Lambeth attempts to cancel Cannabis Festival

[guinnessdrinker]

on the other hand, there is always burgess park. come over to walworth for the festival, you lovely people

 

[Gramsci]

Indeed, I hope people are paying attention to this kind of shit when they talking about voting for the Lib Dems in the elections.

Can you imagine if there was a hung parliament? Would the Lib Dems in fact be more likely to crawl into bed with the Conservatives than Labour? Because based on their track record in Lambeth that's exactly what they want to do - showing their true colours under all this "we are more left than labour" and "we are libertarian"... yeah like f**k you are!

Seems to me you and Justin are correct on the Libs.In Lambeth they have been quite right wing in some areas.

 

[William of Walworth]

Including Southwark!!!

They run the council here, and I think an attempt to move the Festie to Burgess Park would generate populist-Lib Dem-generated problems. The South London Press and Southwark News are read by many reactionary curtain twitching types around the Old Kent Road and further North

 

[OpalFruit]

Pride was bumped out of Brockwell after some complaints from residents, wasn't it? (and some objections from Friends Of Brockwell Park about disturbance of topsoil that seemed to magically appear as a problem during certain festivals and not others).(Yes, I know there were other problems which stopped Pride returning, but Lambeth were fillibustering them too - I was in the meeting!)
Seems v sad that the the council can't have the courage to make public space available for free speech.
I can see that a cannabis festival is a problem for a borough trying to convince the world at large that Brixton isn't the drugs capital of Europe - but one festival either way isn't going to change the scale of THAT problem for the moment!

 

[TeeJay]

The thing is that exactly the same people have goven it a license in previous years. What they are saying only makes sense if something radically different happened last year (2004). They are making various claims about what happened last year and making a general characterisation of last year's event, but I am sure that thousands of people who went to the event remember things very differently.

The council are also claiming that they don't believe that necessary steps to address the perceived problem of drug dealers at any future event are possible. This is also an unfounded claim and is ironic considering the council itself presides the licensing of a large number of Lambeth businesses that are in the "entertainment business" and it was at its very own Lambeth Country Show that Tim Westwood was shot at several years ago.

The council has even tried to make a big deal out of the fact that there was *one arrest* last year for a drugs offense at the 2004 event. Am I being an idiot or is this *less* than you would expect from thousands of people enjoying a sunny Saturday afternoon in *any* London park?

If the council want to compare and contrast then lets see their figures for drugs offences and other crimes at all *their* events during 2004, to see if they are oh-so-much-better at controlling people's public behaviour - or even just a sample of a Saturday afternoon in Brixton. It would be severly ironic if the 2004 cannabis festival had seen a *drop* in crime for the day, but then again it wasn't about people drinking lots of beer etc. - that's half the point!

Since they care so deeply about "public order" and the effects of drug taking I wonder if Lambeth council are now going to take a zero-tolerance approach to all the businesses in Lambeth selling alcohol?

 

[BROCKWELL]

Just got this sent to me.
Apparently there are still several avenues of appeal for the Coalition to explore.Funny thing is, I've been unable to walk down my road for many years without suffering "undue harassment" from drug dealers.

Perhaps they intend to close down Coldharbour Lane too and the town centre too?

The issue of criminality around a public event in Brockwell Park or elsewhere is a matter for the joint working group set up with police, Parks and event organisers. A risk assessment is done and appropriate policing measures are set up. There is then a postmortem on the event. What was the result of this last year? what where the problems ?and what measures were suggested to tackle them the following year.
Have Brixton Police said they cannot police the event??- I think not- this is clearly a political decision taken by the administration but being laid at the doors of officers.

WHAT WILL WE END UP WITH-- a march from Kennington to Brockwell Park with 10,000 people turning up for private picnics and entertainment .
GET REAL Lambeth and reinstate this popular event.

 

[TeeJay]

From the South London Press:

Cannabis march to be banned

IT USED to be the home of the so-called 'softly-softly' approach to cannabis possession and for many it's the natural place for a festival calling for the drug to be legalised. For six years, thousands of revellers descended on Lambeth to back the campaign. CLARE CASEY finds out why the event has been banned

LOVE it or hate it, it was an established fixture in the cultural calender.

In less than a decade the annual Cannabis March and Festival in Lambeth became better known than the borough's country show.

But not any more. Lambeth council this week announced it would not let the event's organisers hold the festival at Brockwell Park in Herne Hill.

The authority has banned what would have been the seventh festival, alleging drug dealing took place in the Victorian park at last year's bash. The move has angered organisers who claim the decision was taken for political reasons. Thousands of people marched annually from Kennington to Brockwell Park for the festival in support of a global call to legalise cannabis. Similar events take place around the world to mark Cannabis Liberation Day.

But Lambeth's executive member for environment, Councillor Clare Whelan, said it would be "irresponsible" to let the festival go ahead.

The Conservative councillor told the South London Press: "Residents and council officers who went to last year's event were offered drugs by dealers.

"It is against the law to sell drugs and I was horrified to discover families - not just one or two but a substantial number - had been approached by dealers. Brockwell Park is council land and it is up to us to take a stand.

"We cannot condone letting an event go ahead where drug dealers operate, because that would be completely irresponsible.

"I absolutely support liberty of speech and people campaigning for a change in the law but this is a different thing altogether.

"Lambeth has had a reputation for turning a blind eye to cannabis smoking but we must remember it is still illegal."

This so-called "softly-softly" approach was undertaken in 2001 when Lambeth police pioneered a lenient approach to cannabis possession in which people caught with small amounts of the drug were cautioned rather than arrested. This is no longer the case.

Festival organiser and Green Party drugs spokesman Shane Collins claims the Liberal Democrat and Conservative-run council axed the event because of Cllr Whelan's political persuasion, an allegation Cllr Whelan denies.

Mr Collins said: "The council is making itself look foolish.

"Cllr Whelan is a Tory and that's why she doesn't want it to go ahead.

"I would be interested to see a list of all these residents who complained to her officers - I suspect it's very short.

"On the one hand the council bleats on about a sense of community and says it is really important to provide events for the people of Lambeth, but then they stop us doing just that.

"Thousands of people look forward to this free festival every year and to pull it with no explanation is a disgrace. It's a safe event which is all about people having fun.

"By stopping it they have made themselves look extremely stupid yet again."

The festival might be banned but Mr Collins said the march to the park, via Brixton, would go ahead as planned on Saturday, May 7.

On the same day similar protests calling for the legalisation of cannabis will take place around the world.

Residents neighbouring the park had mixed views about the festival ban.

Simon Cobban, of Dulwich Road, Herne Hill, was disappointed.

He said: "I have never seen any trouble and it's a good festival. It's not only the march but there's good food and it's a fun day out.

"It tends to attract the 'dogs on strings-type' but my only complaint is there are a lot of camper vans that park on this road for the couple of days surrounding the event."

A pensioner in Norwood Road, who asked not to be named, said: "I'm sure the council has stopped it with good reason.

"Sometimes the music is a bit loud - but not as bad as the megaphones you hear when the Lambeth Show is on.

"Those young ones don't cause any trouble but they leave a lot of litter."

Staff at Tanley's Irish bar in Dulwich Road said the ban would be bad for business and the community.

Full-time bar worker Evelyn McDonagh said: "I always choose to work when the cannabis festival is on because it's such a fun day.

"You get loads of people popping in for a couple of pints and it's a good atmosphere.

"I think it's a shame for everyone that it's not going ahead."

http://icsouthlondon.icnetwork.co.u...31695&method=full&siteid=50100-name_page.html

 

[BROCKWELL]

AFAIK, only the three day commerical event in Brockwell Park was considered at the last meeting of the licensing committtee: Minutes of 8 Feb licensing meeting

The only application currently showing on the Lambeth website for the next meeting on 1 March is Seamus's entertainment license for the Windmill.

You may know a littlemore than me but the event was supposedly turned down by the officers in the Sports and Events dpt and not put on to a committee agenda the Licensing committee only consider the Entertainments licence and the basic use of the park. Although the direction was evidently political.

 

[lang rabbie]

"I know nothing. Nothing!" Only what the Lambeth website lets on

 

[Brixton Hatter]

I wrote a long and considered email last week to Peter Truesdale (Leader of the Council, Lib Dem), John Whelan (Deputy Leader of the Council, Tory) and Clare Whelan (his wife and also a tory councillor) setting out my objections to the cancelling of the cannabis festival and asking for a reply with their reasons. I've received one snide reply (copied to all, including me - not sure if it was his mistake or not) from John Whelan simply stating:

>Clearly one of Toren Smith's chums.
>
>J

I leave it up to you to draw your own conclusions.

(Did anyone else write to them? Or get a reply?)

 

[Donna Ferentes]

Jesus. How insulting.

You might like to do something with that. I suggest copying to Rotten Boroughs at Private Eye.

 

[William of Walworth]

Whio is Toren Smith? A Labour councillor??

 

[Donna Ferentes]

Yes.

 

[gaijingirl]

I wrote a long and considered email last week to Peter Truesdale (Leader of the Council, Lib Dem), John Whelan (Deputy Leader of the Council, Tory) and Clare Whelan (his wife and also a tory councillor) setting out my objections to the cancelling of the cannabis festival and asking for a reply with their reasons. I've received one snide reply (copied to all, including me - not sure if it was his mistake or not) from John Whelan simply stating:

I leave it up to you to draw your own conclusions.

(Did anyone else write to them? Or get a reply?)

I think you should forward it to Toren Smith (amongst others)

 

[Donna Ferentes]

Yup.

 

[TeeJay]

Toren Smith has also been elected to represent a ward that runs along the western side of Brockwell Park (Tulse Hill ward) as well as the route of the march - so you would think that his views would be relevant and that Whelan would show him at least a modicum of respect.

 

[cllr]

Pride was bumped out of Brockwell after some complaints from residents, wasn't it?

From what I can recall Pride grew too big as a free festival to use Brockwell Park. I think they moved to Clapham Common for a couple of years. However more recent incarnations like Summer Rites and Purple Radio have been more problematic.

 

[aurora green]

(Did anyone else write to them? Or get a reply?)

I haven't written yet, but I am intending to.

I was waiting till I understood exactly what was going on.

Have I got it right, Lambeth are going to ban it, and this decision has been taken in secret without proper consultation?
And if so, is it totally within their power to do such a thing, or are they obliged somehow to play fair?

 

[fortyplus]

From what I can recall Pride grew too big as a free festival to use Brockwell Park. I think they moved to Clapham Common for a couple of years. However more recent incarnations like Summer Rites and Purple Radio have been more problematic.

this is entirely from unreliable memory but I thought that the reason Pride switched from Brockwell park was that a number of local churches organised homophobic demonstrations on the way between tube and park and the organisers chose to take it away as a result.

but I could be entirely wrong.

 

[lang rabbie]

this is entirely from unreliable memory but I thought that the reason Pride switched from Brockwell park was that a number of local churches organised homophobic demonstrations on the way between tube and park and the organisers chose to take it away as a result.

but I could be entirely wrong.

IIRC as the event grew, the emergency services were not happy about having so many people in a park with such limited vehicular access. The organisers would have had to pay to have stretches of Brockwell Park's railings taken down for the weekend and then re-erected, and I think the organisers got as far as seriously looking at costings for this.

Don't know how the Lambeth Country Show gets around this - perhaps the numbers there at any one time never equal the crowd during the headline act at Pride

 

[Streathamite]

From what I can recall Pride grew too big as a free festival to use Brockwell Park. I think they moved to Clapham Common for a couple of years. However more recent incarnations like Summer Rites and Purple Radio have been more problematic.

But Jayday has NOT grown too big, or any more 'problematic' than in jaydays of years back (i.e. not very much); and all of the stated objections have been answered pretty well on this thread alone. So why the decision taken - in secret - to ban it, without consultation with the festival?
And - again - what is the difference betweena 'campaigning' and 'community' festival, please?

 

[Neko]

Thanks for the email addresses. Ive emailed all the contacts, shall post up here any reply I receive.

 

[aurora green]

I've emailed them too. Look forward to reporting my reply.
( Mind you, I written to some Lambeth councillors over the years, and they dont always reply. )

 

[aurora green]

Cllr Peter Truesdale ptruesdale@lambeth.gov.uk
Cllr John Whelan jwhelan@lambeth.gov.uk
Cllr Clare Whelan cwhelan@lambeth.gov.uk
Cllr Andrew Sawdon asawdon@lambeth.gov.uk
Cllr Anthony Bottrall abottrall@lambeth.gov.uk
Cllr Ashley Lumsden alumsden@lambeth.gov.uk
Cllr Keith Fitchett councillor@fitchett.net
Cllr Roger Giess rgiess@lambeth.gov.uk
(all Lib Dem except J & C Whelan (Con):


Ok. I basically emailed everyone above, which is the list from Teejays post on page two.
So far, I ve had three replies, which consists of;
one, denying responsibility but agreeing with the decision,
one, 'it wasn't me',
and one, 'the decision hasn't been made yet'


....

 

[laptop]

what is the difference betweena 'campaigning' and 'community' festival, please?

Potential for Daily Moseley "Council encourages druggies" headline, I think.

So what's the Labour Group position? Is there one?

 

[Neko]

I've had one reply so far from Cllr Ashley Lumsden thanking me for my email and promising to discuss the points I made with her colleagues.

 

[Streathamite]

Potential for Daily Moseley "Council encourages druggies" headline, I think.

So what's the Labour Group position? Is there one?

Labour's leader is cllr Steve Reed, folks

 

[pooka]

At last night's Community Police Consultative Group, the police were asked if they had been consulted about this decision. They said no, they had simply been informed of it.

It was also claimed that this was a [council] officers' recommendation, by an associate of Cllr John Whelan.


btw,

This so-called "softly-softly" approach was undertaken in 2001 when Lambeth police pioneered a lenient approach to cannabis possession in which people caught with small amounts of the drug were cautioned rather than arrested. This is no longer the case.

from the South London Press is plain wrong. Lambeth are operating to the same ACPO Guidelines as anywhere else in the country.

 

[Streathamite]

so;
the organisers have not been consulted.
the police have not been consulted.
the local community - by and large - have not been consulted (if there was a community consultation exercise, I must have blinked and missed it!)
Has ANYONE been consulted?

 

[christonabike]

mebbe the breweries were consulted

that'd explain it