Archway roundabout.

Lobby of Haringey Landlords Forum  Bring rents down. Affordable, secure housing for all
Tuesday 19th February, 5.30pm at the Civic Centre

Fightback Against Austerity   Public meeting organised by the Trades Union Council.
Tuesday 26th February, 7.30pm. Park View School, West Green Rd, N15

Anti-Cuts Rally @ Full Council Meeting   Defend our local public services
Wednesday 27th February, 6.30pm. Civic Centre, High Rd, N22

Next HAPS meeting to coordinate local campaigns and struggles:
Thursday 7th March, 7pm @ North London Community House, 22 Moorefield Rd, N17

Decent Housing For All – Public Meeting / Action Mini-conference  
Saturday 16th March 2pm-4.30pm... Wood Green Library, High Rd, N22

Barnet Alliance for Public Services   Demonstration to defend Barnet’s public services
Saturday 23rd March  

‘Our Tottenham’ conference – planning and regeneration for the community Saturday 6th April 10am-4pm at the North London Community House.

‘1000 Mothers’ demonstration to defend benefits under attack
Saturday 13th April  From Tottenham Green, then down the High Rd. Assemble 11am.



HAPS Meeting Draft Minutes - 7th February 2013@ North London Community House

Attending: Steve (HDCH), Dave (HFRA + HSG), Anne (HPTAG), Oktay (Day-Mer)
Apologies: Simon (HTUC + SWP), Zaher (HHAG/HSG), John Dolan (Unison + SP), Jacob (Unison steward), Michelle (HHAG)

1.  HAPS protest against cuts     
We agreed to hold a rally at the next Full Council meeting (currently scheduled for 27th Feb – to be checked) to object to the latest round of Government-driven cuts (£24m) to our vital local services, plus all the other range of cuts, privatisation and attacks on our communities. The aim is to bring together the range of local campaigns and groups. All welcome to contribute to the speeches and statements through our usual open mike outside the Civic Centre. Action: Steve to draft leaflet, Oktay to finalise/lay-out, Dave to add list of all campaigning events, and to print. All to contact various groups and campaigns to come along and join the speak-out. 
2.  Local Campaigns – some updates 
***  Parks  The Council have now recognised that the Haringey Friends of Parks Forum was right when it said that the 50% cuts in April 2011 would seriously damage the Council’s ability to run a viable parks service. The parks service recently hired ‘consultants’ to conduct a 'Review’ of resources, staffing and management. The Friends of Parks Forum conducted their own survey which fully backed demands for more staff and resources. The Council refused to restore the cuts but agreed to reject any privatisation or any further cuts, and to put in extra money for repairs to machinery. 

***  Housing   Decent Housing For All – Public Meeting / Action Conference  Wood Green Library, Sat March 16th 2pm-4.30pm. Organised through open meetings supported by a range of groups concerned with housing. Will bring together council tenants, private tenants, homeless and mortgage-payers. HAPS agreed to back.
Haringey Defend Council Housing has held 2 open meetings by the Love Lane estate in North Tottenham which is threatened by the Council with possible demolition to build a ‘wembley way’ walkway to the ground. 40 residents attended the second meeting and voted to oppose any demolition. A Love Lane Action Group has formed. HDCH will support the LLAG.   Haringey Housing Action Group has been busy campaigning around housing issues generally, and supporting a range of recent and coming housing events and protests, including a lobby of the Haringey Landlords Forum on 19th February, 5.30pm at the Civic Centre

***  Benefits   There will be a ‘1000 Mothers’ demonstration to defend benefits under attack - on April 13th from Tottenham Green down the High Rd, assemble 11am. Called by Taxpayers Against Poverty and a number of local groups. Meanwhile Haringey Solidarity Group called a meeting to consider the possibilities of opposition to the introduction of Universal Credit in April. It is being ‘piloted’ in Haringey and certain to cause massive cuts to benefitrs and serious hardship to thousands of local people.  

***  NHS   Defend Haringey Health Services   Continuing their regular monthly organising meetings. Still lobbying to get the Drs’ CCG to sign pledge against privatisation – following Hackney's success at this. Also try to save the St Ann's Hospital site from being run down and partly sold off. Save The Whittington Hospital Coalition  There is a new threat to the Whittington, to sell off a third of the land, close some wards and sack over 400 staff. There will be a public meeting on Tuesday 12th, 7.30pm at the Archway Methodist Hall in Archway roundabout. A demonstration is planned for March. Chase Farm Hospital  Last weekend there was a march to save the hospital’s A&E, which ended with a short protest occupation of part of the site.

***  Schools   Heartlands School threatened with academy take over   No further news. Downhills Schoolcontinue to campaign against forced Academy status, and have just premiered a film about their long battle.

***  Our Tottenham   40 people from over 20 local groups met up in January to organise an ‘Our Tottenham’ conference on Sat April 6th, 10am-4pm at the North London Community House. The aim is to challenge the ‘regeneration’ strategy promoted by the Council and property developers, and to defend local facilities and the interests of Tottenham’s communities. A demonstration is also being proposed for May.

***  Barnet Alliance for Public Services  Handed in a petition of over 8,000 signatures against the mass privatisation of the borough’s public services. Plan a demonstration on 23rd March – all welcome to join it.

3.  Haringey Trades Union Council   
Organising a ‘Fightback Against Austerity’ public meeting on Tuesday 26th February, 7.30pm at Park View School, N15. We agreed to support and publicise and have asked them to support and publicise the anti-cuts rally the following day.

4.  London and national    There continue to be a range of London-wide and national demonstrations and days of action around cuts and cut-related issues.

5. HAPS finances   Donations urgently needed. 

6. Next HAPS meeting 
To promote & coordinate defence of our public services – 7th March