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How you were lied to about the closure of Shepherds Bush station

But documents I have obtained under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that London Underground were advised the Central Line Station could remain open while all improvement works were carried out.

After stalling for five months, LU finally released the papers which contradict what both they and Tory-run Hammersmith & Fulham council told residents and shopkeepers in Shepherds Bush. LU closed the station in February giving only four weeks notice. The station remains closed and will not reopen until October.

Minutes of a high level meeting held on 19 December 2007 state: 'LU's earlier planned mitigation was to have the BGW [Below ground works - providing a lift, passageways and staircase] in service before the escalator works commenced. Provision of a high-capacity staircase as part of the BGW would have enabled the station to retain 2-way operation, provided the escalators were modernised sequentially (there have been engineering differences of opinion about the feasibility of this). Difficulties with the BGW mean this strategy may not be viable anyway.'

A further document reveals that Metronet - the contractor charged with replacing the escalators in 2012 - were clear they could do so without closure: 'It is Metronet's view that the escalators can be replaced whilst maintaining station operation (if BGW lift & stairs installed) and replacing escalators one at a time. However LUL ED do not believe this is feasible, leading to a station closure in 2012 to replace the escalators.'

But in letters to station users sent in January 2008 LU said: 'it is not possible to replace one escalator while the other is running.' And the decision not to proceed with the BGW was only partly revealed in response to the questions at the public meeting I called in January to oppose the closure. Then it was admitted the promise to provide a lift would probably not be kept, but nothing was said about the other cancelled works.

LU has been caught concealing the truth from their paying customers and people whose livelihood depends on the station staying open. There is already huge anger in Shepherds Bush at the way LU and the Tory council have rolled over and let Westfield do what they like to the area. Now it appears they had the option not to close but swept it under the carpet.

Careful study of the more than 50 pages of released documents reveals how LU buckled under Westfield pressure. In November they were resisting even weekend closures and demanded Westfield produce plans to do the works with the station open - which they did. As late as 3 December 2007 LU was still holding out against closure - then on the 7 December they folded.

When I raised the possibility of doing the works without closure, I was ridiculed by LU. They and the council spent thousands of pounds of public money telling lies to my constituents. The Tory council leader picketed the public meeting handing out leaflets from their Parliamentary candidate saying why the station had to close. When I tried to leaflet commuters, LU called the transport police who threatened to arrest me.

Other facts revealed in the papers include:

• LU assumed passengers would be able to use the Overground station, even though they should have known by then it would not open until October 2008
• The closure was treated as an emergency because of the short notice and there were no plans to provide alternative bus services - these only materialised after I met with Westfield's chief executive who agreed to fund additional buses to Notting Hill Gate
• LU senior staff doubted the Westfield plan was achievable
• LU said there was a weak business case for the closure
  

YOU CAN SEE ALL THE DOCUMENTS ON MY WEBSITE – HERE and read my article on the subject for the Chronicle HERE

The Tories locally have supported Westfield and London Underground throughout. Their candidate standing against me for the new Hammersmith seat even published a leaflet saying they were right and I was wrong. Strangely the organisation he runs is now receiving Westfield funding and he features in the glossy publicity they circulate in Shepherds Bush.

Meanwhile I continue to meet LU every four weeks on behalf of local residents and businesses – latest minutes and pictures of progress on works are here. At last we seem to be making some progress. After a meeting with the London Development Agency recently, an organisation called Business Link has agreed to visit all businesses affected by the closure to offer help. I want this to be financial assistance to small shops crippled by the closure – not just advice and sympathy – it is the least the LDA, Westfield and the council can do.

The Westfield Riot

For over a year local residents groups and I have been asking the council to get its act together on the 6,000 jobs available when Westfield opens. These should be going to unemployed people in Shepherds Bush, not transfers from existing stores on other Westfield sites. But the council did nothing – until last week. Then it announced all the major employers would be at the Novotel in Hammersmith on one day. The result: 2,000 people turned up, the crush was so great that people were injured. There was no organisation, the police were called and shut the jobs fair down. So now no one has had the chance to sign up in person to work on site – was this deliberate or just sheer incompetence? Either way it is my jobless constituents who lose out – there are no plans to hold the event again.

Bad Health, Bad Housing - The Tories' prescription for White City

Last night (Tuesday 15th July) the planning application for the £50 million health centre development in White City finally came up for decision. I say finally because it should have been granted in May 2006, the month the Tories came to power in Hammersmith. Had it been, 30,000 people in White City and Shepherds Bush would have been benefiting from the first polyclinic in the country – bring new walk-in, extended hours GP services, NHS dentists and a range of other medical facilities together in a purpose built state-of the-art centre designed by Richard Rogers.Instead it is a building site. Why? Because the Tory council did not want the 180 flats above the centre to be affordable homes for local people. They thought if they waited until they had a Tory Mayor of London (the Mayor has the final say on big developments) he would approve only luxury homes. To see what actually happened go to my website here.

A Sad Farewell - but a good send off

Tonight I am giving a farewell speech at my old primary school in Fulham. Peterborough, in Clancarty Road, survived 107 years, including two world wars and all my family were pupils there in the 1950s and 60s. But it is closing this summer because the Tory council promised to sell it to the French government for use as a private school. I’m not joking – they tried the same with Hurlingham & Chelsea just across South Park, and because its excellent head Phil Cross (H&C is the second most improved school in England) outsmarted them they are now punishing him by refusing to give the school a sixth form and insisting half of it goes to the French.Both these issues came up on Monday for decision. If you want to see how base local affairs have become read the report on disposal of the Peterborough site – one of the most prime pieces of real estate in the country. It is going to the French at a £700,000 undervalue and with few of the contract terms worked out. (full details here)

Good News

I do try and seek out the good things happening in the constituency. Last week I spent the afternoon at the unveiling of the memorial to Giles Hart (full story here), a supporter of the Polish Solidarity movement who was tragically killed in the 7/7 bombings. It was inspiring to stand in Ravenscourt Park and hear from the head of Solidarity and Giles’ friends about his life and work – and to remember all those who stand up for democracy against oppression whether from totalitarian regimes or terrorists.

Last weekend I visited the IslamExpo at Olympia, an impressive coming together of Muslim organisations from all parts of the UK. I did a number of TV interviews and talked to a wide range of people. I also attended the annual meeting of the Palestinian community in the UK at the Irish Centre in Hammersmith on Sunday.

Even the Labour Party locally is in good heart – perhaps because the Tories are such an easy target. In the last few weeks we have had visits and speeches from cabinet ministers John Denham and Ed Miliband and at the weekend I was among 600 guests celebrating Virendra Sharma’s year as an MP following his by-election victory in Southall. Hilary Benn, as well as the premier of British Columbia, and other government ministers spoke – but the biggest cheers were reserved for Ken Livingstone who announced what we all wanted to hear – his candidacy for 2012

Andy