Thank you for your email. I was very sorry to learn of the scenes at the Council meeting. I was in parliament that evening, as usual, so I have no direct experience of what happened.
The Mayor has issued a statement which indicates that some people had planned – through social media – to use violent tactics to prevent the meeting taking place. As people were encouraged to ‘bring paint, flour and shoes to throw from the public gallery’ the Council had no option but to ask the police to maintain order.
As one of the leaders of the 1980s anti nuclear weapons movement I am a strong supporter of people’s right to demonstrate – but it must always be non-violent. People who set out to cause violence must take responsibility for it.
I am absolutely appalled at the Coalition’s cuts – both those already made and those that are planned. I make every attempt to speak out against them in parliament. I will also make my views known about how I think the cuts should be made locally (I have supported the Save the Libraries campaign).
The enemy is the Coalition not Labour – people should be venting their anger on Tories and Lib Dems not Labour politicians. Coalition plans will transfer resources to the rich – Lewisham is the 39th most deprived borough in England. The Prime Minister’s Council West Oxfordshire is in the top 5 least deprived. London Borough of Lewisham is expecting to lose around £70million of its funding while West Oxfordshire is expecting an increase. However, there is no option for the Council of not making cuts. They have a legal duty not to spend outside their budget.
Those who condemn Labour politicians are doing exactly what the Coalition wants. The burden of decision-making is being shifted from central to local government.
With regard to higher education funding. I am shocked that the Coalition should be proposing 80% cuts to university funding and putting the burden of making up the shortfall onto students.
I know that many students from higher education institutes across London live in my constituency and I also have Goldsmiths College and part of the Trinity Laban estate in Lewisham Deptford. I am in constant contact with the institutions and students and their representatives. You may like to see the contribution I made to the debate on the 30th of November http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmhansrd/cm101130/debtext/101130-0004.htm#10113070000100.
I couldn’t get called to make another speech and Vince Cable wouldn’t take many interventions. However I voted against the government’s proposals and will continue to oppose.
Yours sincerely
Rt Hon Joan Ruddock MP
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