Banner
any day today rss X

News and Comment January 2024

Index: 2009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024

26 January (Part 2) - Stop the war

Dave Putson with a banner Dave Putson with a bannerBy far the most approachable of my local political activists - not a Councillor any more because Labour can be a bit stupid - is Dave Putson; so when I spotted him outside Abbey Wood’s Community Centre (†) I crossed the road to say hello. However he wasn’t there waiting for a bus but to promote his commitment to a ceasefire in Gaza.

For the second time in not much over a month the Erith & Thamesmead Labour Party was meeting in Abbey Wood; not the AGM this time but to debate Motions calling for a Palestinian ceasefire from the Thamesmead East, Abbey Wood and Shooter’s Hill branches. This time no one had called in seven police officers to control two elderly gents handing out leaflets.

Presumably Abena Oppong-Asare was not intending to put in an appearance; who but an MP would have the pull to get seven coppers in the same place at the same time?

Dave told me that there had been pressure to formalise the local call for a ceasefire at the December meeting but that was not appropriate at an AGM. From a position some distance to the right of Dave the Abbey Wood branch’s Motion in particular looked to be entirely reasonable to me.

A call to Dave this morning provided a bit more information. The three Motions, Shooter’s Hillְ’s being just a single line of text, were all passed unanimously at a well attended meeting. Councillors Anne Marie Cousins (Abbey Wood) and Zainab Asunramu (Thamesmead East) showed up but as expected, no MP. The two pensioners were not admitted to the meeting, they are no longer members, but their leaflet distribution was not seen as a threat this time around.

While writing this piece I found myself wondering if non-Councillor Dave was getting more mentions here than the elected ward Councillors but a check revealed ‘not quite’. Daniel Francis - 16 blogs since January 2023, Dave Putson - 11 , Sally Hinkley - 10 and Esther Amaning - 2.

The Abbey Wood and Thamesmead East Motions may be read here. (PDF.)

† Not entirely coincidental, I had heard a whisper.

 

Return to the top of this page
Bonkers is a cookie free zone. Not a single one