Here is the latest Communication from The Pinkham Way Alliance Chair Stephen Brice, following last weeks rally at the Haringey Council Cabinet meeting:

A profound thank you to the 200 or more of you who attended the Haringey Cabinet meeting last Tuesday night. A fantastic turnout!

Limited to 90 in the viewing gallery, there were more of us outside than in – apologies to those kept out. Be assured that your presence there was priceless.

Not least, because the impromptu meeting that we held outside afterwards was extremely heartening for those of us who have been leading this campaign for so long now.
Make no mistake, Haringey will be aware of and disturbed by how many of us turned up. And so they should be, because we witnessed a display of feigned democracy, one that I found actually embarrassing.

A group of electors in the chamber, raising serious questions about Council policy and integrity. Yet when the Chair asked Cabinet members for questions... not a solitary word.
In fact, the draft version of the North London Waste Plan (NLWP), affecting around two-million residents, was approved (to go forward to public consultation) in a matter of seconds.

You can read the full speech I would have made, had I not been cut short.
 

Two other councils (so far) have held off approving the draft plan before Haringey has finished a review of the site.

It's clear however that Haringey has caved in to bullying and steamrollered Pinkham Way into the draft waste plan, regardless of clear evidence and consultation rules.  Exactly what happened from 2009 onwards, since when Haringey officers have spent thousands of expensive hours trying to force this through, even as staff and budgets are cut.

In the light of Haringey's real priorities, and especially the regeneration of Tottenham, this is shameful.

Public consultation on this new waste plan draft could start at the end of July, ending in late September. The summer holidays, in other words – the ideal time for it to elicit the least possible comment.

We will, of course, be submitting a detailed response, and asking you to sign your name in support. In the meantime, please do not respond on the plan yourself. We have to supply a full copy of our own submission for every individual respondent, which results in high printing costs.

For now, have a great summer, and we'll be in touch again in a few weeks.