Many feel that Harrow council has generally failed to meaningfully recognise, support the Islamophobia awareness month campaign or to show any commitment to embed the awareness in the work of the council.
It is quite worrying to hear comments like: ‘frogs before Muslims, only in Harrow could this happen’ with reference to the council supported campaign ‘Harrow Go Green’, meaning that where fits, the council can indulge in campaigns of its choice.
Only on 23 November, following an early petition to the council and our article on 18th, Harrow council has now tweeted:
The council is not a charitable welfare organisation, providing face cream and tissues to the victims but is a service provider where they need to embed community concerns in its work in a meaningful way. It is highly concerning that the council either does not fully understand its role and functions or does not take these seriously.
In a broader sense, it is not only the Council’s response to Islamophobia that is concerning but how superficially and deceptively the council handles community matters.
For example, adopting Islamophobia paper definition or organising a webinar for few invited attendees  is good but not good enough to take practical steps like to map the campaign scope across the work of the council and integrate it in the council drive for equality.
Pity that Harrow council still lacks a firm public statement in this Islamophobia awareness month supporting the awareness campaign in clear terms, like: ‘This Council supports raising Islamophobia awareness with a firm commitment that the awareness gleaned would inform the council plans to tackle all forms of racism, prejudice and discrimination’ without worrying about any backlash from others!

A change.org petition to the Labour run Harrow council asks for specific inclusion of Islamophobia in the implementation of its motion for ‘commitment to fighting systemic racism’ (July 2020), and to put out a public statement in support of the Islamophobia Awareness Month campaign.
The petition is launched days after the Guardian reported a new poll which found that more than half of Muslim members of the Labour party do not trust Keir Starmer to tackle Islamophobia, with nearly the same proportion saying they do not have confidence in the party’s complaints process.
Early this year, members of the party’s own black and minority ethnic staff network expressed concerns that there is a perception within the party that some forms of racism are regarded as more serious than others.
In setting the background of the Harrow petition, the petition highlights:
“In the past year alone there has been an alarming increase of 92% of recorded Islamophobic hate crime.
“Just last month, local and national press reported that Kamaljit Chana, also a Harrow councillor, has been found guilty of religious discrimination and harassment in the workplace: (“I do not like Muslims” the Times reported, and that the tribunal also found that in a one-to-one meeting with Alipourbabaie in February 2017, Kamaljit Chana said: “Muslims are violent” and “Pakistani men are grooming our girls”.)
“Last November LBC reported “Anjana Patel, a councillor in Harrow, who tweeted angrily at Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai, asking her “how are you going to help?” after Hindu girls in India were molested and converted to “her religion” (Islam). As if it was somehow Malala’s responsibility.”
The petition asks for the Harrow council to take immediate action against Islamophobia including fully and meaningfully recognising November as Islamophobia Awareness Month and taking part in the awareness campaign.
Regarding a private Zoom meeting with few selected attendees organised by the leader of the Harrow council to mark the Islamophobia campaign, the petition says:  “It is highly concerning and unacceptable that the council is not engaging with the local Muslim community about this serious issue. Why is the council not strongly deploring this hatred in all its forms on a public platform?”
Unbelievable that Islamophobia campaign is supported by some behind closed doors but not in public, especially by those who take some voters for granted.
Also concerning that more space has been provided to a small religious group in Harrow West that is less likely to rock Labour boat as they intend to put forward a number of their members for the councillorship through the Labour selection process!
Similarly, Harrow West MP Gareth Thomas has  written a patronising letter of support to some initially.
Conservative group on the council is far more open and positive.
“November is Islamophobia month.  We wish our friends in the Muslim communities well.  Harrow’s Conservative Group condemns all forms of racism, prejudice and discrimination and we stand together with all communities that make up the rich diversity of the citizens of Harrow” said the leader of the Conservative group Cllr Paul Osborn.

In a forthcoming presentation to the Harrow Health and Social Care Scrutiny, the NHS England and NHS Improvement update on the review of all of the cancer services provided by Mount Vernon Cancer Centre (MVCC).
The Centre is run by East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust and the services delivered from a site in North Middlesex managed by the Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. It is a stand alone cancer centre.
The services include outpatient chemotherapy, nuclear medicine, brachytherapy and haematology, provided by the Mount Vernon team, as well as radiotherapy and inpatient services.
Geographical Distribution of Patients shows that Harrow CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group) has referred 3,254 patients to Mount Vernon Cancer Centre in the last three years.
As people live longer, more people with cancer are also living with other illnesses or conditions which require treatment alongside their cancer treatment. This cannot be done at MVCC and therefore they have arrangements with 16 other hospitals to provide the support that is not available at MVCC – this can cause problems when those other hospitals have their own priorities, such as anaesthetics support during the first covid peak. This also means patients have to travel much further for some treatment, for example patients requiring treatment for haematological malignancy travel to UCLH (University College London Hospitals).
The review is run by a Programme Board which is led by the Regional Director of Specialised Commissioning for NHS England in the East of England who are looking at the future clinical model of the services, including whether there is a single new cancer centre, or whether there is also a day hospital (ambulatory centre) on a second site, or even if there is a variation of one of those.
The clinical team is going to make a recommendation in December. They are not looking at the location of the services.
Click here to find out more about the review or how to let know your views.

Following the council motion for ‘commitment to fighting systemic racism’ (July 2020), Black Lives Matter protests, coupled with the Public Health England report evidencing the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on people from a BAME, the council plans to focus its work initially on race and ethnicity to support the council in its on-going commitment to being an anti-racism organisation.
According to the chief executive report before the forthcoming cabinet, the Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion strategy will have an initial focus on responding to the issues raised by the Black Lives Matter agenda and is intended to set the foundations for improving the experiences of all Harrow residents and staff.
The council takes notice that:  people from BAME backgrounds were up to twice as likely to die from Covid than people of white ethnicity, 7.5 times more likely to be homeless, are overrepresented in lower pay bands, and that absence and exclusions of children of black heritage in Harrow schools are above the national average.
In explaining why a change is needed, the report informs: “The death of George Floyd at the hands of the police in Minnesota, USA has highlighted deep inequalities and systemic racism that still exists in this country and other countries around the world and has left many of our staff and residents feeling hurt, scared and angry.
“It also comes at a time when we know that Harrow and people from Black, Asian and Multi Ethnic (BAME) groups have been disproportionately impacted by Covid-19. We have reflected on the findings set out in the Public Health England report on the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 in the UK and discussed with trade unions, members and staff about how best to go forward.”
The programme of work that includes development of an Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Framework will be enhanced through working closely with a range of local agencies, statutory partners and the voluntary and community sector. The council has allocated £100,000 for this work.
No obvious support by Harrow MPs for such a positive initiative by the council!
Covid cases in Harrow:  20,572 and 156 deaths as at 8/11/2020

Harrow Labour division – apparently Gareth Thomas MP Harrow West constituency V Labour candidate Cllr Pamela Fitzpatrick Harrow East constituency  – became so obvious at the last general election where Gareth Thomas drained most Labour resources and Harrow East Labour election campaign was left to rely mostly on the out of borough resources for the campaign activities.
A similar situation existed at the 2017 general election when Navin Shah (Lab) was given only few weeks to canvass the constituency with the help of his friends and family (he didn’t win but significantly reduced sitting MP Bob Blackman’s majority).
After a local Labour party meeting, Cllr Pamela Fitzpatrick tweeted on 22 October:

Now following Jeremy Corbyn scenario, the Socialist Campaign Group of Labour Councillors (Cllr Pamela Fitzpatrick being a founder member) have called for Jeremy Corbyn to be reinstated to the Labour Party after he was suspended, which many suspect in a vindictive move,  after he issued a statement in response to the publication of an Equality and Human Rights Commission report.
“Jeremy Corbyn is a lifelong anti-racist campaigner who for decades has consistently offered – even when many others have too often stayed silent – his full and complete solidarity to ordinary working people in all their diversity.
“Jeremy Corbyn embodies the anti-racist struggle, and we are appalled that he has been suspended from the Labour Party. We call for him to be reinstated” said the socialist group.
As expected, a few Harrow Labour councillors, Gareth Thomas supporters, who were hardly near last Harrow East election campaign, toxically twitted supporting Jeremy Corbyn suspension!

TfL funding – government demands completely unacceptable

“I’m at the forefront of challenging the Government’s draconian demands and working closely with stakeholders like Age UK London and Transport for All” says Brent and Harrow GLA member Navin Shah.
“TfL now needs a long-term, sustainable funding arrangement to keep services running, but the Government have dragged their heels” he said.
As part of the negotiations for funding the Government has put forward the following key demands as the bargaining chip:

• Extend the Congestion Charge Zone to the North and South Circulars so that it covers 4 million more Londoners
• Fares increase above inflation
• Introduce a new council tax precept on Londoners which will substantially add to the council tax burden for struggling Londoners
• Scrap free travel for 11-18 year olds
• Reduce concessionary fares for 60 plus

“I find it disgraceful that Londoners and TfL are punished by government for acting responsibly and following the guidelines during the pandemic” said Navin Shah.
The London mayor Sadiq Khan has rejected and condemned the Government’s proposals at every opportunity.

Following the racist attack on a Harrow immigration lawyer, in a letter sent to the Guardian more than 800 former judges and senior legal figures have accused the UK prime minister Boris Johnson and his home secretary Priti Patel of endangering the personal safety of lawyers through their abusive attacks on the profession and should apologise.
Earlier this month, at the Conservative party conference, Patel broadened her targets, claiming that among those defending the “indefensible” and “broken” immigration appeals system were “do-gooders, lefty lawyers, the Labour party”.
In his conference speech, Johnson went further, declaring he would prevent “the whole criminal justice system from being hamstrung by what the home secretary would doubtless – and rightly – call the lefty human rights lawyers and other do-gooders”.
Commenting on the government’s anti-immigration rhetoric and its awful consequences, Emma Wallace Green Party Brent and Harrow GLA candidate said: “The home secretary ignored intelligence reports and is recorded using inflammatory and derogatory language to describe immigration lawyers, in effect contributing to a rise in hatred and extremism, rather than quell it.”
A Harrow man Cavan Medlock, 28, is charged with a racially or religiously aggravated attack on Sheroy Zaq, a solicitor and supervisor within the public law and immigration departments at Duncan Lewis in Harrow.
Medlock allegedly attacked the solicitor’s offices days after Priti Patel claimed that “activist lawyers” were frustrating the removal of failed asylum seekers.
“It is incredibly concerning to hear that the UK home secretary, Priti Patel, dismissed intelligence briefings from counter-terrorism police over the alleged far-right terror attack that was attempted at a local Harrow law firm at the beginning of September” said Ms Wallace.
Highly concerned about the safety of the immigration lawyers in Harrow, Harrow Law Centre director Pamela Fitzpatrick, also a Harrow councillor and Harrow East Labour candidate at the last general election, said: “This is very worrying as Harrow Law Centre has three immigration solicitors and less funding for security than big firms. This is the result of the actions of the Tories calling us activist lawyers”.
“After the horrendous terrorist attack on a Harrow Solicitor I am calling on Bob Blackman (Tory MP for Harrow East) to give a public apology for the comments made by Priti Patel and Boris Johnson that have led to the attack and to apologise for his own role in encouraging the far right in Harrow” demands Ms Fitzpatrick.
“Brent and Harrow are diverse boroughs whose residents deserve to be protected by government – not undermined and endangered by it. I call on my fellow GLA Brent and Harrow candidates to condemn the Home Secretary’s inflammatory language and her lack of action on the threat from right-wing groups and individuals” Ms Wallace asks.
Labour Brent and Harrow GLA candidate was invited for his comment.

UPDATE: “After the horrendous terrorist attack on a Harrow Solicitor I am calling on Bob Blackman (Tory MP for Harrow East) to give a public apology for the comments made by Priti Patel and Boris Johnson that have led to the attack and to apologise for his own role in encouraging the far right in Harrow” demands Harrow Law Centre director Pamela Fitzpatrick, also a Harrow councillor and Harrow East Labour candidate at the last general election.

---

A Harrow man armed with a knife carried out a racist attack on a firm of lawyers in Harrow that he blamed for assisting migrants, the Old Bailey was told.
The Old Bailey heard Cavan Medlock, 28, arrived at the Duncan Lewis Solicitors offices in Harrow last September armed with a knife, handcuffs, a Nazi flag and a US Confederate flag.
Medlock is accused of planning to kill a lawyer from the firm because of their work representing migrants. He is charged with a racially or religiously aggravated attack on Sheroy Zaq, a solicitor and supervisor within the public law and immigration departments at Duncan Lewis.
Adam Harbinson, for the prosecution, told the court that after his arrest Medlock allegedly told the police that he planned to “take a member of staff hostage and place the flags in the window so that like-minded people would take action”.
Medlock allegedly attacked the solicitor’s offices days after Priti Patel, the home secretary, claimed that “activist lawyers” were frustrating the removal of failed asylum seekers.
“This is very worrying as Harrow Law Centre has three immigration solicitors and less funding for security than big firms. This is the result of the actions of the Tories calling us activist lawyers” said Harrow Law Centre director Pamela Fitzpatrick, also a Harrow councillor and Harrow East Labour candidate at the last general election.
Harrow Law Centre is a small charity and receives very little in terms of public funding. Most of their income is generated through applications to trusts or from fundraising events.

Headstone Manor and Museum and Harrow Arts Centre have been awarded £244,971 and £356,237, respectively, as part of the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund (CRF) to help face the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic and to ensure they have a sustainable future.
Headstone Manor and Museum is the home of Harrow’s History – from the more recent history of the area in the Grade I listed Manor House all the way back to 1310 before the manor was built. Whilst Harrow Arts Centre is the hub for culture and art in Harrow – hosting events from music, theatre, comedy, dance, and film events in the Grade II listed Elliot Hall to local community groups, classes and events in meeting rooms, rehearsal spaces, dance studios and art rooms.
Headstone Manor and Museum and Harrow Arts Centre are two of 1,385 cultural and creative organisations across the country receiving urgently needed support.
Cllr Keith Ferry, Regeneration, Planning and Employment Portfolio Holder, said: “The award of these grants to Harrow’s top cultural assets is very welcome as we seek to safeguard our cultural legacy amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“This funding means that Harrow residents can continue to learn about the history of the area through a free high-quality museum service and learning programme, and enjoy a show or attend a class, exhibition or workshop – all currently virtually or socially distanced.”

London will move into Tier 2 from midnight tonight (Friday) as the daily increase in many London boroughs is quite concerning.
Confirmed coronavirus cases in London hit 68,740 today, with Barnet and Ealing continuing to be the capital’s worst-affected boroughs.
Harrow daily increase, 63 new cases just behind Barnet, is the fifth high in London – Harrow confirmed cases are 2,415 as of 16 October, significant increase in the past two weeks.
Tier 2 means a ban on household mixing indoors with anyone outside your household or support bubble. The rule of six will still apply to outdoor social gatherings and meetings in private gardens.
Leader of the Harrow council Cllr Graham Henson said the T2 decision was “necessary” to help keep people safe.
He said: “I understand this is a difficult and worrying time for our communities, residents and businesses but these new restrictions are essential to keep Harrow safe”.
Cllr Graham message is: ““We must all play our part to avoid further restrictions and keep Harrow safe. Please stay safe and take all necessary precautions to do so.”
Test centres in Harrow: In addition to the South Harrow walk-through testing centre at Brigade Close Car Park opposite South Harrow Police Station, the Edgware testing centre at Watling Community Centre, Orange Hill Road, HA8 0TR – is now open daily 8am to 8pm.
Tests must be booked in advance.