I am please to see that my local MP, Harriet Harman, has declared herself interested in the Deputy Leader of the Labour Party ( and of course Deputy Prime Minister!)position as I think that she would make a very good partership with Gordon Brown .

I note that the Lib Dem, tax plans have gone through their Conference and I am sure that many Lib Dem Councillors must be wiondering what is going on!!! In Southwark, this alongside the Lib Dem Coalition with the Tories, I hope, will make some Councillors wonder what sort of party they are in. Well I can help them with that! The Lib Dems are an unprinciples bunch of career opportunists who will say and do anything for power, something most of us have known for years but perhaps only now dawning on Lib Dem members and Councillors!!!

I urge them to join the Labour Party, and Labour Group,and kick the Tories out of power from Southwark Town Hall!!!




On a brighter note Hibs have had 2 stunning victories, a 2-1 Victory over Rangers at the weekend and a 6-0 drubbing of Gretna in the League Cup last night, a potential banana skin team!

I was dissapointed if not surprised to see the disrespectful way in which the TUC Conference treated Tony Blair and it sometimes makes me wonder what i am doing in a trade Union if these idiots are the ones that are representing me.

I sometimes think that they would prefer a Tory Government in power as it would increase their power base?

The people behaving so badly yesterday have very short memories and appear to have forgotten was life was like under the Tories for workers in the UK.

Tony Blair has been the most successful Labour Leader in history and I hope that his legacy will be added to by Gordon Brown next year as we move forward to a fourth General Election victory.

Labour Party members need to grow up and shut up and let the Prime Minister get on with running the Country. They could yet snatch defeat from the jaws of victory!!!!!

On a brighter note Hibs had an excellent 3-0 victory away at Dundee United and look like they are finally geting into their stride. They have however lost a lost of points already and need a few back to back results including Hearts.

My calls for a review of the Community Wardens in Southwark appeared in today's Southwark News and I was pleased to read that Green Councillor Jenny Jones supported my position. I was not surprised to see my comments dismissed by Nick Stanton, Lib Dem Leader , as they never listen to any other view on anything so no change there then!

The costs will continue to escalate and more posters will be plastered around the borough telling us how much safer we are now under the Lib Dem/Tory Coalition !

We will put a motion to Council Asembly to gauge exactly what the Tory view is as they surely cant justify this expenditure with so much need about?

In terms of the Labour Party I am pleased that a timetable is taking shape for the transition of Leader from Tony Blair to Gordon Brown but the press will chase this one for the next year to fill up column inches and there is probably nothing that we can do to stop it! The Government just need to get on implementing the Manifesto and I am sue that people will focus on that when they vore next may. When I was in Scotland I see that Labour was polling well ahead of the SNP with the Lib Dems and Tories nowhere. The Scotish Socialists have now split into the Judean Popular Front and the Popular Front of Judea so they will no doubt spend the next year squabling about whose line on the Middle East is the most politically correct!

The Labour results in Southwark and Lambeth in May show that the Lib Dems have reached their high water mark and the only way is down!

So all in all I think that the future is bright as long as we behave ourselves in the Party and dont allow self indulgance from back benchers who have more of an eye on their personal careers Post-Blair than the good of the Labour party and the Country!





I watched Scotland play well against Lithuania last night and get a second win in the Group with France coming to Hampden Park on the back of a good win against Italy. It is a very tough "Group of Death" and we need to win in Georgia and Ukraine to really have any chance of going though and splitting the top 2, at the moment the Italians look vulnerable but most of them a have a World Cup Winners medal in their pocket and dont seem interested in the Euros so there is hope!

Edinburgh Festival Fireworks 2006

Last night I went to see the end of the Edinburgh Festival Firworks Display at Edinburgh Castle. It was as spectacular as ever and a great end to yet another great Festival!!!

Hello from Councillor John Friary - Labour Councillor for Camberwell Green Ward

Hello from me as I am finally taking the plunge into Blogging!

I was re-elected as one of the 3 Councillors for Camberwell Green and you can see the results bleow:

Camberwell Green Results 2002

Camberwell Green Results 2006

I am also a Member of Camberwell Community Council

I am the Labour Group Spokesperson for Community safety on the Southwark Labour Group Shadow Executive

I am a Member of Southwark Labour Group

I am Health & Safety Advisor at London Metropolitan University Health & Safety Home Page

London Metropolitan Who's Who Entry

I am a lifelong Hibernian fan and a member of the London Hibernian Supporters Club Entry

I am also a Trustee of Camberwell After School Project

Some of the things that are currently occupying my mind!:

Southwark Council :

• "Naming and Shaming" of ASBO Recipients - There has been a lot of local press coverage on this in both the SLP and Southwark News. in my view local residents should be made aware of, by the Council, of any ASBO recipients living locally and the conditions of the ASBO. The recent problems in the East Dulwich Estate highlight the problem of not enforcing ASBO's and local people can report breaches only if they know what the conditions, such as exclusion zones, are. The position of the Lib Dem/Tory Coalition as voiced by Cllr. Jeff Hook, the Executive Spokesperson for Community safety, makes no sense and perhaps he should have a look at Andy Meyer's site, the apparent Southwark Lib Dem "Official" Blogger who states "an intelligent 'resident information scheme' that carries strong safeguards, could, I believe, be agreed" I could not agre more!!!!!
• Camberwell Green Ward in Top 5 for reported Serious Violent Crime in London. As one of the elected representatives I am extremely concerned by this and disappointed to have heard nothing form the LIB Dem?Tory Coalition on what they intend to do about it! East walworth was the other Southwark Ward in the top 5 although Coldharbour Ward in Lambeth also made it, which of course is a Lambeth part of Camberwell!
• Community Wardens - I am really concerned that whilst serious violent crime and anti social behaviour seems to be on the continual rise in Camberwell, the main Lib Dem/Tory Administration strategy is still stuck on Community Wardens, now costing around £6M per year of Council Tax Payers money. They were developed on national Labour Government models and intoduced by a Labour Administration but in London things have moved on. Labour Mayor Livingstone has introduced Polic Safer Neighbourhood Teams in every electoral ward since April and the real success of this initiative has been the role and performance of the Police Community Support Oficers (PCSO's). The Lib Dem/Tory Coaltion response is to slightly increase the numbers of wardens and give each tam a Community Council area to cover, equal numbers irrespective to need! The Labour Group will press for a much needed review which I hope will suggest smaller Community warden Teams focussing on Enviro-Crime in targetted areas and extra funding for street lighting in areas like Camberwell and the fundinsg of more PCSO's in Hot Spot areas. Community safety requires a flexible pro active approach based on current intelligence and this Administration and their Executive Member appear totally incapable of these key attributes in community safety and for that matter any other area of Council Policy!
• Bullying Scrutiny - As Chair of the Education and Childrens Services Scrutiny Sub Committee, I am focussing on school bullying and the wider problems of shcool children carrying knives and other weapons and would welcome any views on this, especialy from school children.

London Metropolitan University;

• Universities Health & Safety Association Autumn Conference Thursday 14th September 2006 - I have just about finished organising the Conference and so can relax a little before it kicks off! Then the students come back!
• Campus Watch - I am preparing for Freshers Week and developing Campus Watch this year. Plan to have regular Police Surgeries in both campuses and to focus on personal security and the dangers of spiking of drinks.

Football:

• At the moment Scotland are unbelievably 6-0 up against the Faroe Islands! Bring on Italy and France!!!
• No Hibs match this week but mixed start to season and a tough League Cup game against Gretna coming up!
• Still watching Fisher Athletic with Tony Ritchie and they have started very strongly and are at the top end of the Conference South. I recommend going to watch them as the standard is good and there are always plenty of goalmouth action!