Right-wing threat to mosque

“A motley collection of rightwing groups intend to march on the Harrow Mosque this coming Friday, September 11th. They are campaigning against ‘Muslim Extremism’ and have chosen the anniversary of 9/11, Ramadan and a Friday (prayer day) to give maximum provocation.

There will be a vigil in solidarity with the Harrow Central Mosque, 36-38 Station Road, HA1 2SQ from 1.30 pm, but the vital time for people to assemble is after work from 4.00 pm onwards. The fascists say they are planning to demonstrate from 5.00 – 8.00 pm. We need enough people assembled before our rally at 6.00 pm to make it absolutely clear to them that they are not welcome in Harrow. We need a diverse and united demonstration that reflects Harrow’s diverse and united community. We are calling for a dignified but determined demonstration which will deter the racists, fascists and Islamophobics not by violence but by strength of numbers”

This is an excerpt from Brent GP member Martin’s email

BBC execs use agents to set their pay

What are the chances of an offensive against the BBC?
How do they spend the license fee? Is it true that Jeremy Paxman earns a £1 million a year. What about Radio 4’s Humphries – £600k?
The flipping and other MP expenses stuff pales in the face of the exorbitant salaries that the BBC top notch are paying themselves.
And why do they need agents to negotiate their pay?
Agents trying to get a larger slice of the pie for their clients (and their commission, of course). They are behaving like hedge fund managers.
The difference is that the money comes from the population, including millions of pensioners who can least afford the hikes in license fees.
We hear that the BBC needs to retain its talent or they will go. What nonsense.
I am sure there are good young interviewers out there who would love to do the Newsnight anchor role, for a 90% pay cut (and still receive £100,000). Paxman’s high point was his demolition of Michael Howard in 1997………
Of course, we do not officially know how much they pay themselves because they refuse to answer. Yes, in an age of CCTV and online surveillance, the public are not supposed to know.
So much for Freedom of Information.

The other line of defence is about how the BBC produces quality.
Yes, we saw that over MP’s expenses when they parroted the Telegraph’s campaign, joining in the frenzy with little thought or analysis.
The BBC is merging the World Service (high quality) with the ‘normal’ BBC and plonking them together in the White City (West London) HQ.
There will be lots of cuts. Probably for global reporting on Tamils (now that the war is over – yet another example of callousness by the BBC) and Bengalis too. And much of Africa.
It will not take much for a campaign to get going to destroy the complacent culture of the BBC high command.
MPs have been humiliated. Why not another part of government?

Farid Bakht

Why are they in politics?

The voting is over. The circus continues.
Ultra Blairite, James Purnell, resigned and stuck the knife in his Prime Minister. It wasn’t a case of ‘E tu Brutus?’ since Brutus was supposed to have done the dirty deed to save the republic against dictatorship.
These ex-ministers (inc Blears and Smith) are not going because of principle.
It’s not as if they are resigning over an issue such as perhaps against an illegal war.
They are jumping before being pushed or as one tabloid puts it: rats leaving a sinking ship.
Other New Labour MPs are also doing a lot of calculations. If they ditch Brown, they would be bumped into an early election and certain slaughter.
The Spectator even speculates that some Ministers would rather leave now, and bag £120,000 in payouts because it’s almost certain rules will change and MPs/Ministers will not in future get such bonuses.
What have we come to?
Why did n’t these people just join a multinational or an Investment Bank if money is all they crave?
Purnell moved into media & PR (public relations, not proportional representation!). His contacts would have provided lucrative jobs. Why go into politics at all?

Becoming a Minister in the Cabinet was once the pinnacle of achievement. A position of power and influence.
Like sterling, it’s been devalued. The quality of ministers is pitiful. How many will you remember in a year’s time?
Which New Labour politician is thinking of public service? Thinking about what’s right for the constituency, voters and the country?
Are they fighting an ideological war over how to rescue the country from a generational economic decline?
Are they arguing over how we should regain democractic control over the economy?
No. Of course not.
What a naive question.
And of course who do Cameron and Clegg think they are fooling with their false posturing?
They want an election to get some power. Then what? The same free-market unsustainable capitalism which has plunged the people and government alike into monstrous debt?

We are back in 1832 in the age of the rotten boroughs and rotten politics.
It’s all about looking for Number 1.

Farid Bakht

Xenophobia, MPs and the truth about the Euro election

This has been an angry election. Very unlike any Euro election. Then again, this vote has very little to do with Europe.

It’s seems to be about two issues:
(a) public revulsion with hypocritical MPs - anxious to come down hard on benefits claimants by pushing for the Welfare Reform Bill. Basically, it means chasing single mothers and reducing welfare handouts. All the while, MPs were seeking devious ways of playing the property game and gettings tens of thousands of pounds.

(b) the deteriorating economy – yes that thing which was on our TV 24 hours a day when bank after bank was collapsing. People are being driven to vent their anger on MPs playing around with a couple of million quid perhaps in total. Meanwhile, bankers and the wealthy continue to enjoy the public’s generosity in a grotesque bailout of the banks. A million against a trillion.

The three main parties have shown no bravery in speaking the truth and ditching free market capitalism and globalisation. So the public know it’s wrong but see no alternative.
So, the Telegraph and the rest of the media find that a banking crisis is a perfect back drop for the ‘Clean Hands’ or “Anti-politics” campaign.
i.e. destroy the credibility of the political class.

What then takes its place?
It looks like the UKIP agenda is what is in play.
The operative word is ‘agenda’.

No one wants an UKIP administration.
What some powerful quarters would like is to see their agenda become new mainstream thought.
This means ultimately getting the Conservatives and Labour to become even more anti-European and Atlanticist (code for US’s faithful ally).
Add incendiary debate about cutting immigration and you see how ugly this could get – did you see this week’s Newsnight and UKIP’s MEP calling for immigration to be cut back?
Even David Dimblebey had to remark that talk like that was very close to what the BNP was thinking. Then, the BNP (barring an improbable late surge) seem to have been the bogey – a non issue made into the number one preoccupation and making UKIP extremists seen as some sort of cuddly, traditional English gentlemen.
The acceptable side of xenophobia perhaps for Middle England?

The untold story has been the quiet resurgence of the Greens for those who can see through New Labour and see the Greens as the only Left of Centre Party remaining.Greens are in double figures in the latest polls and are looking to double or triple the numbers of their MEPs.
Is it not unusual to see Greens on 11% while New Labour are on 16%?

This is a quiet revolution. Merely the start of a realignment in the politics of this island.
I will develop this theme in the near future.
It is important to realise that what we have been seeing is not a media circus to attack a few unscrupulous MPs (however deserving of our opprobium).
Note how David Cameron has quietly aligned the Euro-Conservatives with hard right elements in Europe. You get the picture.
The last few weeks have been the opening shots of what might become the nasty decade.

Farid Bakht
Parliamentary Candidate for Bethnal Green & Bow