LABOUR’S VISION FOR WATFORD

WATFORD LABOUR’S LOCAL GOVERNMENT MANIFESTO

Fighting for a council that works for the many, not the few
Foreword

I am delighted that you are reading our 2019 local election manifesto.

We treat Watford's electors seriously. We know that, like us, you care
passionately about our town. You want to know what a Labour run Council
would do to make Watford even better. Our manifesto contains our policies
to achieve this.

We believe it is time for change. After 17 years of running the Council, the
Liberal Democrats have become arrogant. They must be held to account.

The Conservatives have no councillors in Watford; they are a spent force.

Only a strong Labour presence in the Council can ensure the ruling Lib Dems
are accountable for their actions.

More Labour councillors will give you a stronger voice in the town hall.

In our manifesto we outline the policies we believe will help create a change for the better here in
Watford.

On Thursday 2 May, you will have the opportunity to make that change.

One third of Watford Council will be elected—you will be electing councillors in all of Watford's 12 wards.
For details of our candidates please look at our web site.

www.watfordlabour.org.uk

We hope you enjoy reading our manifesto. We welcome feedback on our policies by writing to us via our
web site or to the address on the back cover.

Please support Labour candidates on 2 May. Together we can make Watford an even better place to live.

Mike Jackson
Chair
Our Vision for Watford

Our vision is for Watford to be a clean, vibrant, diverse, family-friendly town for its
residents and visitors. It should offer job opportunities, a world-class hospital, as well as
high-quality and affordable housing. It should be a town with first class leisure, retail and
sports facilities—this is what the residents of Watford demand and deserve.

Our Priorities
1) Living in Watford: We will support the sensitive building of new homes, including a
minimum of 50% social housing, but will strongly oppose the overdevelopment in
crowded areas of the town as this places too much pressure on local people and ser-
vices. We will tackle homelessness in a sustainable way and take action to bring emp-
ty properties back into use.
2) A Fairer, Safer Watford: We will oppose any attempt to close Watford police station.
We will support action on domestic abuse and work with youth services to tackle the
issues of knife crime and anti-social behaviour. We will continue to campaign for all
street lights to be put back on at night. We will continue to fight racism and discrimi-
nation, supporting under-represented groups in our community.
3) Learning in Watford: We will campaign for the desperately needed extra secondary
school in Watford and we will work with local colleges to ensure all those leaving
school have an opportunity for further or higher education, training, an apprentice-
ship or job opportunity.
4) A Cleaner, Greener Watford: We will significantly increase the amount of recycling in
Watford, improve street cleaning, increase cycling lanes and agree policies with the
County Council to reduce traffic congestion in our town.
5) A Healthier Watford: Working in partnership with the NHS and Herts County Council
(HCC) to secure major investment in our local healthcare services, integrated with so-
cial care. We will campaign for the long-overdue new hospital to be built in Watford.

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It’s Labour That Stands Up for Watford

Labour is the party of social justice: we want to see high-quality services provided for all,
but also to make sure that the vulnerable are supported so that everyone can live with
dignity and participate fully in our local community. Social justice and economic progress
go hand in hand.

The Liberal Democrats, who have run Watford Council since 2002, have failed out town. They supported
the Tory/Lib Dem coalition from 2010 that implemented ruthless austerity measures, which have
particularly hit local government services, and since then they have slavishly followed the Conservative
Government’s cuts agenda.
ONLY LABOUR STANDS UP TO THE TORIES IN WATFORD
Rather than supporting growth and jobs, the Tories cut taxes for the super-rich causing a cost of living
crisis for hard-working families and cut benefits and tax credits for the least well-off in our town. Most of
those who have had their benefits cut are working families. Many families have been pushed to the point
of poverty so that they have to rely on food banks for survival. Now the botched Universal Credit scheme
threatens the living standards of the most vulnerable in our town.
Women, children and the elderly have been hardest hit by these measures. It is an absolute disgrace that
one in five children in Watford are living in poverty (source www.endchildpoverty.org.uk), whilst the
Liberal Democrats are oblivious to the hardship under their noses. Instead the Lib Dems cut grants to the
voluntary sector, making matters even worse.
The Conservative Government’s policies are not delivering for people on an average income. Shelter
identified that, in Watford, there are zero homes available that are ‘affordable’ for a regular family with
children on average earnings. Very little social housing has been built locally under the Liberal Democrats.
Labour believes that everyone’s economic future depends on making sure the whole community can
make ends meet. This is what we mean by ‘social justice’. It’s Labour that stands up for the many, not the
few.

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The Case for Change
“The Lib Dems keep harking back to things that happened in the ‘90s as if
they are still relevant, which they are not. It is the Lib Dems’ record of
mismanagement over the past 17 years and their failure to stand up for
Watford—those are the issues. Labour has a new set of councillors and is

In Watford, the Liberal Democrats have enthusiastically embraces the Conservative Government’s cuts
agenda, slashing grants to voluntary and community groups just when they are needed most. They have
continued to do this year on year.
They have mismanaged your money—wasting millions of pounds through avoidable mistakes.
Here is just some of the money the Watford Liberal Democrats have wasted:

• £1million moving Watford Market

• £1.3million housing benefits overpayments
• £500,000 wasted on a failed IT system
• £210,000 spent annually on the Mayor’s Office, with costs rising every year
• £4.3million spent on The Parade, including the unnecessary bridge over the pond
• £540,000 paid out to get out of a Charter Place contract
• £250,000 lost when they built on Watford Fields and were then forced to demolish it in 2012
• £500,000 spent on consultants in 2018 alone

No wonder Watford still has the highest council tax in Hertfordshire, despite repeated promises by the
Liberal Democrats to reduce it to the County average.
They have failed our town.
At the time of publishing, the Lib Dems’ support stands
at 9% in the opinion polls. They are deeply unpopular
nationally and locally for a good reason. Labour has over
40% support nationally. That’s because only Labour
stands up to the Tories.
Labour had a proud record in running Watford Council.
You can read more at http://
www.watfordlabour.org.uk/labours-legacy-to-
watford.html
It is the Lib Dems’ record of failure in running our town for the past 17 years that is the central issue. The
2nd May 2019 is the Liberal Democrats’ day of reckoning; it’s time for a change for the better in Watford.
That’s why we need to elect a Labour Council.
We need to have a new ambition and confidence for our town and get the priorities right.
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Our Policies

Living in Watford: We will support the sensitive building of new homes, including a
minimum of 50% social housing, but will strongly oppose the overdevelopment in crowded
areas of the town as this places too much pressure on local people and services. We will
tackle homelessness in a sustainable way and take action to bring empty properties back

A Labour Council will...

✔ Support the sensitive building of new homes and

ensure that every new residential development in
Watford includes a minimum of 50% social housing
that are affordable through rent, shared ownership
or similar schemes

✔ Re-establish a ‘tall buildings’ policy, removed by

the Lib Dems resulting in excessive in high-rise
developments, to ensure that any proposals for
high-rise buildings will not have an adverse effect
on the surrounding areas

✔ Ensure there are standards concerning

sustainability, property density and surrounding infrastructure to be met by proposed developments,
including the provision of green spaces

✔ Use the council’s planning powers and land ownership and by working with partners to provide truly
affordable and social housing for Watford people

✔ Put a stop to overdevelopment in already crowded areas of the town

✔ Work with social landlords and Watford Community Housing Trust to build more social housing for rent
and support the joint venture between Watford Council and Watford Community Housing Trust to build
new homes

✔ Borrow money to build new social housing for local people—using rents to fund the loans

✔ Set up a private tenants’ association to give local residents in privately rented accommodation a voice

✔ Set up a private sector watchdog, including a register of properties, with inspections of all private
rented properties in Watford

✔ We will work with the central Watford car park operators to provide free parking for local residents
overnight

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✔ Take urgent action to bring empty properties back into use, including flats above shops, using
compulsory purchase powers where necessary

✔ Take a range of measures to tackle homelessness and conduct a robust audit of empty properties and
public land that could be used for affordable housing on a sustainable basis to prevent a repeat of the
current Lib Dem unbudgeted spend of £900,000 on emergency accommodation

✔ Work with retailers and other agencies to build on Watford’s pre-eminence as a centre of hi-tech
industry, retail, leisure and entertainment and maintain its position as a retail centre in the region

✔ We will work with traders and other agencies to maintain the viability of shopping areas, such as St
Albans Road, providing investment to revitalise them when needed and allow them to keep up with the
change in shopping experiences caused primarily by the surge in internet shopping

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Our Vision

A Fairer, Safer Watford: We will oppose any attempt to close Watford police station. We
will support action on domestic abuse and work with youth services to tackle the issues of
knife crime and anti-social behaviour. We will continue to campaign for all street lights to
be put back on at night. We will continue to fight racism and discrimination, supporting
under-represented groups in our community.

A Labour Council will...

✔ Campaign for more police officers and additional PCSOs to work with
communities to help tackle crime and anti-social behavior, with zero tolerance
of drug dealing

✔ Oppose the threatened closure of Watford Police Station and campaign for
the custody suite to be brought back to the town

✔ Promote the policy of ‘neighbourhood policing’. Work with the police and
our anti-social behaviour team to use powers to make Watford a family-
friendly town during the daytime and the night-time

✔ Support action against domestic abuse, working with police and other agencies and provide support to
the Watford Women’s Centre after the grant was removed by the Lib Dem Mayor

✔ Ensure that there will be zero tolerance towards racism, fascism and discrimination in all its forms. In
particular, Islamophobia and antisemitism are a blight on our society. We will ensure that Watford Council
plays a practical role in preventing the rise of racism—working with the police, voluntary, community and
youth groups, as well as religious communities, to maintain our proud history of harmony between our
diverse communities

✔ Work with primary schools, secondary schools, colleges and Watford F.C. to help educate against
racism so that its pernicious ideas are defeated

✔ Campaign against the plans by Hertfordshire County Council to cut the number of firefighters in the
County and remove one of the fire engines in Watford

✔ Campaign to get the County Council to put the street lights back on overnight to help improve safety
for residents once it is dark

✔ Continue to press the County Council to introduce 20mph speed limits in residential streets

✔ Utilise council resources and planning rules to improve pavements and prevent vehicles from parking
on pavements where they would force pedestrians into the road or obstruct disabled residents or those
with prams

✔ Guarantee to pay the Living Wage of £9 per hour as a minimum for all Council employees and ensure
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Our Vision

Learning in Watford: We will campaign for the desperately needed extra secondary school
in Watford and we will work with local colleges to ensure all those leaving school have an
opportunity for further or higher education, training, an apprenticeship or job opportunity.

A Labour Council will...

✔ Speak up for local children by lobbying

both the government and County Council to
ensure that there are more school places to
satisfy local need

✔ Campaign for an extra secondary school

in Watford

✔ Work with local schools, colleges and the

Watford site of the University of
Hertfordshire to ensure that all young
people who leave education have a guaranteed opportunity for further or higher education, training, an
apprenticeship or a job opportunity

✔ We will continue to campaign against the real-terms cuts to school budgets and demand fair funding so
that every child in Watford is provided a high standard of education

✔ Campaign against the Tory County Council’s plans to close libraries or hand them over to private groups

✔ Explore ways of supporting working families

during school holidays. We will oppose the County
Council’s plans to reduce the opening times of
children’s centres in Watford, adding even greater
pressure to families already struggling

✔ Be more proactive at the Town Hall to make sure

the council starts a programme of apprenticeships
across all departments, supporting the initiative by
ensuring private companies we do business with also
have a proper apprenticeship programme

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Our Vision
A Cleaner, Greener Watford: We will significantly increase the amount of recycling in Watford,
improve street cleaning, increase cycling lanes and agree policies with the County Council to
reduce traffic congestion in our town. Labour will propose that Watford joins some 80 other
towns and cities and declares that Watford become a Climate Emergency town https://
climateemergency.uk/ . This will commit our Council to take measures and lead a campaign to
ensure there are zero carbon emissions in our town by 2030 helping to stop climate change
world wide and save our planet.

A Labour Council will...

✔ Work with Arriva buses and others to extend the use of the
Oyster Card and contactless payment to local buses and the St
Albans Abbey to Watford Junction Line

✔ Promote the interest of rail commuters who suffer above

inflation fare rises and campaign to extend Zone 6 to Watford
Junction

✔ Campaign for new rail services from Watford Junction following the re-signaling work. For example, we
want to see enhanced services to East Croydon and more northbound, long-distance trains stopping at
Watford

✔ Provide support for Watford’s beleaguered taxi industry, improving its services and increasing the
number of ranks. We will also allow taxis into the High Street, but not into Wellstones as it is unsuitable

✔ Reintroduce free collections of bulky household items to reduce dumping and fly-tipping, including a
furniture recycling scheme

✔ Make it a priority to renegotiate the street cleaning contract to improve street cleansing

✔ Introduce an enhanced recycling and refuse collection scheme to reduce the amount going into landfill,
including better information on how to recycle

✔ Set a target for sustainable waste management and recycling based on UN Sustainable Development
goal 12

✔ Work with local businesses to become ‘Refill Champions’, allowing for free refills of water bottles in
order to save on plastic bottles, in partnership with the ‘Refill’ campaign

✔ Encourage developers and housing associations to build carbon-neutral housing, to use clean energy
and include green roofs in their planning applications

✔ Work with the County Council to provide more safe cycling routes across Watford. We will introduce a
publicly accessible electric bicycle scheme like those which have been successful in Milton Keynes

✔ Ensure that every council-controlled car park has an electric car charging point and encourage other
privately-controlled car parks to provide the same facilities 9
Our Vision

A Healthier Watford: Working in partnership with the NHS and Herts County Council (HCC)
to secure major investment in our local healthcare services, integrated with social care.
We will campaign for the long-overdue new hospital to be built in Watford.

“I am very worried about our hospital. It has not received the investment it
desperately needs and it is £58million in debt and running out of money. The Mayor
and MP say little—neither have they secured the additional funding the hospital
requires. I trust Labour to fight for a better deal for our local hospital and secure the
world-class healthcare Watford deserves” - Helena Farrington, Nurse, Watford
In 2008, Labour agreed to guarantee the funding for the hospital modernisation within the new Health
Campus, but in 2011 the new Tory/Lib Dem coalition government withdrew that guarantee and told the
West Hertfordshire Hospitals Trust to raise the money itself.
Nine years later, the NHS Trust applied for £500-£600million investment in all three hospitals in West
Herts, including for the rebuilding of Watford General Hospital. Watford Labour wholeheartedly supports
this application.
The Tory Government has now offered a
£350million loan paid in instalments. This is
not enough.
We strongly oppose those who are still trying
to sabotage the redevelopment by arguing
unrealistically for a new hospital on a green-
field site somewhere else in the county. That
proposal would but rebuilding plans back
years and Watford would lose its general
hospital.
The question is: What are the Tory MP and
Lib Dem Mayor doing? They make local
statements of support for our hospital, but why are they not campaigning and lobbying Government for
the necessary level of investment?
Only Labour fights for Watford General Hospital and the funding it desperately needs and only Labour will
deliver the necessary investment to provide world-class healthcare for residents in Watford.

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A Labour Council will...

✔ Support the West Herts Hospitals NHS

Trust’s plans to rebuild our hospital on the
Watford site and campaign for £600million
government capital investment in this
project

✔ Campaign for investment in our local

mental health and community healthcare
services and oppose further curs and
privatisation of NHS services

✔ Campaign for the scrapping of hospital

car parking charges

✔ Scrutinise and publish statistics of healthcare locally in an accessible way so that everyone can see how
our local NHS is performing

✔ Start a ‘Watford Walks’ campaign encouraging people to walk more, helping to improve health and
reduce the build-up of traffic. Install street signs highlighting walking times between key areas/landmarks

✔ Support a ‘Time to Talk’ initiative—facilitating meetings where people can discuss problems and issues
they face in their daily lives. We shall explore
setting up a network or support group as part
of this campaign

✔ Run a ‘Care to Check-Check to Care’

campaign encouraging people to perform self-
checks for health issues in order to combat
preventable illnesses and diseases

✔ Provide funding for sports days/park days

for 13-18 year-olds to promote an active
lifestyle and help relieve school and exam
pressures

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