Camden Town Forum funds cut

Lib Dem spin that Camden Town was a priority for them has come to nothing with the cutting of funds from the successful resident-led Camden Town Forum.

The Forum, which steered such things as the £2.5 million Liveability Fund which transformed St.Martin’s Gardens and Castlehaven Open Space, wasn’t a politician-dominated group like the new Area Forums and wasn’t a talking shop.

Residents liked it because they could provide challenge to the council in central Camden Town.

Now their funding has been cuts from 6 meetings a year to quarterly, undermining their ability to question and influence decisions.

This led to the immediate resignation of the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Camden Town Forum.

No Lib Dem ward councillors turned up to the meeting.

We hear this evening from council sources that cuts to council budgets meant that the children's library in West Hampstead Library has been closed 25hours over the past month. The reason is the freeze on filling vacancies.

This is in Lib Dem Leader Keith Moffitt's own ward. On Wednesday night he happily sung the praises of his budget, which oversaw these cuts.

Meanwhile Camden Public Library Users' Group - senior committee members of which have long been Lib Dem activists - have stayed silent.

Are they not being told anything about these cuts? If not, do they not know about it? If they do, and haven't done anything doesn't there now not need to be a new organisation which can more accurately reflect the views of library users?

We ask these questions because there is silence at the moment.