View all newsletters
Sign up to our newsletters

Support 110 years of independent journalism.

  1. Politics
10 September 2014updated 26 Sep 2015 7:47am

David Lammy on housing: “We cannot build some of the dross that’s been built in the past“

Labour MPs and potential rival mayoral candidates David Lammy and Tessa Jowell are among those fighting for co-operative approaches to London's problems.

By Alexander Woolley

London’s housing crisis was the theme of the evening last night, when David Lammy and Tessa Jowell were among those who gathered in Westminster for the publication of Co-operative Capital, a new pamphlet in which leading members of the Co-operative Party lay out their views on what benefits co-operative approaches could bring to London.

Speaking at the event, Lammy, who recently launched his bid to be chosen as Labour’s candidate for the mayoralty of London, particularly highlighted the need for the design of buildings to reflect the needs of those who live in them. “We cannot build some of the dross that’s been built in the past and is still going up,” he said.

Lammy, whose chapter is entitled “A co-operative way out of London’s housing crisis,” in which he calls co-operative housing arrangements “fundamental” and an important way of giving people control over their lives, also spoke passionately about the un-affordability of many new London building project s. “It is deeply perverse if you look out the window and see cranes right across London, but time and time again those developments are for people earning way above the average London wage.”

David Lammy, MP for Tottenham, and Tessa Jowell, MP for Dulwich and West Norwood, were joined by Steve Reed MP and Gareth Thomas MP, editors of the pamphlet, for a panel discussion hosted by Pippa Crerar, the Evening Standard’s City Hall editor. Others speaking included Lib Peck, the leader of Lambeth Council, and Patrick Vernon OBE, a mental health campaigner.

The Co-operative party works alongside the Labour Party to further the aims of the co-operative movement; there are currently thirty two joint Labour and Co-op MPS, including Ed Balls and Stella Creasy. Lammy and Jowell, however, are not Co-op MPs.

Select and enter your email address Your weekly guide to the best writing on ideas, politics, books and culture every Saturday. The best way to sign up for The Saturday Read is via saturdayread.substack.com The New Statesman's quick and essential guide to the news and politics of the day. The best way to sign up for Morning Call is via morningcall.substack.com Our Thursday ideas newsletter, delving into philosophy, criticism, and intellectual history. The best way to sign up for The Salvo is via thesalvo.substack.com Stay up to date with NS events, subscription offers & updates. Weekly analysis of the shift to a new economy from the New Statesman's Spotlight on Policy team. The best way to sign up for The Green Transition is via spotlightonpolicy.substack.com
  • Administration / Office
  • Arts and Culture
  • Board Member
  • Business / Corporate Services
  • Client / Customer Services
  • Communications
  • Construction, Works, Engineering
  • Education, Curriculum and Teaching
  • Environment, Conservation and NRM
  • Facility / Grounds Management and Maintenance
  • Finance Management
  • Health - Medical and Nursing Management
  • HR, Training and Organisational Development
  • Information and Communications Technology
  • Information Services, Statistics, Records, Archives
  • Infrastructure Management - Transport, Utilities
  • Legal Officers and Practitioners
  • Librarians and Library Management
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • OH&S, Risk Management
  • Operations Management
  • Planning, Policy, Strategy
  • Printing, Design, Publishing, Web
  • Projects, Programs and Advisors
  • Property, Assets and Fleet Management
  • Public Relations and Media
  • Purchasing and Procurement
  • Quality Management
  • Science and Technical Research and Development
  • Security and Law Enforcement
  • Service Delivery
  • Sport and Recreation
  • Travel, Accommodation, Tourism
  • Wellbeing, Community / Social Services
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
THANK YOU

Tessa Jowell agreed with Lammy on the importance of new housing for the capital. “David is absolutely right about quality of design… Another critical thing is concierge and the management of blocks.”

Jowell’s own chapter in the pamphlet calls for co-operative childcare to be promoted, claiming it is far cheaper and produces better results for children and parents alike. On average childcare costs £14,000 per year in London – “it’s a staggering figure that none of us should forget,” she said at the launch event.

“Embracing co-operative childcare could lead to better care for lower cost, more flexible hours and smaller facilities which are located in mixed communities – just what families in London need,” Jowell concludes her chapter.

Jon Cruddas, MP for Dagenham and head of Labour’s Policy Review, wrote a chapter for Co-operative Capital, although he was not at the launch event. In it he suggests more organisations should publish their data, highlighting the benefits accrued from Transport for London’s approach. “By opening up access to Journey Planner, and real-time bus and tube information, a whole ecosystem of over 200 apps and services has been enabled, including successful start-ups like Citymapper.com,” he writes.

Other prominent authors include Karin Christiansen, General Secretary of the Co-operative Party and Seema Malhotra, MP for Feltham and Heston. Christiansen suggests that more should be done to promote social enterprises and co-operatives as part of a stronger social economy, while Malhotra proposes that co-operative small businesses should be developed in clusters in order to improve their competiveness.

Concluding the event, Gareth Thomas MP said, “We hope the discussion [started in this pamphlet] will continue at the Co-operative conference and in future discussions about London.”

Content from our partners
The promise of prevention
How Labour hopes to make the UK a leader in green energy
Is now the time to rethink health and care for older people? With Age UK

Select and enter your email address Your weekly guide to the best writing on ideas, politics, books and culture every Saturday. The best way to sign up for The Saturday Read is via saturdayread.substack.com The New Statesman's quick and essential guide to the news and politics of the day. The best way to sign up for Morning Call is via morningcall.substack.com Our Thursday ideas newsletter, delving into philosophy, criticism, and intellectual history. The best way to sign up for The Salvo is via thesalvo.substack.com Stay up to date with NS events, subscription offers & updates. Weekly analysis of the shift to a new economy from the New Statesman's Spotlight on Policy team. The best way to sign up for The Green Transition is via spotlightonpolicy.substack.com
  • Administration / Office
  • Arts and Culture
  • Board Member
  • Business / Corporate Services
  • Client / Customer Services
  • Communications
  • Construction, Works, Engineering
  • Education, Curriculum and Teaching
  • Environment, Conservation and NRM
  • Facility / Grounds Management and Maintenance
  • Finance Management
  • Health - Medical and Nursing Management
  • HR, Training and Organisational Development
  • Information and Communications Technology
  • Information Services, Statistics, Records, Archives
  • Infrastructure Management - Transport, Utilities
  • Legal Officers and Practitioners
  • Librarians and Library Management
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • OH&S, Risk Management
  • Operations Management
  • Planning, Policy, Strategy
  • Printing, Design, Publishing, Web
  • Projects, Programs and Advisors
  • Property, Assets and Fleet Management
  • Public Relations and Media
  • Purchasing and Procurement
  • Quality Management
  • Science and Technical Research and Development
  • Security and Law Enforcement
  • Service Delivery
  • Sport and Recreation
  • Travel, Accommodation, Tourism
  • Wellbeing, Community / Social Services
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
THANK YOU