Nick Tiratsoo's Posts

Is LBWF involved in covering up the danger that Town Hall asbestos has posed to its staff and contractors?

This blog is highly sceptical about conspiracy theories and allegations of cover ups. But sometimes the facts of a case are so striking that it is easy to see why even the most sober observers will judge such scepticism to be misplaced, indeed naive. Consider the following. First, the background. In 2015, the government’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) successfully prosecuted LBWF for exposing ... »

LBWF councillors’ Register of Interests sparks controversy… yet again

Over recent years, whenever anyone from outside the Town Hall examines councillors’ publicly declared interests – their jobs, landholding, membership of clubs and societies, etc. – it’s almost guaranteed that controversy will follow. Who can forget, for example, that, extraordinarily, the immediate predecessors of the present Leader, Chris Robbins and Clare Coghill, were both found to have m... »

Why is LBWF so poor at delivering ‘affordable housing’, particularly genuinely ‘affordable housing’?

A previous post (see links below) examined LBWF’s recent performance over ‘affordable housing’ (AH). It noted that though the word ‘affordable’ is vague and often used confusingly, what’s referred to as AH in fact encompasses housing let at four different rent levels, two, called Social Rent and London Affordable Rent, specifically designed so as to be genuinely in reach of the less... »

Looking back at the past, an occasional series. Part two: ‘Our Olympics – “Chariots of Ire”‘

Purely for amusement, and to compliment all the remeniscing prompted by the 2012 anniversary, here’s a post that first appeared on this blog in 2015, one of a series on ‘Our Olympics’ (see links for the others). Who can forget the sight of no less a figure than LBWF CEO Martin Esom scurrying round the borough’s public libraries to collect in as many copies of the council... »

Mark Baynes RIP

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Waltham Forest cartoonist Woof satirises LBWF’s housing policies

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LBWF’s flagship Blackhorse Yard ‘affordable’ housing scheme teeters, as developer Swan Housing steps away

The future of LBWF’s flagship ‘affordable’ housing scheme at Blackhorse Yard has been thrown into disarray, following the withdrawal of one of its two developers, Swan Housing. Swan Housing and its partner, Catalyst Homes, originally had gained planning permission for Blackhorse Yard in February 2019, and intended to deliver ‘359 affordable homes for shared ownership’, together with... »

Asbestos in Waltham Forest Town Hall: LBWF CEO Martin Esom answers the criticisms…sort of

On 1 July just passed, LBWF CEO Martin Esom e-mailed his response to the various points that I recently raised with him about asbestos in the Town Hall and the Assembly Hall (see his e-mail pasted below, and links to my correspondence at the bottom of the page). Mr. Esom is extravagantly paid and also on the government’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Board, and so it is a reasonable expectatio... »

Asbestos in Waltham Forest Town Hall: a new LBWF disgrace? Part Two

I have sent the letter pasted below to LBWF Chief Executive, Martin Esom, and will post his response when received. 24 June 2022 Dear Mr. Esom, I note that in a submission about an ex-employee’s asbestosis that was part of legal proceedings in 2019, LBWF’s defence team ‘specifically denied that members of the public who visited Walthamstow Town Hall for ordinary civic functions were inevitably (or... »

Asbestos in Waltham Forest Town Hall: a new LBWF disgrace? Part One

I have sent the letter pasted below to LBWF Chief Executive, Martin Esom, and will post his response when received. 10 June 2022 Dear Mr. Esom, Asbestos in the Town Hall Prompted by recent media coverage, I have been looking again at how asbestos was managed in the Town Hall from around 2013 to June 2020, when of course the whole building was closed. I note the following: 1. At various times durin... »

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