Tag Archives: Woolwich

So long, Greenwich. I predict that by 2050 you’ll swallow up Lewisham and Bexley. The Thames Barrier will be a boutique hotel. And everyone will be mad as hell about air pollution

Posted on December 14, 2014 by Alex Grant

I’m moving out of London later this week, with my partner and our daughter, after 35 years living in the borough of Greenwich – the last 16 of them as a Labour councillor here. There are few things more boring than ex-councillors … Continue reading →

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What happens when politicians and developers meet behind closed doors – and why Unite’s wrong to call the meetings off

Posted on October 16, 2014 by Alex Grant

What happens when politicians and property developers meet behind closed doors? According to Vince Passfield, Unite’s deputy regional secretary for London, multi-national investors seek to “stitch up deals that would  hit council tenants and leaseholders in the capital”. As a result Unite … Continue reading →

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Carbuncle Cup: the end of localism?

Posted on September 9, 2014 by Alex Grant

It’s been a busy few days for me. Since last Wednesday, when Woolwich Central was announced as the winner of Building Design’s Carbuncle Cup, I’ve been inundated with emails, tweets and requests for comment: I chaired the Greenwich Council Planning … Continue reading →

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And who is to blame for this carbuncle? Er, me actually…

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Alex Grant

SEPTEMBER 3rd UPDATE: The Woolwich Central development, which this blog post of June 25th covered, has now been declared the winner of Building Design’s 2014 Carbuncle Cup, as covered by the Guardian, the BBC’s One Show (3 minutes thirty seconds … Continue reading →

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New Labour with a small ‘n’: a quiet revolution in the Town Hall

Posted on June 16, 2014 by Alex Grant

My first post on this new blog is about Greenwich – a borough in which I was a Labour councillor until May 2014 – and how a huge influx of new councillors is changing the culture of its council. What … Continue reading →

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