Two heroines against Pathfinder

Edge Lane, Liverpool

UPDATED FEB 1st 2010

Elizabeth's eviction (for that's what it is) from her home:

http://nemesisrepublic.blogspot.com/2010/02/elizabeth-pascoe-is-finally-evicted.html


As I said when I briefly wrote in the blog at the end of March of the sad end of Elizabeth Pascoe's heroic legal struggle against the breakup of her community, and the Compulsory Purchase Order for her home in Edge Lane, Liverpool, there would be more. Today's blog is that more.

A brief reminder:

http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/liverpool-news/regional-news/2009/03/25/elizabeth-pascoe-fails-in-her-latest-bid-to-stop-liverpool-s-edge-lane-scheme-92534-23222282/

Here's Charles Clover, whose articles in the Daily Telegraph against Pathfinder (Housing Market Renewal) for so long kept the story in the nation's eye. Sadly he is no longer there, but this week he took up the cause again and wrote of Elizabeth's story in The Spectator:

"It would be a mistake to conclude, though, that her battle against state bullying is all for nothing. It has defined an area of law in which modern Britain is little better than Zimbabwe. It used to be the case that the state could take away your home for a road, a railway or an airport because it was to the greater public good. It used to be the case, even during the clearances of the 1960s, that to succeed with a compulsory purchase order for a housing scheme it had to be proved that the properties to be demolished were unsound.

What the Edge Lane case has shown is that compulsory purchase orders can be used under the present law to do whatever public officials want to do with them. The state can now take away your home just because the ones next door are scruffy and because a site needs to be created for Bellway Homes to have a sufficient profit margin, as in this case..."

Read on:

http://www.spectator.co.uk/the-magazine/features/3521696/a-granny-in-the-front-line-against-new-labour.thtml

Elizabeth is one of the network of fighters collectively known as Hutties, pulled together and kept informed by another doughty campaigner, Sylvia Wilson, of Homes Under Threat.

Immediately after the court decision, the following was received by all 'Hutties' in the early hours from Sylvia and Elizabeth by e-mail. As it's elsewhere on the net I post the link, rather than re-post it all here, but I have to say I read it with deep emotion, having spoken to Elizabeth not long before in Liverpool, at the opening of the SAVE Liverpool exhibition, when we still had hope.

25th March 2009
"As I see it the battle is like housework. We don't ever `get anywhere' but my goodness it is so much worse if we don't try. I gave it my best shot." Elizabeth Pascoe

Yesterday Elizabeth Pascoe, who has been fighting to save her home in Edge Lane, Liverpool, for four years, finally lost her case in court after initially staving off demolition. Here we print two e-mails. The first is from Sylvia Wilson of Homes Under Threat (HUT) and the second is a reaction from Elizabeth herself.

More: http://www.salfordstar.com/article.asp?id=68
Later, when the initial shock was over, Sylvia nd Elizabeth sent out another e-mail to all Hutties, and they have both kindly given me permission to repeat the messages here.
A message from Sylvia:
Fellow Hutties,

After the founding of HUT almost 6 years ago and of being attached (it seems at times, by umbilical cord) to my computer and phone to help all Hutties the best way I know how, I have to send my thanks to you all for sticking with it for so long, and continuing your battles and refusing to give in... as in the case of Elizabeth Pascoe.

We have spent many years together fighting "almost" the same cause, whilst the principle is the same, each case is different, you are all battling a cause, whether to save your homes, your livelihoods, the environment, your history and heritage even a village green, that are targeted to be re-built on, a few of you have sat quietly in the background supporting us, offering practical help and cheering us on! To you all, Thank You!

In the beginning, we seemed to be on a winning streak, until the Councils and Government realised what was happening and took a different tack to using CPO's, their idea was to wait us out and "Voluntarily Acquire" our property, but even that didn't work well or fast enough for them, so trying to box us in, they have now altered the Planning Laws that were set in place to protect us... they may think they have us all by the short hairs... but I have such faith in you all, that we will find a way around this pathetic maneuver together!In this recent Economic Crisis, we now have the chance to put extra pressure on the Councils and Government to stop Demolition and New Build, and go for the Refurbishment of homes and properties, (that Ms Beckett publicised the other week) this needs to be reinforced by you in your areas to your Councils! Letters to them with the emphasis on the Economic Crisis, cease further demolition, building only on the areas that have already been cleared (of which there are many and lying fallow) global warming, and the inert energy in extant buildings, which only need refurbishment to get them back on the market and free-up dwellings for the hundreds of thousands of folk without a home!

As for your own battles, keep going, don't give up and don't give in!!!

Sylvia

http://www.officianet.com/directory/Profileview.cfm?profileitem=57


Elizabeth has said she is happy for me to make this statement from her public on the Republic blog. She cannot afford to battle on any longer, financially and emotionally it has all been a terrible strain.

Dearest Hutties,
I have so very much needed your support this last 4 years, in that without knowing of the hundreds of others, and probably tens of thousands, I would have succumbed to the view that it was selfish / insane for me to fight for my home and community.
Thanks for leaving me in peace to grieve this last few days. Sylvia has passed on the messages just to let me know people are thinking of me, and understand.
Over this period of time I have "grown up" a great deal, in that it has become painfully apparent that government is clueless, even before this financial melt down. So, I have learned to trust my own judgement, have respect for my own gut reactions, stop doing as I used to do about various problems "intellectualise" them. This really hurts, besides being very wrong.
I am extremely frightened about the future, least of all in financial terms, far more in social and environmental terms, as all these accumulated "mistakes" coalesce. All this hype about "increased aspirations" and the people of the planet (or at least in the "developed" world) sold into commercialism and consumerism, of which housing market renewal is a typical manifestation. I hope it isn't irrevocable, as we see younger generations have such a different mind-set to ours.
Most of you are my age, and we have the vestiges of the make-do-and-mend capability and the "old-fashioned" idea of living within one's means, which had its own rewards. Times are going to get extremely tough, and as we are all aware that government not only doesn't know what it is doing, it is digging a pit of debt for future generations to come. It is needlessly uprooting citizens it is supposed to serve, in the name of wider public interest! They are tearing to shreds the lives of well integrated naturally occurring peoples that have survived the tough times and created our communities in the first place. This appetite for "throw away" and replace with new-build is detrimental to the very life-support systems of the planet!
I think it is up to us, as a moral obligation to the future, to let them know in no uncertain terms what fools they are, about a great deal more than HMR. I have tried "ladylike" and "the proper channels". It didn't work, despite the insight and sympathy of the judge.
I don't know what I am going to do next. I am completely certain that the judge who had to decide against me fully grasped what was going on, but there was no remedy in law once the CABE view of the proponent scheme took a 180 degree turn-around at a date too late for me to put in other grounds (and we weren't granted an adjournment to be able to do that).
The law isn't infallible, even though in the good old days its creation was as a device to protect us. "Unfortunately" this current government has created even more draconian legislation, just last December to be even more destructive in the name of "progress", which gives citizens even less chance or even the opportunity to voice never mind challenge their "big ideas" (that the nation can't financially afford and the planet can't afford in essential terms).
We have come together under Hutties for a reason which is now apparently just the tip of the iceberg. I think we need as a nation that has been lucky enough to have been subject to fairly reasonable governance in the past to now "wake up" and start being less passive, for the desperate sake of future generations. As the saying goes "The price of freedom is constant vigilance". And of course "the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing".
I have established beyond all reasonable doubt that the systems developed to support us are now being used against us, and that even the judiciary, whose sympathy I have, are unable to rectify the situation.
As I said, I don't know what to do next. I do begin to have sympathy with the idea of drastic measures and possibly a "civilised" version of that will be to attend the demonstrations in London April 1st. I have been too busy for 4 years to be involved in anything much at all. We certainly need to stand up and be counted, and not "merely" rely on the systems created by government through which we are supposed to be heard. As far as I can see it, no matter how well one manages to present oneself, allowing that we didn't have a legal team, the effort may seem futile, maybe direct action would work better, risky as that is (because of all the nutters that jump on the bandwagon, AND that government is creating laws to prevent us from doing that).
Of course we all have problems and can't all find the time and other resources to fight as I (who doesn't have a job or family around me) did. But we, who know what harm is being done, as it is to us, are obliged to fight back some how or other, to make sure that we get heard. We can't allow all these "mistakes" to keep on rolling out.
Maybe so far we have been "too nice". Maybe I will cease to be nice, I just don't know. Some say I have been "dignified". Maybe I'll change. Having taken my home and half my income and taken up 4 years of my life, and totally scuppered my chances of a doctorate in the greening aspects of urban regeneration I had worked towards for years before that, what have I to lose?
It is early days for me, free of this particular battle. I can't advise or even think yet how to make evident my feelings. Yes I am very sad, and yes I am very afraid, not just for my future (how I will now end my days / where I will live after generations of owner occupier mentality) but for the whole world if this sort of governance is the best there is. Mainly and overwhelmingly I am angry and wonder whether I will stay sane, or, maybe I'll decide to try "insane" for a change. I am not yet ready to give in to despair.

So "Carry on fighting" is all I can say, in your own way with your own particular battle. Most of you are not up against such an intricate mesh of quangos as I was, for such a series of supposed "benefits" (road widening to take more faster traffic into the city centre, and such like, not just housing). In the end 15 acronyms had their logos across the bottom of proponent documents.
It will add greatly to the burden on my back if any of you "fold". I didn't, and even now in defeat I haven't given in. Again I thank you for that, knowing that I am right, as not just me thinks as I do, it was 70 witnesses, some of them representing 13 different universities, and in essence representing all of you. But for now I am too close to this week's events to decide "What next".
The very best of luck, everyone, and hold in your hearts "WE ARE RIGHT!". Have no self doubts, our case is proven by events. I very much wish I believed in hell so that they might all be punished for creating hell on earth. Unless we try our utmost, the worst is yet to come!

Elizabeth


For more on Pathfinder, still available is former Secretary Adam Wilkinson's damning study for SAVE, see publications:

http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/

http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/publications/publications_in_print.php?startswith=P


http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200405/cmselect/cmodpm/295/5020801.htm

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200405/cmselect/cmodpm/295/295.pdf


I'm not often lost for words Elizabeth, but I really can't find the right ones to express my sorrow and anger at what this country has descended to, with the wickedness of 'Housing Market Renewal'. Keep the faith.

More news:

http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/news/article.php?id=54


Nem

Darn!

A least, that's what the new Scottish Environment Minister says we should be doing, in today's Scotsman:

Darn your socks to help save planet, says minister
By Jenny Haworth
Environment Correspondent

SCOTS should be darning their socks and looking to their grandparents for advice in order to lead greener lifestyles, according to the new environment minister. Roseanna Cunningham's advice came as a survey revealed that people in Scotland saw the environment as a global issue rather than a local one...

http://news.scotsman.com/scotland/Darn-your-socks-to-help.5050617.jp

Easy to scoff, but it's a wider message, in our throwaway, Primark fashion society, which is worth considering. Certainly I belong to the generation which did try to make things last; I am even old enough (just!) to recall making clippy and proggy mats from old clothes, a skill which is still seen at places like Beamish Museum:

http://www.jenallan.com/beamish.htm

See the mats in use on page 5:

http://www.jenallan.com/b5.htm

Super pictures, including one of mat making. I have the implements and I can just about recall how to do it. In times past, the mat went on the floor during the day, and on the bed at night. For anyone who hasn't been, Beamish is a recommended day out. I was at the opening ceremony, wonderful to see how much it has prospered since then.

So, in the interests of planet saving, today here's a post on another blog giving details of HOW TO DARN SOCKS in various ways:

http://knittingincolor.blogspot.com/2004/08/darning-socks-ive-been-meaning-to-show.html

Food waste is another issue; as a nation we throw away a great deal of food which could easily be eaten, thus further saving of the planet gains to be made:

Household Food Waste
An estimated 6.7 million tonnes of household food waste is produced each year in the UK, most of which could have been eaten. This wastes good food, costs us all money and adversely impacts on the environment. The amount of food we throw away is a major contributor to the production of greenhouse gases in the UK.


To help reduce the amount of food that is thrown away, WRAP and its partners are running a 'Love Food Hate Waste' consumer facing campaign to encourage behavioural change. We are working with the UK grocery sector, food industry, Government and organisations such as the Food Standards Agency to develop practical solutions and improved communications to make it easier for consumers to get the most from the food they buy and waste less of it.

http://www.wrap.org.uk/retail/food_waste/





Here's the Love Food Hate Waste site, full of useful tips and recipes:

http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/

Unavoidable Household Food Waste
Some food waste is inevitable (e.g. vegetable peelings) and WRAP is working with consumers, local authorities and others to minimise the amount of food waste that reaches landfill.
Home Composting is a fantastic way of recycling food waste such as fruit scraps, vegetable peelings and tea-bags, while making your garden more beautiful. Find out more about home composting and see if there are any low cost compost bin offers in your area.
Local Authorities can also advise about community composting and food waste collection schemes.

As an avid composter, I can recommend it, not to be sniffed at (!) is the therapeutic effect also of seeing all that waste turned into something sweet smelling and full of nutrients to help with the organic veggie growing... another way to cut down food miles and have some control over the quality of food we eat.

By banding together, it's possible to work as a community also to help the environment; here's one example:

http://www.transitiontownlouth.org.uk/

Unfortunately, some types of recycling are still not happening; the UK government's Pathfinder scheme is bulldozing on, razing sound buildings which, if grant aid was given to refurbish, could stand for many more decades. That's despite all manner of critical reports about how ineffective, inefficient and downright unpopular it all is, especially with the communities which it is devastating. However, the gravy train is running, the official bodies are being paid, and that means the voices of reason are not being heard.

Sad to find this on the SALVO website yesterday:



http://salvonews.blogspot.com/2009/03/demolition-starts-on-100-brierfield.html


Demolition starts on 100 Brierfield homes
Lorries from Hapton firm Howard Stott Demolition rolled into the area on Tuesday 17th February armed with security barriers. These were used to secure properties on two of the streets, Belgrave Street and Claremont Street, where the demolition will began. Around 100 old houses below the railway and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal are being demolished to make way for a new housing development under the Government's Pathfinder scheme.Stone from the houses will be retained and used for garden walls at the new properties.Pendle Council's housing programmes manager Julie Palmer said the demolition has to be completed by the end of March.
pendletoday

You Tube

That video should be a source of shame for all involved, Pendle Council for allowing the place to become run down, Elevate East Lancashire, the Pathfinder body which refuses to consider anything but demolition, and the government, for not pulling the plug on John Prescott's ghastly scheme long before now.

http://www.communitynw.org.uk/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?section=23

As SAVE showed in its plans for the re-use of Toxteth Street, Manchester:

http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/news/campaign.php?id=7

re-use is sustainable , popular with local communities, and cheaper than demolition. But the council voted for the wrecking ball anyhow.

SAVE has been informed that the Compulsory Purchase Order for 520 houses in Toxteth Street, East Manchester has been confirmed by the Secretary of State. The news comes as a bitter disappointment both to SAVE and residents who have been fighting plans for demolition. The comprehensive redevelopment scheme has been funded by government's controversial Housing Market Renewal (Pathfinder) Initiative.

http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/news/article.php?id=54

http://www.fightforourhomes.com/

Another council which just doesn't get the message is Tower Hamlets; here's Dan Cruickshank campaigning in today's Building Design for the re-use of Robin Hood Gardens:

Dan Cruickshank attacks Tower Hamlets and English Heritage over Robin Hood Gardens
9 March, 2009
By Will Henley and Phil Clark

Architectural historian and TV personality Dan Cruickshank has given the east London council and heritage body a drubbing over the Smithson’s estate.

TV presenter and historian Dan Cruickshank has launched a blistering attack on Tower Hamlets council and English Heritage over their failure to back the listing of Robin Hood Gardens, which he warned would lead to a “grotesque acts of barbarism” if it is demolished...

...To destroy [the Robin Hood Gardens buildings] would be one of the most grotesque acts of barbarism, vandalism - architecturally, visually, socially,” said Cruickshank.

“Having failed to maintain and manage those buildings properly… they [the council] are taking what they think is the easiest solution to level the site. They are utterly wrong. What amazes me though is English Heritage – their job is to assess and step back and realise the raw potential of even problematic housing schemes, and they’ve utterly failed to do that.


It is incredible that they are not listed. Buildings of that quality, comparable buildings – the Goldfinger buildings - Trellick Tower [and] Alton are listed - Sheffield Park Hill is listed, Keeling House is listed – why on earth is this one not listed?”

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=3135691&origin=BDdaily

The article with which I began today's blog ended with this, which I quote with some cynical amusement:

THE Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall began their ten-day tour of South America yesterday with the issue of climate change at the top of their agenda. Prince Charles and Camilla arrived in Chile, but they will also visit Brazil, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. Highlighting the issue of global warming is a major theme, and this week the prince will give a dire warning on climate change to the world. Their chartered Airbus arrived at Comodoro Arturo Merino Benitez airport close to Santiago. They were driven away in a limousine, followed by a motorcade of six cars.


It's a lovely day. I think I'll go and talk to the rhubarb.

Nem