Free fire safety checks by Fire Brigade
News from the Borough Fire Commander:
London Fire Brigade are offering free home fire safety checks to residents. They will even fit a free smoke alarm where needed.
To ask for a visit and check you should
- call them free on 08000 28 44 28
- or email them at smokealarms@london-fire.gov.uk.
You can also request a visit on behalf of a family member or friend.
Surgery tomorrow
The next advice surgery for Surbiton Hill residents takes place at School Lane Community Centre (by the gates of Tolworth Infants and Juniors) tomorrow, Saturday 20th Jume, between 10.30 a.m. and 12. There won’t be prizes but Nick will be dispensing good advice and help!
‘Phishing’ – PLEASE be careful
The other day I had an email that said it came from Lloyds TSB and it wanted to protect me from fraudulent use of my on-line banking facility. It went on to say that, if I didn’t respond to their action by clicking on a link embedded in the email, my account could be suspended.
This one looked very authentic and didn’t have the poor English that often gives these things away. I contacted Lloyds TSB and RBK Trading Standards. This and similar ‘requests’ are fraudulent and come from overseas. Trading Standards have referred this one to the Office of Fair Trading.
Please be alert yourselves and warn friends and relatives about scams of this kind. The process is called ‘phishing’ and the people who do it are trying to net your bank account details. Just delete any such message you receive and, if you feel any qualms about the safety of your account, get in touch with your bank.
Tube strike: Letter from Boris Johnson
This has just been received from the Mayor of London about the threatened tube strike next week:-
Dear Paul,
As you will have heard, the RMT leadership have confirmed they are going on strike from 7pm tonight, for 48 hours. Londoners and commuters trying to do their level best to cope with the most challenging economic climate for a long time will be furious with this decision.
It is quite simply outrageous for the leadership of the RMT to ask their members, the majority of whom did not vote for this strike, to take part in this ludicrous and unnecessary disruption to our city.
Talks were going well last night, and agreement was in sight. But at the last minute, the RMT leadership put in a demand that London Underground re-instate two drivers sacked for serious disciplinary offences – throwing a huge spanner in the works.
We will do our utmost to keep Londoners moving while the implacable RMT leadership continue to posture. My message to the RMT is that strike action will not move the prospect of a deal an inch closer. I urge them to stop disrupting the lives of millions of people, put the needs of their members and of Londoners first, get back to the table and reach an agreement.
I am determined to do everything in my power to help make your journey as hassle free as possible during the strike. I’ve set out below some of the alternative measures available to keep London moving. There will be more buses, more river services, taxi sharing and opportunities to cycle. For up to the minute travel information and more options, please visit www.tfl.gov.uk.
Over the next two days, those staff not on strike will be doing their best to keep London moving. These will be the unsung heroes, the hard working men and women who take pride in delivering a great service. It will be a tough time for everyone, and I ask for your patience.
All the best,
Boris Johnson
Beware ‘The Voice’!
The Lib Dems are trying to latch on to the Gurkhas story in a ‘newspaper’ headed ‘The Voice’.
Having just celebrated forcing the Government to give them one, this leaflet asks readers to sign a petition for ‘a fair deal for Gurkhas’ (in large letters) ! On the face of it, then, the petition is superfluous at best.
What it really wants is the details of your name, address, email address, mobile number and landline number so that Lib Dem activists can pester you in future – it even says so in very small print, thus skirting round the Data Protection Act. None of this information is relevant to this ‘petition’. Our advice is not to sign it at all, but if you do, confine yourself to name and address only and state that you do not wish to be included on any database held by the Lib Dems for any purpose.
It also invites you to join the Lib Dems or make a donation. It is fair enough to invite people to join or donate to a political party. We do it all the time – but to do it under cover of helping a justly admired and unfairly treated group of soldiers strikes me as beneath contempt.
Action by local people on tipping
From the ‘Surrey Comet’ today (see link in the sidebar)
Residents living near a fly-tipping hot spot in Surbiton have rallied together to tackle the problem themselves.
People living in Rose Walk, Berrylands, are forming their own residents’ association because the graffiti and rubbish dumped in their private road became too much to bear.
Police have recommended lockable posts be put up at the entrance to the private road to stop vans driving down to dump building waste.
Plasterer Bruce Barry, 41, who has been organising the project, said it had bonded neighbours who previously never spoke.
He said: “There are certain neighbours in our road who are elderly and it’s a friendly face.
“It’s pulled the community together, we have meetings in the Berrylands pub and it’s a chance to get together.”
The 30-strong group has applied to Kingston Council for funding but said they would put in the labour themselves.
I hope they turn up to the next Neighbourhood meeting and raise the matter there at Question Time. I can guarantee them a positive welcome from some of the members.
Surbiton Forum 