Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Local MPs write to Mayor of London on Green Lanes pollution
Hi everyone,
I have been asked to share with you a letter that our local Labour MPs David Lammy and Catherine West sent to the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan to make him aware of the dangerous levels of air pollution affecting residents in Harringay, on the Ladder and in the Gardens.
The letter asks Sadiq Khan to consider supporting the London Borough of Haringey to address this issue through the Mayor's Air Quality Fund.
As always, well done to the residents who have raised the profile of this important issue and gathered valuable evidence to support informed action.
Best regards,
Anna
Former Labour councillor for Harringay ward (2022-2026)
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Permalink Reply by Alice B
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I want to set aside the arguments that have taken up so much of this thread and focus on what matters. There have been some important victories.
- The pollution from grill restaurants is acknowledged.
- The threat to our health is being recognised.
- The issue is receiving the public attention that a serious public health problem demands.
- And funding is being sought for the equipment needed to tackle it.
These things matter.
But recognition is not action. And promises are not protection. Our children cannot wait. Our lungs cannot wait. Our long-term health cannot wait. We must continue to demand action.
Support for local businesses must never mean support for breaking the law. We can value our high street, support the people who work and trade there, and insist that every business complies with the law and protects the health of the community.
Where the Clean Air Act 1993 is being breached, those breaches must continue to be pursued. I am encouraged that Haringey Council is looking at how it can enforce the law against businesses that are not complying.
But let us be clear: this progress did not happen because we sat quietly and hoped somebody else would act. It happened because residents spoke up. We raised our voices. We kept raising them. And we must keep raising them.
So, Harringay, let us not allow this issue to disappear into another round of discussion. Let us keep contacting our councillors, our MPs and the Mayor. Let us keep reporting breaches. Let us keep demanding enforcement. Let us keep demanding clean air.
We have every right to expect to live, work and raise our children without being subjected to harmful pollution on our own high street.
We do not have to accept this. We should not accept this. And we will not stop pushing until something is done.
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton
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Surely it is the potential pollution from grill restaurants which is acknowledged?
As is the the potential and serious threat to health.Businesses must operate within the law. So must local Council's senior staff; and so too must elected representatives who serve on Borough Councils; or on the London Assembly.
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No on both counts. It's actual pollution from the grill restaurants causing actual negative health impacts.
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Eric Easter, you've just posted that :
"It's actual pollution from the grill restaurants causing actual negative health impacts."
Can I assume from this statement that you are opposed to any grill restaurants as such; regardless of whether or not they have installed the required filtration equipment and are tested and cleared by inspectors?
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Alan I am genuinely curious, given you don't live here, have to raise children here, or breathe in the air here, why do you continue to push back on all of these threads.
As a mother, all I am asking for is for the air my children breathe to be safe. Not for them to risk asthma, cardiovascular diseases, possible cancers, or early dimentia.
There are lots of papers outlining the impact of charcoal grill restaurants without ESP filters on pollution levels. The council have one and shared it with me. We know 75% of the restaurants visited to date do not have ESP filters.
It would be good to understand your motivation - and I wonder if you would be happy explaining that to the children who have to live here.
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Fair questions Alice.
I live a few minutes walk from High Road Tottenham along which there are also Turkish and Kurdish restaurants.
We have young grandchildren who may spend nights in our home.
Both nearby Tottenham restaurants and the Green Lanes Restaurants are sometimes visited by us, our neighbours and relatives and friends.
You wrote that Haringey Council have shared with you a paper on pollution levels which, if I understand you accurately, indicates that 75% of charcoal grill restaurants fail to use the higher levels of filtration.
What if the rates were reversed with 75% achieving the highest levels?
What if customers knew and were encouraged to patronise restaurants with 100% best filtration.
You asked about my motivation. That's simple: I'm a Socialist. Everyone should have the right to breathe clean air and eat healthy food.
My politics shapes the solutions I'd favour too. The most successful Green Lanes restaurant owners could and should chip-in from their profits to set-up a fund to ensure that 100% can and do adopt the best filtration.
( Maybe acting together they'd get the best deal as well?
And so they benefit, their customers benefit, and their neighours do too? )
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