The Bristol Cable - Issue 26 by Bristol Cable

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Issue No26 - July-Sep 2021 Made free by members

“Turning down an MBE? It was one of the quickest decisions of my life” Interview with author Nikesh Shukla Page 26

Revealed: West of England Mayor and the failed bid to log timber on rainforest island Page 11

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Environment: Glyphosate spray > p.13

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If you have a story, or a tip-off please get in touch: content@thebristolcable.org thebristolcable.org/got-a-story 07533718547 | The Station, Silver Street, Bristol, BS1 2AG Media team Matty Edwards, Alon Aviram, Hannah Vickers, Adam Cantwell-Corn, Aphra Evans Print production coordination Matty Edwards Production team Alex Turner, Arvind Howarth, Emily Williams. David Sinden Print design Laurence Ware - laurence-ware.com Print advertising Alison Fraser, Michael York Tech team Mat Alborough, Will Franklin Marcus Valentine - xtreamlab.net Membership team: Lucas Batt, Marianne Brooker, Adam CantwellCorn, Will Franklin, Matty Edwards

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Contents 4-5 What the Cable has been up to 6 Sport Why Bristol Rovers have joined the campaign for football reform 7 Housing High-rises under scrutiny as council considers demolishing social housing 9 Leisure Swimming in Bristol Harbour is possible. How can we make it happen? 11 Investigation West of England Mayor was director of a business that tried to profit from logging rainforest

Distribution team: Scatha Jones, Neill Talbot, Katendi Heald,Bethany Roberts, Charles Qualmann, Hannah Green Workplace coordination We don’t have a boss at the Cable, we organise ourselves! People and Forums: Lucas Batt, Will Franklin, Hannah Vickers, Mat Alborough Development: Adam Cantwell-Corn, Marianne Brooker Resources: Lucas Batt, Adam Cantwell-Corn, Alon Aviram Front page photo Aphra Evans

13 Environment A toxic chemical is still being sprayed in Bristol despite pledges

25 People’s history Bristol’s first female councillor: From factory boss’s daughter to community organiser

16 Photoessay Snapshots from community photo project in St Anne’s

26 Cover story Author Nikesh Shukla on racism, inspiring young people and turning down an MBE

18 Covid-19 Long Covid and the frontline of mass unemployment 20 Avonmouth explosion New details of the deadly blast at Wessex Water plant have come to light 22 Housing The Police and Crime Bill leaves travelling communities fearful for the future

28 Education How can schools address the long-term impacts of the pandemic? 30 Solutions A space for people to come together: the Bristol Unemployed Workers’ Centre 31 Opinion ‘Saving’ every tree is environmental nonsense

Front page illustration Sophia Checkley

Special thanks to… Mike Jempson, Jennifer Bartle Elected Directors: Julia Beasley, Ben Harris, Laura Williams, Abdi Mohamed, Roseanna Dias, Kate Oliver, Yuliya Kosharevska, Alain Demontoux Thanks to the Reva and David Logan Foundation, Luminate and the Centre for Investigative Journalism for their continued support.

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The saying that ‘journalism is the first rough draft of history’ should be thrown into the scrapheap of tired and overused metaphors. At the Cable, our small team of reporters are certainly not detached chroniclers of unfolding news events. Instead, the stories we carefully handpick and craft for your attention seek different ends. We aim to untangle complex issues, table dissenting voices, like author Nikesh Shukla on declining an MBE, and platform solutions, like Bristol Rovers’ campaign for football reform and the campaign for open water swimming in Bristol Harbour. Shedding light on those in public office and private business is also what we strive to do. In this issue, for example, we reveal that the West of England Mayor was a director of a company which tried (and failed!) to log rainforest on a conflict-ridden island, and that toxic chemicals are still being sprayed in Bristol despite council pledges. We have another unconventional aim. If after reading this paper cover-to-cover, you leave nodding and agreeing with it all, then thank you, but unfortunately, we have failed at our task. Change to: Challenging times call for our assumptions to be challenged – take this edition’s opinion piece on why saving every tree is nonsense. This retreat into echo chambers and bubbles needs to be avoided. That’s why it’s important the Cable’s 2,600+ members come from all parts of the city and walks of life with a world of opinions and ideas, but have made a common commitment to improve journalism in this great city. So thanks to each and every one of you.

Massive thanks to the 2,600+ members who make all this possible! and to all contributors, sources and contacts.

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WHAT THE CABLE HAS BEEN UP TO Over almost seven years, we’ve built a huge community around the Cable. At the moment this paper went to print, we’re supported by 2,600+ members across Bristol. Every investigation we run or documentary we produce, every free edition of this newspaper, is made possible by people like you. Members contribute anything from £1 per month to enable us to continue our trusted local journalism. But they aren’t just buying papers for themselves, they’re helping to keep our journalism free for others too. Each one of our 2,600+ members is also a co-owner of the Cable. Our journalists are accountable to the people of Bristol, not corporate bosses, advertisers and shareholders. When you join, you become part of a powerful community of local people working together to redefine local media. We’ve set ourselves the target of 3,000 members by the autumn. Over the next few months we’ll be talking with local people about their vision for the Cable, and about why local media matters. We’ll share their stories, and together we’ll be asking our friends, families and neighbours to join us. Join the Cable, and support 100% community-owned local media, for everyone.

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Growing the Cable team to build a new model for media Our team just keeps growing! This year, we’ve invested in expanding our staff team, with two new people – Marianne and Aphra – joining our coop to work on communications and on video journalism. But it doesn’t end there. We’ve also been thinking about how to take care of the behind-the-scenes work that keeps our cooperative ticking over smoothly. For this, we’re hiring a new Workplace Coordinator, who will help manage our finances, administration and governance. As well as the all-important admin, this coordinator will work with us to develop our caring and cooperative approach. This is a really exciting role that will help us develop how we work as a team, together with our board of directors.

Cable journalist speaks on police violence at parliamentary inquiry In March we reported extensively on the Kill the Bill protests in Bristol, live tweeting blow-by-blow events as they happened. We reported on the first protest that turned into a riot outside Bridewell police station, and then on police conduct during the subsequent protests. As a result of our in-depth, on-the-ground coverage, we were invited to give evidence at a cross-party inquiry. Cable journalist Hannah Vickers shared what she’d seen along with accounts from interviewees. Evidence of police violence led to MPs and peers finding ‘significant failings’ in police conduct, including use of excessive force and apparent revenge policing. Their findings prompted the Inquiry to recommend the removal of clauses from the Police and Crime Bill that would give police extra powers when policing protests. The Cable's honest and independent journalism gave wider visibility to policing in Bristol, and contributed to wider structures of accountability and scrutiny in our parliamentary system.

A national effort to change the media At least 265 local newspaper titles have closed since 2005. 80% of those that remain are owned by just five companies. Quality local journalism is being squeezed out as newspapers are bought and merged, leaving little room for investigating the issues that matter. But that’s why the Bristol Cable exists – we know local newspapers are an essential part of our communities and city, and that a new, better model and approach is needed. We’ve been promoting our cooperative model in conversations and events across Europe and the UK over the seven years we’ve been around. But the model by itself is not enough: it needs support. It takes a lot to get a new local newspaper off the ground. We’ve been advocating for governments to develop policies that will make it easier for more local media co-ops like the Cable to get started. We need governments to commit to building a solid, supportive base from which local, community-owned media can grow. We recently submitted evidence to the House of Lords inquiry into the future of local media, and spoke to policy-makers at the Institute of Welsh Affairs and Westminster Media Forum, raising the voice of independent local media at the highest levels of policy-making, and making the case for a new, community-driven approach to local media.

Shining a light on autism injustice

What will you get up to this summer? Bristol is rising to the challenge of filling the summer full of great events - online, outdoors and inside. Visit the Cable’s Community Calendar to explore a huge range of activities happening in the city - from festivals and exhibitions, to political organising, sports clubs and support groups. Whether you're organising an event or meeting yourself, or just keen to share your favourite activity with others, the Community Calendar is free to contribute to and free to browse. Get involved:

In June, Gaby Gillespie contacted the Cable about her son Luke. He has learning disabilities following a number of serious brain injuries, but has been subjected to abuse and neglect after spending years going from one inappropriate placement to another. Gaby was incredibly nervous about speaking to the media after a traumatic experience in her past. But she agreed to speak to Cable reporter Matty Edwards, because of his previous reporting on mental health services. Her story and the experience of two other families formed part of an independent review by Sir Stephen Bubb, who is best known for his report into the Winterbourne View care scandal. Our investigation into the findings of the report shone a light on serious failings by different agencies in Bristol of people with autism and learning disabilities in Bristol. Recommendations will hopefully be turned into reform to make sure what happened to Gaby and the other families never happens again.

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English football is dominated by big clubs and billionaire owners. But calls for a fairer football pyramid are more prominent than ever Words Tom Metcalfe Illustration Louis Wood

he 2020/21 season started with Rovers fans feeling optimistic. Highlyregarded coach Ben Garner was tasked with putting Rovers on a sustainable footing with a new 'DNA' of bringing in young players with potential to sell on. Older experienced players were moved on to make way for a young squad full of potential. Unfortunately, the results on the pitch weren’t sustainable and, despite the efforts of managers Paul Tisdale and then Joey Barton, Rovers were relegated back to League Two, finishing rock bottom. Dropping down a division has severe financial implications for Rovers. In 2019, the average League One club had a revenue of £7.9 million, a League Two club just £3.8 million. The drop in ‘solidarity payments’ from the Premier League, a smaller

slice of the £595m TV deal and lower attendances mean the drive to make the club sustainable is even more important. Rovers are in £24m of debt to their owner Wael Al-Qadi, which is only sustainable while he is happy to underwrite the losses. In light of this, Rovers have joined the Fair Game coalition. This new campaign group of 18 clubs (and counting) is calling for an overhaul of football governance centred around four principles of sustainability, integrity, transparency and community. The timing couldn't be better, with the government announcing a fan-led review of football as a reaction to the fallout from the European Super League – the plans by six of Englands ‘top’ clubs to join an invite-only breakaway league without relegation for the twelve ‘founder’ members. This was met with widespread fan anger and

protests at grounds up and down the country. Players, managers and pundits (most notably Gary Neville) alike also played their part in forcing the clubs to withdraw and issue grovelling apologies for signing up. “We believe that not only do we have the responsibility to do our best for the football club but we also have a responsibility to the wider game,” Tom Gorringe, executive director of Bristol Rovers, told the Cable. “The football pyramid in this country is the best in the world and the clubs within it have played a key role in communities up and down the country for decades. Safeguarding these institutions whilst looking to build the foundations of the game in this country to thrive in the future is what we are looking to achieve through our association with Fair Game.” Fair Game are working on con-

crete solutions to present to the fanled review, which they have described as a “once in a lifetime opportunity”. The first change wanted by Fair Game is an independent regulator for football. The demise of Bury FC has shown how little power the regulating bodies of the Football Association and English Football League have to punish bad behaviour by awful owners. This new regulator would have the power to put clubs into ‘special measures’, much like Ofsted could at a school in trouble. The regulator would have real-time access to club finances to make sure issues are addressed before clubs are in serious trouble. Nowhere is the need for tighter financial controls more pronounced than in the Championship, the league that City are in and Rovers have been aiming for in recent years. A 2020 report from Deloitte found that on average Championship clubs were spending 107% of revenue on player wages. This is driven by ‘parachute payments’ given from clubs who have been relegated from the Premier League to soften the financial blow. In practice this kicks off an arms race where owners will wildly overspend to secure promotion back to the Premier League for just one season, knowing the financial rewards if they beat the drop or not. The second major change Fair Game wants to see is parachute payments scrapped and instead the money shared between clubs being run sustainably, according to an index that measures clubs against four tests: equality standards, clear governance, fan engagement and financial sustainability. This would encourage owners to behave responsibly. For example spending more than 70% of revenue on wages would be a failure of the last of the four tests. Rovers have started preparing for life in League Two with seventeen players leaving the club and seven coming in so far. Joey Barton has torn up the ‘DNA’ plan by signing proven experienced players on free transfers. Fans are hoping that adding experience to a squad containing plenty of talent will be a recipe for promotion back to League One. But longer term, Rovers want to change the game so that dropping a division doesn’t mean a huge and potentially deadly drop in revenue. ■

The Dove Street estate’s three 15-storey towers – Armada House, Carolina House and Fremantle House – can be seen across Bristol. Large areas of space between the blocks, mostly occupied by garages and concrete plazas, mean the number of homes on the site could be increased either by building in the gaps or, if the estate was demolished, by rebuilding at a higher density.

Armada House

Carolina House

Fremantle House

High-rises under scrutiny as council weighs whether to rebuild social housing Homes at Kingsdown and Lawrence Weston are the first focus of estate regeneration plans, but new housing boss pledges to put tenants at heart of decisions over whether any blocks come down Words Alex Turner

everal of Bristol’s landmark social housing towers are under scrutiny as the council considers pursuing demolition plans. The Dove Street estate, built in the 1960s after Georgian homes were cleared between Stokes Croft and High Kingsdown, is one of two sites being looked at in detail by officers, cabinet member for housing Tom Renhard told the Cable. The other is Vincent Close in Lawrence Weston, where eight blocks sit in green space near Kingsweston Lane. Renhard said no decisions had been taken on either estate’s future. “To be clear, even the options for Dove Street, being looked at internally at the moment, are more to do with infill [building in open spaces between blocks], or partial rebuild, rather than wholesale demolition”, he said. But Renhard did not rule out housing at either site, or elsewhere, eventually coming down, as the local authority grapples with how to improve and decarbonise its homes. Restating a promise made last spring by his predecessor, Paul

Smith, he said council tenants would be consulted fully over proposals, including having a veto over whether any homes are demolished. He added that he did not expect detailed proposals to come back before councillors until late 2021. By this time, the council is due to have completed a delayed 30-year plan for managing its housing revenue account (HRA) – the part of its finances handling council housing income and spending. Rent freeze impact Unlike other major English cities – many of which razed thousands of homes from the 1990s onward, or transferred stock to housing associations – Bristol has kept most of its council housing. It is considering demolishing some now for several reasons. One is money. A tool commissioned by the council has enabled detailed projections on how much its homes will earn or lose over 30 years. Almost 6,000 homes, nearly a quarter of Bristol’s 27,000, are seen as posing a future financial risk. A further 5,000 have

been assessed as ‘marginal’. Ironically, officers’ reports have said Bristol’s low council rents – which the Labour administration was criticised for freezing ahead of May’s elections – are a key reason why so many homes do not create enough income. Data released to the Cable under the Freedom of Information Act shows Kingsdown, where Dove Street accounts for the vast majority of council homes, losing the council most – roughly £40,000 per home over 30 years. Many other estates deemed financially ‘negative’ are also dominated by blocks of flats, which are often more expensive to maintain and to make energy-efficient. The latter is crucial because Bristol needs to retrofit homes to help meet its aspiration of being carbon neutral by 2030. The council has also rated its estates using a ‘social score’. This considers things like nuisance complaint levels, and how quickly people try to move on from estates after getting housed. The experience of lockdown underlined that many families are stuck in social housing that does not meet their needs.

Privatisation fears But low financial and social scores do not guarantee estates will be put forward for demolition. Knocking down and rebuilding is so expensive that only sites able to accommodate extra housing – meaning homes for sale could also be built to pay for replacement social housing – are likely to be considered. Dove Street and Vincent Drive fit those criteria. But in the case of the former – and other inner-city estates – there are fears its prime location could tempt the council to go into partnership with developers. In London, some estates redeveloped this way have ended up with vastly reduced numbers of social homes, with original tenants dispersed. Renhard said he had “no idea” whether, with the rent freeze having also reduced its borrowing capacity, the council could end up entering this kind of arrangement. But he said he stood by Smith’s pledges, which also included ensuring any social homes demolished would be replaced at least one-for-one. This should be the minimum commitment, said Tony Dyer, the Green Party’s shadow cabinet member for housing. “Estate regeneration has a bad reputation, largely because of the approach taken by some councils in which tenants’ views have been marginalised and council homes have not been replaced”, he said. “But if done right, rebuilding some existing estates could allow for more effective use of brownfield land and allow us to deliver truly affordable housing”, Dyer added. “It could also allow us to deliver housing that moves us towards carbon zero, and reduces pressure to build on green space.” ■

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Why Bristol Rovers have joined the campaign for football reform

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Swimmers defy the ban and take a dip in Bristol’s harbour Photo: Swim Bristol Harbour

Copenhagen’s Island Brygge Harbour Bath has five different pools of different depths, including a children’s pool Photo: JDS Architects

We talk to Julien De Smedt, the architect behind Copenhagen’s first and best-known swimming harbour bath, and Johnny Palmer, founder of local campaign group Swim Bristol Harbour, about what it takes to make a harbour swimmable Words Marcus Smith

here is much talk lately about being allowed to swim in Bristol Harbour, with frequent ‘splash mobs’, features on local television and even articles in national newspapers. Bristol isn’t the only place harbour swimming has been considered. Cities across Europe and around the world are increasingly permitting swimming in their harbours. One of the best examples is in Copenhagen, with designer Julien De Smedt, founder and director of JDS Architects, calling it “probably one of our most iconic projects”. “It’s quite a simple and modest project, but it has transformed the harbour and, to a certain extent, Copenhagen itself… It kicked off a whole new behaviour towards public space and interaction in the urban realm, which has really put the city on the map.” The first of four harbour baths opened in 2002, after a decadelong clean-up of the Copenhagen harbour, which included investing in a complete upgrade of the local sewage system. Today, more than 100,000 people en-

joy a swim in one of the outdoor swimming facilities each year. One of the most popular baths, located near the city centre at Island Brygge, was designed by Julien. It has a total of five separate pools with a capacity of up to 600 people. Harbour swimming ‘is a nobrainer. All cities should do it’ Evidence suggests that wild and cold water swimming can help reduce body pain, boost your immune system, manage stress and anxiety, and increase alertness and energy levels. Doctors are increasingly recommending cold water swimming as a treatment for many ailments. Johnny Palmer, founder of Swim Bristol Harbour, a local group campaigning for access to swim in the city’s harbour and waterways, tells me that “it’s great for overcoming depression for a lot of people, reducing loneliness, breathing deep in cold water and getting exercise.” So why does Bristol not just get on with it? At time of printing, they'd just revealed plans for what it could look like, drawn up by London-

“There's an assumption in our society that everything good has to cost money” based architects Studio Octopi. The council recently called for an end to the ‘splash mobs’, saying it was looking into whether swimming could be allowed in the city’s docks but that currents and changing water quality made it dangerous in the meantime. In the past two years, Avon Fire & Rescue Service has responded to more than 70 water incidents in Bristol alone and 25 of those have resulted in serious injury or death. There are also concerns of gentrification, as some property values in Copenhagen near the harbour baths have increased by up to 100%. I ask Johnny, also the owner of the Warleigh Weir Project, a popular wild swimming spot in Bath, how Bristol can best overcome these obstacles.

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This is how we can make Bristol Harbour swimmable

“Dirty water is not true. Look at the Bristol City Council water quality testing… it consistently comes up as excellent to good in terms of bathing water standards as defined by DEFRA.” Johnny goes on, “Now, the people who have died in the harbour, it's a sensitive issue… but consistently people that drown never intended to get in the water in the first place. And there’s normally alcohol involved and it's late at night.” As for gentrification, Johnny argues that the harbour is in the city centre and therefore accessible to all Bristolians. “Let’s do something on a small and safe basis and see what works and what doesn’t. Then we’ve got something real to argue about.” “There’s an assumption in our society that everything good has to cost money. It doesn't necessarily… We already have the harbour. We already have steps going in there. We’d like to initially bring things like life buoys and lane makers, which is stuff we could fund.” “So there would be zero cost to the taxpayer for our first step.” Swimming in Copenhagen’s harbour is only allowed within the harbour baths and designated bathing areas. Most of the baths are free admission and controlled by lifeguards, also the water quality is checked daily and must be approved by authorities before swimmers can enter. I ask Julien if Bristol should just go for it and find the money to replicate the Copenhagen Model. “This kind of project… it’s a low investment and a very high return, and if you can quantify people’s happiness more than money, then it’s even higher.” “To me it is a no-brainer type of project. All cities should do it.” ■

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West of England Mayor directed business that tried to profit from logging on conflictridden island The company had an offshore investment with plans for logging in West Papua, but Norris says he wasn’t involved Words Alon Aviram Illustration Sophia Checkley

• During his 2021 campaign for West of England Mayor, Dan Norris’s team sold the backstory of a former MP and child protection officer committed to an environmental agenda, but skipped mention of his four-year-long directorship of Blakemere PLC between 2013 and 2017. • A Bristol Cable investigation has found that while Dan Norris was company director, Blakemere PLC invested in a tax haven registered business that tried to profit from logging timber in West Papua, on the island of New Guinea, just north of Australia. • But the company’s logging ambitions ultimately failed, in a business venture described by one insider as all “smoke and mirrors”. • Dan Norris told the Cable he provided environmental advice to the company with respect to a separate investment in British ceramics and was unpaid. The company’s sole shareholder, Mohammed Suleman, denied the land in question was virgin rainforest. • However, the ceramics venture failed early on. And for several years during Norris’ directorship, the business sought to profit from Indonesian timber, which a company insider said was a massive swathe of virgin rainforest in the conflict-ridden and contested territory of West Papua – one of the most biodiverse habitats on earth

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INVESTIGATION

n 2013, a businessman in Bristol was appointed director of Blakemere PLC. It was a routine appointment in UK Companies House for just another company with a nondescript title. But that is where the ordinary in this story begins and ends. Blakemere had acquired shares in a tax haven registered company that owned the rights to the equivalent of about 168,000 rugby union pitches of forest in West Papua – an Indonesian island territory rife with human and environmental abuses. The plan, according to company documents and insider sources, was to log the timber, which was reportedly valued at $890m. Blakemere boasted an impressive set of less than a dozen directors. Board members hailed from military, petrochemical and political backgrounds. The businessman from Bristol was in fact a former Labour MP and junior environment minister, Dan Norris, who had lost his parliamentary seat in 2010. The man who went on to become Metro Mayor for the West of England in May 2021 was joined on the board in 2014 by former trade minister Nigel Griffiths, another New Labour era politician. When contacted for comment, Norris did not respond to a number of questions about his involvement in the company, or the ethics of its logging plans. But the Metro Mayor told the Cable: “I was an unpaid director of a friend’s small business for four years until 2017. It was set up to provide information for niche British manufacturing businesses. “I provided basic advice on potential environmental issues with respect to a UK ceramics factory.” But by 2014, within a year of Norris joining, the company board on which he sat reported its ceramics acquisition to be “non-performing” and was “looking to realise a return by a sale of the business and assets.” And the following year’s accounts appear to show that the ceramics venture was sold. Norris meanwhile stayed on as a director until 2017, as the logging plans appear to have continued. When asked why he maintained his directorship, Norris did not answer.

A tax haven and a rainforest By 2013, the year Norris became director, Blakemere had acquired over £10 million worth of shares in an Isle of Man company called Darnmore Limited. After the ceramics investment collapsed, this shareholding appears to have been the main investment, according to publicly available company documents. Darnmore Ltd owned a license in Indonesia, through a local subsidiary in West Papua, to run a plantation, according to Isle of Man company filings reviewed by the Cable. The subsidiary, Darnmore Bayupermai Industries, owned the rights to 168,000 hectares of timber in West Papua. With one hectare the equivalent size of one rugby union pitch, the asset was valued at “circa USD $890m”, according to the accounts of the company Norris directed, Blakemere. Logging was not uncharted territory for Darnmore Bayupermai. It had connections to a powerful Malaysian family with sugar plantation interests, according to forestry experts monitoring environmental and human rights abuses in the region, and Indonesian company documents analysed by the Cable. Blakemere’s board was said to be confident that it would see a return on its Indonesian investment within two to three years, while Norris was director, as stated in publicly available accounts. The Cable asked Norris to explain his ethical considerations regarding Blakemere’s investment in a tax haven registered company with a stake in a West Papuan timber concession, a region where environmental and human rights abuses are rife. But Norris did not respond. ‘Smoke and mirrors’ The controlling hand behind the business venture that ultimately went pear-shaped was Blakemere’s and Darnmore’s sole shareholder, a man called Mohammed Suleman. A company insider, tracked down by the Cable, described Suleman as “a strange character, dressed as the archetypal Englishman, almost a bowler hat

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Dan Norris and the timber connection

Dan Norris A director between 2013 - 2017

Blakemere PLC Shareholder

Darnmore Ltd

Isle of Man

Parent company

Darnmore Bayupermai

West Papua (illustrative purposes only) Photo: Nanang Sujana

Indonesia

Concession holder

West Papua Timber concession

and a rolled up umbrella.” Peculiarly, the elusive entrepreneur also sells the red ministerial briefcases that are held up by the Chancellor of the Exchequer outside Downing Street each budget day. Suleman’s vision was to land investment from wealthy backers from Arabian Gulf states to finance the logging of Indonesian timber and have it shipped to Chinese markets through a Singaporean middleman, according to the company insider. ADVERTISEMENT

When asked to comment on the company’s intention, Suleman did not directly respond but provided a message through Norris’s mayoral office. He told the Cable: “No virgin rainforest land was ever discussed for development by Blakemere.” “The early stage plan did not go ahead,” he added. “If it had proceeded, it would have been with the full consent of the indigenous landowners to provide housing, power, water and schools. “Within the 168,000ha, there is

land that had already been cultivated and replanted by previous operators,” Suleman added. But when asked if the timber intended for felling was virgin forest, a source close to the company remarked: “Oh God, yes.” Specialist investigators said that the West Papua regions of Merauke and Mappi, where the company held logging licenses, as seen by the Cable, contain large swathes of virgin forest, though some areas have already been felled. Lela Stanley, Senior Forests Investigator at Global Witness, said: “It takes tropical rainforests many decades, even centuries, to fully recover from being logged. Papua and West Papua have lost hundreds of thousands of hectares of forest to logging and deforestation in just the last few years.” As well as large-scale logging of pristine rainforest by local and multinational companies, the Indonesian military has operated a brutal occupation in West Papua, and there are ongoing reports by international monitors of human rights and environmental atrocities. There is no suggestion that Blakemere PLC, or either of the Darnmore companies, or any associated directors, were involved in human rights or environmental violations. West Papua is also one of the most dangerous places on earth for journalists, with even the United Nations’ special rapporteur refused entry by Indonesian authorities. The island is immensely rich in natural resources, with an abundance of timber, copper and gold, and native forests replaced with palm oil and sugar cane plantations. Yet the ethnic Melanesian population is the poorest in Indonesia and its colonies.

One Blakemere company insider told the Cable that, while the timber was supposedly valued at $890m, the logistical challenge of getting the wood to market was overwhelming: “The assets were there, but there would be a huge logistical problem in getting them to the coast and ships… It was pretty wild, desperate country.” In its last set of published company accounts in 2015, the company that Norris directed, Blakemere, stated that Darnmore was still in negotiations to start “forestry operations,” but this was subject to a “continuing stable political environment within the region.” The Blakemere board, however, reported it was still confident in its investment. In the end, be it because of political instability or the inability to secure start-up capital, Blakemere’s Indonesian El Dorado dreams came crashing down and the company was struck off in 2018. “Any suggestion that the company would derive an immediate benefit is ludicrous”, Suleman wrote to the Cable through Dan Norris’s office. “All shares were dissolved when the company, which had no future, was dissolved, and no profit was made”, he added. West Papua England The newly-elected West of England Mayor maintains he only advised Blakemere on “potential environmental issues with respect to a UK ceramics factory.” But when asked by the Cable, Norris did not explain why he remained on Blakemere’s board for a further three years after the ceramics venture appears to have gone to pot, and the logging plans within the rainforests of West Papua were Blakemere’s major investment. The West of England Mayor’s office told the Cable that by the time the company collapsed, Norris had made “no investment in the company nor received any payment or financial benefit.” While the business venture was unsuccessful, questions may remain about the judgement of Metro Mayor Norris in directing a company that tried to profit from logging within one of Asia’s last remaining rainforests. ■

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That circle of dead grass or shrivelled weeds surrounding a bench in a park is probably caused by a weed killer at the centre of a long-running controversy Words Adam Cantwell-Corn

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ported on the results of the vinegar trial. The report stated that a total move away from glyphosate could not be justified in terms of cost and the council’s legal duty to maintain the city. Like weeds, glyphosate keeps cropping up. In 2018, amid a flurry of litigation, a court in San Francisco awarded damages of $289m to a school’s groundskeeper who claimed Monsanto's popular Roundup glyphosate weed killer contributed to his terminal cancer, and that the company had failed to adequately warn of the risks of the product. The ruling and others that followed prompted a closer look at the chemical globally. In the UK, the trade union GMB, that represents workers who may use the product, called for a ban, while councils all over the country began talking about phasing out usage.

Going through the motions Prompted by a growing local campaign, in January 2019 Bristol’s councillors and the mayor voted in favour of an anti-glyphosate council motion. The motion requested the mayor to set up a task force to phase out glyphosate totally within three years; by January 2022. It would be fair to say that glyphosate might not be a top priority. But five years after the mayor’s election and six months before the council’s target date for total phase out, hundreds of litres of glyphosate are being used in Bristol’s green spaces, parks, pavements. Data obtained by the Cable does show a major reduction in glyphosate-based supplies spending by the council, from a peak of £19,000 in 2017/18 to £9,000, in 2020/21. However, this does not account for the significant usage by the private contractors employed by the council to deliver the bulk of weed control. Information on this is not publicly available. When asked in July 2021 whether the actions agreed in the council motion were being delivered, the council declined to answer directly. A spokesperson said: “The 10 year One City Ecological Emergency

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eveloped initially to strip mineral deposits from pipes in commercial hot-water systems, glyphosate was repurposed as a weed-killing herbicide by Monsanto, the notorious corporate agricultural giant. It hit the headlines in 2015 when the World Health Organisation reported that sustained exposure is ‘probably carcinogenic’ to humans, in addition to other illnesses it is linked to and damage to plants and vital pollinators, such as bees. Though the chemical was within the same broad category as red meat and wood smoke, and Monsanto deployed a mighty lobbying effort to rubbish the report, the cancer connection ignited a wave of campaigns to ban it. Years after efforts to ban glyphosate in Bristol, and pledges by politicians to phase it out, the Cable can reveal that while progress is being made, the toxic chemical is still being used in significant quantities across the city. “It is a postcode lottery as to whether or not your family will be directly exposed to these chemicals” were the words of mayoral hopeful Marvin Rees in April 2016. Rees was commenting on a council-led trial underway in Cotham of using vinegar instead of glyphosate to effectively control weeds. Local campaigners criticised the trial as “destined to fail” for excluding more effective alternatives like mechanical removal or thermal treatments. Within a month, Rees was elected mayor, backed by a manifesto that vowed to “eliminate the use of the most harmful substances and ensure proper safety for employees and contractors using pesticides”. But, in 2017, the council re-

Strategy, formed by organisations throughout the city including the council, has committed to targets to see pesticide use reduced by 50% by 2030.” This is part of a broader and ambitious plan to improve ecological health and biodiversity in the city, for example a recent announcement to scale back grass and verge cutting. However, Sara Venn, a horticulturist, founder of Edible Bristol and anti-glyphosate campaigner, told the Cable: “I was deeply disappointed that the ecological strategy had such a weak commitment to pesticide use.” The council emphasises that glyphosate is officially considered safe. The carcinogenic effects are also disputed, especially with the relatively low levels of exposure experienced in parks, compared to agricultural settings for example. However, in July 2021 research by scientists at the University of Vienna cast doubt on this. The research found that almost all of the corporate-backed scientific studies that informed official licensing decisions did not meet basic standards of scientific rigour, and lacked the types of tests most able to detect cancer risks. The EU is currently considering a renewal of the license amid furious lobbying and campaigning by interested parties. Rees stated in 2016 that “cities such as Edinburgh, Brighton, Glastonbury, Hamburg, Rennes, and Livorno have taken the initiative based on this knowledge [of environmental and health impacts] to ban the use of glyphosate in public spaces”. Rees asked, “Why haven’t we?” In the absence of official action in Bristol, some residents and organisations have taken it upon themselves. Many have made ‘no spray’ pledges, and the community around the estate in High Kingsdown have agreed with the council to take care of the weeds themselves through sustainable means. Venn concluded by saying, “The council are trying, and there is of course a cost implication to non-pesticide alternatives, and we need to have an honest conversation. The reality is without glyphosate we will have weedier streets, and some more pests.” “But you can also call them wild plants and flowers and insects and pollinators. Because a misplaced obsession with ‘tidy’ will not save the world.” ■

ENVIRONMENT

Toxic chemical still sprayed in Bristol despite pledges, but progress is being made

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ST ANNE’S: IN THE BLOCK AND WOODS Look & Learn is an ongoing series of free community photography workshops in Bristol, which most recently took place in St Anne's with locals from the area and UWE Bristol volunteers Alesha Hickmans and Josh Adam Jones. They gave a brief introduction to the technical side of photography, before the group got to grips with digital and analogue cameras. These photos were taken in St Anne's Woods and St Anne's House, where soon two floors will be turned into a creative community hub by Bricks Bristol. The project is supported by Bricks Bristol, UWE Bristol Community Fund and Quartet Community Foundation.

1. Akeylah, who plans to continue exploring photography after the workshops, in St. Anne’s Woods. © Josh Adam Jones

2. Josh demonstrates how to load film into a medium format camera. © Alesha Hickmans

3. St Anne's House has been derelict for over a year. But now Bricks, an organisation which supports Bristol's creative, local and social enterprise communities, is turning it into a creative space for the local area. ©Bricks Bristol

4. The group in St Anne's House, as UWE Bristol Photography volunteer Josh leads a workshop. © Alesha Hickmans.

5. The Look & Learn group reviews and sequences their work with the help of local book maker Lee Elkins. © Alesha Hickmans.

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“It was very scary, with both of us being ill. We wrote our wills”

Long Covid and the key workers on mass unemployment frontline Over a million people are still unwell months after catching Covid-19. With sick pay quickly running out, thousands could lose their jobs and face financial ruin Text Jess Connett Photo Aphra Evans

s the last 16 months’ coronavirus restrictions disappear into the summer air – while infections soar – 1.1 million people in the UK are living with “Long Covid”, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This long-term illness, characterised by symptoms continuing for more than twelve weeks after Covid-19 infection, is associated with symptoms including shortness of breath, fatigue, chest pain, problems concentrating, joint pain and dizziness. Some 473,000 people have had Long Covid for more than six months, and 70,000 for at least a year. For those approaching 12 months of illness, sick pay allowances will soon be exhausted. Many face difficulties negotiating a return to work while

grappling with a debilitating condition; others risk unemployment and financial ruin. The struggle of Long Covid Jo House, who works in education, caught Covid-19 in March 2020 and is still too unwell to work more than one day per week. Jo, her husband, and their son, all got the virus from their neighbour in Bishopston. “We must have had a massive viral load – the symptoms came on really strong,” Jo says. The family experienced headaches, extreme fatigue and shortness of breath. Jo steadily worsened; she was diagnosed with pneumonia and struggled to breathe. “I was gasping, literally crawling on all fours to the bathroom, to have the shower running for the steam.”

“We must have had a massive viral load – the symptoms came on really strong”

With hospitals overwhelmed, Jo was advised to stay home unless her lips turned blue. “It was very scary, with both of us being ill. We wrote our wills.” After several weeks their son recovered. But Jo got new symptoms, which have persisted – heart inflammation, tachycardia (abnormally fast heartbeat), anosmia (total loss of smell) and “brain fog” – and still spends whole days in bed. “It’s a struggle not knowing how long it will last. At three weeks, we were thinking, ‘Hang on – how is this still going?’ but then we were counting the months. Now we’re not even bothering.” Fighting to re-enter the workforce The ONS estimates 114,000 of those living with Long Covid are

been such a battle. Workplaces are just not flexible enough around long-term illness.” Greater employer flexibility is backed by the Society for Occupational Medicine, and could be key to keeping UK services running. In April the British Medical Association (BMA) linked 30,000 NHS absences to Long Covid, and warned that greater absence would affect patient care. Dr Amy Small is among thousands of healthcare professionals who caught Covid-19 at work. “In those early days there wasn’t – and there hasn’t been throughout – adequate PPE,” she told BBC Radio 4’s File on 4. She was sacked as a partner in her GP practice because of her illness, leaving her worried about her mortgage. Workers are also being denied sick pay they qualify for, including at Bristol care provider Alexandra Homes, where ill staff have had to use annual leave. The TUC estimates two million employees are ineligible for sick pay, along with five million selfemployed people. Government

“It’s been such a battle. Workplaces are just not flexible enough around long-term illness” support for these groups, including Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payments, has strict eligibility criteria. Tackling financial hardship Government responses to Long Covid have largely been clinical – £10m has been spent on specialist NHS clinics across England, and national research projects are ongoing at the University of Bristol, Southmead Hospital and children’s hospitals. For Jo, patient advocacy groups, including Long Covid Support, have been invaluable, while being involved in Long Covid studies for the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) was “one of the most satisfying things I’ve done while I’ve been ill.” Patients are responsible for Long Covid being recognised, researched, and even named. But research alone cannot solve the financial problems faced by 36% of people living with the condition, according to the NIHR, particularly while statutory sick pay puts one in four workers “into financial hardship”. The TUC is calling for Long Covid to be recognised as a disability, allowing workers access to legal protection, while the All Party Parliamentary Group on Coronavirus wants it recognised as an occupational disease. Kerry McCarthy, Labour MP

for Bristol East, wrote to the Department of Health last October on behalf of a constituent, asking about support available for people living with Long Covid. Junior health minister Lord Bethell’s reply focused on the NHS Long Covid Plan, which includes funding research. McCarthy told the Cable: “The government needs to take a two-pronged approach. Long Covid sufferers need economic support, so they are not left suffering financial hardship for health-related reasons outside of their control. Failures to recognise Long Covid in the Universal Credit system can mean people are often only entitled to financial help when they first contract Covid-19, despite experiencing debilitating symptoms for many months afterwards.” With Covid-19 cases in Bristol approaching the peak of a third wave, and 95 schools reporting infections as of June 30, Long Covid will affect the city’s employees for months – and perhaps years – to come. ■

Healthwatch Bristol advises anyone experiencing Long Covid to contact their GP or use the NHS’s dedicated Covid recovery website: yourcovidrecovery.nhs.uk

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Jo House tells her story

education workers – the second highest group after healthcare (122,000). Sick pay policies vary hugely, with some employers deferring to statutory sick pay of £95.85 per week – one of Europe’s lowest rates. NHS staff in England and Wales are entitled to a maximum of 12 months sick pay; any more is at managers’ discretion – and inability to return to work could lead to dismissal. This is the same for Jo’s employer, who she asked us not to name. Forced to take sick leave in March 2020, Jo’s allowance is gone. She is attempting to negotiate a new part-time contract, but has felt “pressured to work” while unwell. The standard returnto-work model many employers use, including hers, is to only come back once able to work 50% hours, and committing to going full-time within a month. “I’m being asked, ‘When are you going to work’ – I’ve got no fucking idea. This is a brandnew disease. There are periods when I feel better and do stuff and then I crash again. It’s

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Revealed: No ignition risk assessment in place before Avonmouth explosion, Wessex Water staff allege

It has been over 8 months since the Wessex Water explosion killed four workers. Families, friends, and colleagues await the inquiry’s findings, with no end date in sight Words Alon Aviram

essex Water staff have described their frustration at the slow-paced investigation into the explosion at the Avonmouth plant, which killed four workers, including a sixteen-year-old apprentice, the Cable has heard. The investigation into the explosion, at the Wessex Water recycling plant in Avonmouth in December 2020, is being led by the police, with the support of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Findings are yet to be released from the inquiry into the incident, in which a silo catastrophically exploded. Wessex Water is also conducting an internal investigation into the incident, which is not expected to be released publicly. Sixteen-year-old apprentice

Luke Wheaton, 64-year-old Michael James, 63-year-old Brian Vickery, and 57-year-old Raymond White all died in the blast. Specialist multi-agency inquiries of this kind typically take many months, if not longer, to complete. Some staff are, however, frustrated at the pace and rigour of the investigation into the deaths of their colleagues. While the HSE has conducted in-depth interviews with some Wessex Water employees, the agency is yet to take samples for inspection from the silo that exploded, an insider has alleged. An HSE spokesperson told the Cable it would be inappropriate to comment on the investigation at this time. Following the Avonmouth blast, there was speculation into what the workmen and apprentice were doing on the roof of the silo,

“They are all running off the same technology. The same people have designed them” which contained biosolids – recycled organic matter, such as animal or food waste, to be used by farmers as agricultural fertiliser. The Cable has now learned that the workers who were killed were using disk grinders on the silo, according to two sources with knowledge of the investigation. Sparks from the work may have ignited an accumulation of methane gas in the top of the tank, according to independent fire safety specialist Tony Ennis. Meanwhile, staff have also al-

Clockwise from top left: Luke Wheaton, Raymond White, Brian Vickery and Michael James Image: Avon and Somerset Police

Contact journalist Alon Aviram in confidence: alon@thebristolcable.org 07533 718547

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An aerial view of the Wessex Water plant in Avonmouth after the explosion Photo: Tom Wren/SWNS

leged that an ignition risk assessment was not carried out before grinding work began on that fateful day. This, however, remains unconfirmed, as Wessex Water declined to comment while inquiries continue. An industry specialist with working knowledge of the Wessex Water plant told the Cable that the Wessex Water silo did not have a flame arrester – a device that stops sparks from entering a tank – leaving it more susceptible to an explosion, should a spark interact with air and gas inside the container. And while the silo was not meant to produce any biogas, because it was a holding tank for processed biosolids, residual gas emissions in storage could accumulate, according to the specialist. It is not uncommon across the waste treatment industry for silos and Anaerobic Digesters – systems that can break down a range of organic matter in the absence of oxygen to produce biosolids and biomethane – to be built without flame arresters, including the ADs at Wessex Water. This is in part because arresters require regular maintenance to keep them clean and functioning. But without them, staff and site safety can be undermined, the industry insider told the Cable, on the condition of anonymity. “Every waste treatment plant in the country needs to look

at Wessex Water,” the industry specialist stressed, adding: “They are all running off the same technology. The same people have designed them.” A Wessex Water spokesperson declined to comment while investigations were ongoing and said: “We are continuing to work with the authorities as they carry out their investigations and are committed to understanding why the incident happened.” An HSE spokesperson said: “HSE continue to support Avon and Somerset Police, who are leading this investigation. It wouldn’t be appropriate for us to comment at this time.” ■

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“The Wessex Water silo did not have a flame arrester”

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“There’s no consideration of what’s going to happen going forward – it’s not addressed the problem, it’s moved it to a different place”

Last year's attempted eviction of the Glenfrome Road site Photo: Mark Simmons

Pandemic evictions and the Police and Crime Bill leave travelling communities fearful of what comes next

As large-scale evictions of roadside camps and squats ramp up, and legislation criminalising trespass moves closer to becoming law, we talk to people in the firing line Words Hannah Vickers

“W

e had quite a lot of protection with corona, and since the restrictions have started being dropped there’s been a massive sweep.” Daisy* lives in a van, sometimes on the side of the road and sometimes on disused land, on unauthorised encampments. She’s recently seen a rise in evictions, and is nervous about what will happen when trespass is criminalised later this year. As things stand, people staying on land that doesn’t belong to them is a civil matter, and landowners generally need court orders to evict. The Police, Crime, Courts and Sentencing Bill will change all that, making trespass a crime and increasing police powers to evict and quash peaceful protest.

The Bill, announced in March, prompting nationwide protests – 14 to date in Bristol alone and a petition with more than 254,000 signatures – is proceeding through parliament. It will have a huge impact on the lives of anyone on the road, particularly nomadic Travellers, Gypsies and Roma, already among the UK’s most marginalised communities. Abbie Kirkby, public affairs and policy manager at the Friends, Families and Travellers advocacy group, says the Bill will do nothing to address a root cause of unauthorised encampments – the lack of safe stopping places.

Daisy tells me she’s recently been parking on disused sites with other vans for safety and community: “There’s at least one attempted break-in a week. I don’t feel safe on the street.” Under the new law, two vehicles parked together will be counted as an A protester at a squat eviction

Photo: Colin Moody

encampment and moved on. “We’re not wanted in the streets. We don’t have places to go to”, she says. Daisy had been staying on disused land owned by Wales and West Utilities, at Glenfrome Road in Eastville. It was the largest unauthorised encampment in Bristol, with around 70 people, including children, staying in 40 caravans. Protesters successfully resisted an attempt to evict the site in June 2020, but this time bailiffs were more prepared, arriving in greater numbers and setting up a roadblock in the early hours of the morning to prevent supporters getting near. Daisy says they were “absolutely pummeled by 300 bailiffs and police, really roughly treated.” Nowhere to go They’d been given 24 hours notice – two weeks after Wales and West had obtained a court order – which Daisy says wasn’t enough time for that many people to move. She says they’d been in communication with Bristol City Council’s traveller liaison officer to get extra time while they looked for places to move on to. “We would [have left] peacefully if we had an alternative option. We didn’t want to waste police money and council money”, she says. “It was a legal eviction”, says Daisy. “But it didn’t need to be like that. We were communicating with the coun-

What the Police and Crime Bill means for Travellers Here’s a breakdown of the parts of the Bill dealing with trespass, and how it will affect people: • People found residing – or intending to reside – on land without consent, in or with a vehicle can be arrested if they refuse, or are unable, to leave. • People convicted of trespass will be liable for three months in prison and/or a fine of up to £2,500. • Police will be able to seize and impound vehicles – which in many people’s cases are also their homes. • The Bill will expand police powers to allow them to get involved sooner, lowering the threshold at which police can evict, and broadening the list of things they can evict people for. • Currently, there must be six or more vehicles on the land for an eviction to take place, but under the new powers, it will only take two vehicles parked together. • Police will be able to evict people from roads under the new legislation, not just from land. • The length of time during which people must not return to a plot of land they have been told to leave will be increased from three months to a year.

“It’s been an incredibly stressful time for many communities and families, and worrying about access to basic amenities [which many families lacked], or not being able to self-isolate, is just not something people should have to experience during a pandemic”, she says. Bristol has better provision than many local authorities in the UK. But it’s still far outsripped by need – and increasingly, there’s simply nowhere for people to go. ■ *Name changed

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Travellers protest the criminalisation of trespass Photo: Jenny/Glen

cil. [Wales and West] chose the expensive, brutal way to do it.” Glenfrome Road was so big because two other unauthorised encampments had been evicted recently, says Daisy. “There’s no consideration of what’s going to happen going forward – it’s not addressed the problem, it’s moved it to a different place”, she says. During the pandemic, Abbie Kirkby points out, Gypsies and Travellers living on camps have not had the same protection from eviction as others had.

FEATURE

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Mabel Tothill enjoyed a comfortable childhood in Hull, but spent her adult years championing the labour movement and women’s rights in East Bristol Words June Hannam Socialist shift We don’t know when Tothill joined the Independent Labour Party (ILP), a socialist group separate from, but affiliated to, the Labour Party itself. But it is likely her experience of Settlement work brought her into close contact with the labour movement. By 1913, Tothill had a public role in the ILP’s East Bristol campaign promoting women’s suffrage. The previous year, the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies, of which she was a member, had decided to support Labour in seats – including East Bristol – where the Liberal candidate was hostile to suffrage. Tothill soon became close to

“Mabel Tothill became convinced that the causes of women and labour were inextricably linked – and would improve the lives of women, men and children of all classes” Walter Ayles, the charismatic local organiser of the ILP and the candidate for East Bristol in 1914. Ayles was not only a strong backer of women’s rights, but approached socialism through the prism of religion and pacifism. During his campaign, Tothill developed her skills as a platform speaker and propagandist, becoming convinced that the causes of women and labour were inextricably linked – and would improve the lives of women, men and children of all classes. Trailblazer After the war, the ILP put forward Tothill’s name to the Labour Party for

Conscientious objectors found Mabel’s help invaluable

Image: Bristol Archives

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abel Tothill, the first woman to sit on Bristol City Council, was a Quaker, a socialist and an advocate for conscientious objectors. Taking her seat in 1920, not long after she turned 50, Tothill made quite a journey – both political and geographical – from a comfortable middleclass childhood in Hull as the daughter of a factory manager. Tothill arrived in Bristol while still in her twenties, during the 1890s. Here she joined a network of like-minded women, many of them Quakers, who were keen to promote women’s suffrage and expand educational opportunities. They also sought a systematic approach to tackling poverty, working with the local authority as its welfare responsibilities expanded. But a turning point came in 1911 when Tothill became a resident of the Barton Hill University Settlement, an initiative of her Quaker friend Marian Pease. Pease was also daughter to a factory boss – one of the directors of Barton Hill’s Great Western Cotton Factory – and head of the University of Bristol Day Training College for Women. While not products of it, the two women were familiar with East Bristol working-class life. The Settlement provided education and clubs for the community, trained women for social work, and was a meeting place for men and women of different classes.

PEOPLE'S HISTORY

Bristol’s first female councillor: from factory boss’s daughter to community organiser

inclusion on a list of municipal candidates. With some women finally gaining the Parliamentary vote, and many more registered as local electors, she was more convinced than ever that Labour offered the greatest hope for the achievement of a better world. The intervening years had been tough ones. After war was declared in 1914, most Bristol ILP members demanded its speedy end via a negotiated peace – an unpopular cause even before conscription was introduced in 1916. Ayles was imprisoned as a conscientious objector, with Tothill taking the role of secretary of the Bristol Joint Advisory Committee, supporting such men who faced tribunals or jail time, and often experienced isolation and hostility. Conscientious objectors found Mabel’s help invaluable. She kept their plight in the public eye through leaflets and newspaper reports that gave detailed accounts of their hardships. She was also one of the ‘Watchers’ who stood outside Horfield barracks so they could be told if men were moved. She then wrote to let their families know, and visited men in prison. At the end of the war, she campaigned with others for the release of those who were still imprisoned. Tothill’s first bid for office, for St Paul’s in 1919, was unsuccessful. But a year later, when Labour’s member for Easton ward was elevated to become an alderman, she was put forward to take his place and entered the council unopposed. She was active in proposing motions on housing, unemployment, proportional representation, and the provision of public bathrooms for both sexes. In each case, Tothill emphasised how social reforms could affect women’s lives. But her time as a councillor would last just 18 months, with a bid to defend her seat in November 1921 proving unsuccessful. Much was made in the press of Tothill’s pacifism, though it is hard to be sure whether this contributed to her defeat. But while she remained active within the ILP – and lived on until 1964 – she would never regain public office, despite numerous attempts during the 1920s. ■

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Award-winning Bristol-based writer Nikesh Shukla talks refusing an MBE, going from rapper to writer and returning to community activism Words Priyanka Raval Photo Aphra Evans

‘The quickest decision I ever made’ Declining the MBE put Shukla in good company. The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire has been refused by Benjamin Zephaniah, George the Poet and others for glorifying Britain's colonial rule. “I wasn’t going to make a fuss, but it’s been a combative past year talking about race,” Shukla reflects, citing Black Lives Matter, the culture wars ramping up and the Sewell report concluding there is no institutional racism in the UK. He also feared the government would spin the racially diverse 2021 honours list to mask Britain's past and present institutional racism. Shukla took to the Guardian to write an explanatory piece, ‘I don’t want an honour glorifying the British empire’. In it he discussed the unacknowledged legacy of empire, Colston’s statue being pulled down and the criminalising of those involved, and Operation Legacy – a Foreign Office programme to destroy evidence of the brutalities of the empire. “What was the need for Operation

Double-edged sword

“I want to tell stories that haven’t been told, and to give humanity to people. Writing is the way I process the world and the way I ask questions of it”

This attitude has always been part of Shukla, who as a young man wanted to “write Spiderman comics and be the most eloquent, verbally dexterous, angry political rapper of all time”. His parents, Africans who settled in North West London, were “hardworking, don’t-make-any-noise immigrants” who grafted to send him to private school. The pressure of feeling like a “return and investment kid” meant he studied law at university rather than his preferred creative writing. These are tropes, we joke, typical among British Gujarati diasporas in the UK to which we both belong. While a student, Shukla was involved in many activism projects such as the Southall Monitoring Group and the Miscarriages of Justice Organisation, working with victims of wrongful imprisonment. He also, in the late 90s, went

to an Asian Dub Foundation gig – a night he calls “one of the most incredible things ever” and which would prove pivotal to his career. Backstage, Shukla cornered frontman Deeder Zaman, who invited him to email over a copy of his book and took him under his wing, providing the springboard for a foray into spoken word and rap. His debut 2010 novel, Coconut Unlimited, chronicles this period. Half a decade and two more novels later, Shukla edited and published The Good Immigrant, a selection of essays from 21 British people of colour voices about race, racism and identity. “I said to all the writers: write the essay no one else will commission, like it's the last thing on the subject you’ll write, don't make me angry, make me laugh,” he recalls of the project, which gained him acclaim and recognition. Shukla, who defined himself as a comedy writer, found himself uneasy with being hurled into the limelight, being asked to speak on racism, and cast in the role of public intellectual. “It messed with my head – evenings away from home, talking about race, sitting on a train by ADVERTISEMENT

myself, feeling depressed,” he says. The Good Immigrant has remained a double-edged sword. “I’ve done so much since, but people just want to talk about [it] – an amazing book, but it’s not the only thing I want to be known for [and] was a collective effort.”

Back to the grassroots Happier times, Shukla muses, have come via his involvement with Bristol’s Rife magazine, mentoring young writers in 2014. “It’s become of paramount importance to me to do some grassroots youth work,” he says. “For all Bristol’s problems, it's a wonderful city and there’s some cutting edge stuff here – youth work, arts spaces, journalism – I’m trying to see how I can be more connected with.” Looking to the future, Shukla is determined to follow the thread of community activism that has run through his life – despite his inclinations towards a quieter existence. “Inspiring young people is one of the most important things I've ever done,” he concludes. “I want to do more of it in the city.” ■

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Legacy if the empire is something we should be supposedly proud of?” he asks. “I don't think [sticking my head above the parapet] was a particularly radical thing to do – it was one of the quickest decisions of my life.” The choice resulted in a depressingly predictable backlash. “I’ve had people calling for me to be fucking sterilised or leave the country,” he says. “Some commentators love the heat – I don’t, [but] I feel compelled to speak out because I have a platform and it would be shitty of me not to use it to try and talk about these things.” I ask Shukla what he wants to use his voice to do, turning back on to him a question he previously posed to me during a period when he was mentoring me as a writer. Feigning outrage at this manoeuvre, he eventually answers: “I want to tell stories that haven’t been told, and to give humanity to people. Writing is the way I process the world and the way I ask questions of it.” Shukla says he wants to move from writing “about people trying to find their way in the world, trying to navigate structurally racist environments” to focusing on “joyful things”. Still, he adds: “I can't change the world – I don't even think I can change my industry – but I can offer a voice of dissent, and maybe that will inspire another voice of dissent. It’s all you can do, right?”

‛I can’t change the world, or even my industry, but I can offer a voice of dissent’

ikesh Shukla is finishing an English breakfast as I meet him in a Montpelier cafe. Having done the school run and shot some hoops on a nearby basketball court, he’s squeezing this interview in before heading home to work on his upcoming novel. Last year Shukla marked a decade as a published author with 11 novels under his belt, and as a resident of Bristol, where he lives with his wife and two young daughters. But in June he made headlines for turning down an MBE for those ‘services to literature’, because of its valorisation of empire. In previous conversations, Shukla has told me he is no fan of press attention. “You must be hating this!” I joke as I sit down, prompting a generous response that he will make an exception for the Cable. But the incident speaks to the tensions at work in a man who just wants to “hang out with my kids, play Lego, read Spiderman comics, watch Loki, read books and eat barbecued food” – but can’t fight the urge to speak up.

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Catch-up funding

Online innovation Despite these serious challenges ahead, there are clear successes from the last year as schools have been forced to adapt. Rodeck from Filton Avenue Primary said: “Some things have been really positive. We altered the start and end of the day, with staggered playtimes, which means more space and quality of playtime.” He added that online ways of communicating with families, brought in during the first lockdown, will continue. As well as virtual parents’ evenings, the school has used their Class Dojo platform to communicate with parents, share content from assemblies with

Parents, schoolkids and teachers have shown serious resilience in the last 18 months of the pandemic. Now it’s time to look ahead to repairing the damage

In June, the government’s own school catch-up tsar Sir Kevan Collins resigned over the £1.4bn promised to schools over three years, which works out as £50 per pupil – much lower than in other countries. By contrast, Collins had reportedly put forward plans costing £15bn. Dan Rodeck, one of Filton Avenue Primary’s heads of school, told the Cable that some children in year 3 and 4 are eligible for catch-up tuition but that it’s “very frustrating” that tight restrictions mean not all the kids who need extra help are eligible. “Some are getting extra tuition and it’s having an impact”, he said. “But the restrictions have made it more difficult.” Roughly one in seven children in those years has accessed extra sessions in maths and English because they had fallen behind and are from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Words Matty Edwards Illustration B Mure

Not just tuition

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As well as extra funding for intensive tutoring, she called on the government to establish a multi-disciplinary expert group, to advise on ways to address the complex needs of children, caused by the pandemic. “The loss of social time, of physical activity, and the growth of mental illness caused by Covid-19 need to be addressed in an integrated way.”

How can schools fix the long-term impacts of the pandemic?

“I

think teachers, kids and parents are doing a pretty amazing job, considering.” Bristol secondary teacher Tom Bolton says that the past 18 months have been tough on pupils, educators and parents, who have had to deal with disruption, lost learning and everchanging government guidance. In July, thousands of Bristol children were self-isolating from more than 100 schools. Schools have faced significant disruption in recent months amid sharply rising infections in Bristol, as schoolchildren had to self-isolate if a classmate tested positive for Covid-19. But as of next academic year, the government is changing tack, with education secretary Gavin Williamson announcing the scrapping of the bubble system and social distancing in schools from September.

So there will likely be Covid transmission in schools, but (in theory) less disruption to learning. During this difficult period for schools, many children have fallen behind after not engaging with online learning, and there is widespread consensus that they are more likely to be from disadvantaged backgrounds. The Cable spoke to school leaders, experts and unions about what they learnt during this difficult year and what needs to happen in September to begin repairing the damage so that a generation of children aren’t left behind. At a disadvantage Bolton, who is joint secretary of Bristol’s branch of the National Education Union (NEU), says that lockdown has exacerbated

existing inequalities, which have been steadily growing since 2010, with funding cuts to the sector. Remote learning has widened the attainment gap between wealthier and poorer students. He’s also concerned about the impact of the past 18 months on pupils’ mental health. “There are lots of kids who are suffering from mental health problems as a result of the lockdown, they had issues with overcrowding or living in poverty. “There’s a lot bubbling underneath the surface. The main thing schools need is support to deal with that. The government talks about catch-up, but the big concern I have is that we can’t just get back to normal and accelerate these kids to where an algorithm thinks they should be. I think there needs to be much more of a focus on meet-

But Covid-19 hasn’t just been about missed learning, but missed development and social time. Mark Davies, the CEO of Trust in Learning Academies, which runs five schools in Bristol, said that restarting extra-curricular activities is integral. “All schools should be concerned about everyone’s mental health and wellbeing...We’ve had to put [activities] on hold, we want to re-engage with that quickly. All these things make the relationships real.” Patricia Broadfoot, Emeritus Professor of Education at Bristol University, who has written recently about what reforms are needed, said: “Clearly the government needs to recognise the scale of this problem of exacerbated educational inequality as a national problem that will impact in due course on the economy.”

“This disruption is going to be felt over five years, 10 years. It’s not going to be a case where we do some catch up and we reset things to how they were before. The discussion needs to be about what could we do instead of how the system was before”

them, and send out school reports as PDFs rather than paper copies. “It’s been brilliant for parents and carers in better understanding dayto-day life in the school”, he said. Davies echoed this: “There is evidence to suggest that disadvantaged communities have less engagement with school than they should. So

if Covid has helped to overcome that, then the onus is on the school to maintain that communication.” Opportunity to reassess Almost every sector has explored the idea of building back better – using the pandemic as an opportunity for radical reform. After the A-level fiasco last year, exams are one area that needs reassessing, according to Professor Broadfoot: “The pandemic has resulted in national exams being cancelled in favour of teacher assessment. This has caused many problems but also created opportunities and challenges; the opportunity to ask whether we are assessing the skills and qualities that are most important for the future and in the most effective way. “I strongly believe that the time has come for a far greater use of technology in qualifications. Using online systems will enable the assessment of a much wider range of skills, and in a much more appropriate way for the 21st century.” Bolton, from the NEU, has been one of the secondary teachers or-

ganising centre-assessed grades, instead of preparing pupils for traditional exams. He said schools have worked hard to make this as fair as possible, and done a good job. “The work has just fallen on educators without any recognition...This year, schools have to write, administer and mark the exams without additional pay.” But he thinks the exam system needs more of an overhaul. “We need to focus on a recovery curriculum that isn’t just how we can get them to pass exams. There should be a discussion around how we portion out success. It’s currently baked into the system that we write off a section of kids as failures with this competitive exam model. “There isn’t a solution to this problem that isn’t going to involve a substantial increase in government funding. “This disruption is going to be felt over five years, 10 years. It’s not going to be a case where we do some catch up and we reset things to how they were before. The discussion needs to be about what could we do instead of how the system was before.” ■

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ing the kids where they’re at.” He also has concerns about teachers leaving the profession, which was an issue before the pandemic, but could leave schools stretched next year. “Anecdotally, we’ve heard about people resigning from their jobs without a job to go to… Like with kids, I feel like we’re not yet seeing the full impact on staff.”

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A space for people to come together and know their rights: the Bristol Unemployed Workers’ Centre

t’s been a tough year-anda-half. Besides the staggering death toll, Covid-19 has hammered the economy, and unemployment has soared. People are being made redundant at record levels. Once furlough ends, the UK unemployment total is expected to more than double from pre-pandemic levels to 7.5% – more than 2.6 million people. There have been “widespread predictions of the worst recession for 300 years”, according to the Bristol Poverty Institute, a research project within the University of Bristol. This means more job losses, lower wages, and rising poverty and debt. This new unemployment crisis has inspired a solution from the past. Several Bristol organisations have joined to form the Bristol Unemployed Workers’ Movement, based loosely on the Bristol Unemployed Workers’ Movement formed in the 1920s, and are fundraising to create Bristol’s first Unemployed Workers’ Centre. It’s a space they say is urgently needed, in the context of the pandemic’s isolating effects and the uncertain future many now face.

Lessons from the past The centre will provide practical support for unemployed people – free-to-use computers, and advice on CVs and benefits. Jack Moran, one of those behind the initiative, says it’s about “addressing material needs that come with unemployment.” But members also want it to be a rallying point, a space for people to come together, learn about their rights and lobby for change. “People are displaced and stuck in the middle of the whole system”, says Moran – who was made redundant last year. His background is in recruitment and employability, and he’s working on fundraising and website design. The new Bristol Unemployed Workers’ Movement, which is still at the fundraising stage, and is volunteer-run, is being put together by members of Bristol Trades Union Council, Bristol West and South Labour Party branches, and Bristol Unite Community. Bristol was the first city in the UK to have an Unemployed Workers’ Movement, which the Bristol Trades and Labour Council cre-

ated back in 1921. The association worked with churches, councillors, and charities to support unemployed workers and their families who were living in poverty. They were also politically active, organising protests and campaigns. In the 1970s, unemployed workers’ centres one again started popping up across the UK in response to rising job losses. But Bristol has never previously had one. The importance of a physical space Moran describes the new project both as a place for people to be supported – practically and emotionally – and for them to come together, learn about their rights, campaign and lobby. “[It will be a] safe, secure environment… where people know we are objectively on their side”, he

‘Saving’ every tree is environmental nonsense, preventing progress on key issues In recent years it seems there hasn’t been a single tree-felling in the city that hasn’t been met with some kind of outcry, regardless of how clearly the benefits outweigh the cost. We must confront this shortsightedness Words Joe Dunkley Illustration Laurence Ware

rees are brilliant. Aside from their incalculable value in ecosystems, trees are natural flood defences and air conditioners – not only giving us shade but actively cooling the area around them. Writing this heading into high summer, with temperature records becoming more extreme around the world and freak downpours flooding the streets of Edinburgh, I am immensely grateful to live in a city as green as Bristol. It’s hard to overstate just how useful and important our urban trees are. But in prioritising a few individual specimens over much needed housing and sustainable transport, Bristol’s vocal tree campaigners are managing to do just that. We’re facing a climate and ecological emergency, and we need to change how we live and do business. That will only be achieved by transforming our local environments, to enable us to live and travel in sustainable ways. This involves some inevitable development – of the walking, cycling, public transport and rail infrastructure needed to enable us to live with fewer cars and trucks; and of the urban housing that allows us to live in efficient, compact, walkable neighbourhoods, instead of car-dependent sprawl. We need to move fast, and sometimes, however hard we try to work around them, we’re going to need to cut down some trees. In recent years, it seems there hasn’t been a single treefelling in the city that hasn’t been met with some kind of outcry, regardless of how clear the benefits or how small and scrappy the loss. On the Rail-

way Path in Easton this summer, pinch points will be remedied and the path widened in places, so that it meets the modern standards that such walking and cycling routes need, if they are to get people out of their cars. In Horfield, the self-seeded scrub and trees around some scruffy old garages will be cleared, as they make way for an infill terrace of desperately needed council houses. And Bedminster is the latest area to have its railway embankments cleared of young self-seeded trees, as Network Rail rectifies years of maintenance neglect that began with privatisation and now threatens the reliability and safety of the network.

laurence_ware_design

But perhaps the perfect example of people losing all perspective can be found along the Harbourside, where a car park and a caravan site are now in line for housing. It’s hard to imagine a less objectionable scheme than the Baltic Wharf development, or a more appropriate space to replace with housing than the Gas Ferry car park. These are brownfield sites, a walkable distance from the city centre, on an established high-frequency public transport route, and close to the outstanding natural amenities in the centre and west side of Bristol. The 166 homes proposed by the council-owned developer – 51 of them new council flats – will be in attractive mid-rise buildings, a gentle density that is well suited to the area. But enlivening the otherwise dead asphalt anachronisms that are these city centre car parks are a couple of dozen unremarkable trees, some of which might have to go. That is, ostensibly, the reason for opposition to the whole idea of redeveloping them. In a climate and ecological emergency, we need radical action, and fast. There is no status quo option. We can’t pause climate breakdown while we tweak every development, one by one, until it’s perfect. In an emergency you have to run to keep up, and you have to pick between options that are available.

The alternative to schemes that involve felling a few trees, to safeguard and improve our active travel and public transport infrastructure, is the continued increase of car journeys. Scupper council-owned developments of urban density housing on walkable city centre brownfields, and the demand for housing will instead be met by the private developers waiting in the wings with another car-dependent sprawling housing estate on greenfields served by ever bigger ring roads in South Gloucestershire. When the topic of the Gas Ferry car park did the rounds on social media recently, provoked by one Harbourside resident’s suggestion that the trees all deserved urgent protection orders, the discussion served as a useful reminder that environmental and conservation movements are loose coalitions of people who don’t always share the same definitions or have the same ultimate objectives in mind when they unite behind a policy or action. Many in the discussion let slip their true fears about “overdevelopment” – of too many new buildings and too many new people living in their beloved neighbourhood. This is the definition of NIMBYism, driven by a fear of change, and the loss of what has become personally familiar and comfortable. Few NIMBYs will ever admit to it. They’ll try to hide their motives behind noble and selfless objectives like a concern for trees. The lesson for campaigners is to be careful who you fall into coalition with. Just because somebody with a petition or a platform claims concern for the environment, doesn’t mean they’re fighting for the solutions this city, or the planet, desperately needs. ■

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Unemployment has soared during the pandemic, and things are probably going to get worse. The organisers of a new project for people who have lost their jobs say they’ll offer practical support – and solidarity at a time when many are feeling ‘atomised’ Words Hannah Vickers

says. “You can just come in and we’re here for you – we’re not going to report you to the job centre.” It’s important for the Centre to be a physical space “where people can come together and rebuild that sense of community”, Moran continues. The digitisation of many job centre functions, and the context of repeated lockdowns, have left unemployed workers isolated and “atomised”, he says. The very nature of being unemployed means you’ve not got the support of colleagues – or, in many cases, a union. You may not have anyone to have your back if there’s been a problem with your claim, or you suspect you’ve been unfairly treated – and job centres are not always the most supportive of places. “Once people end up on universal credit, a lot of them can feel like they’re to blame in some way”, Moran says. “Having a place where the heating’s on and there’s a cup of tea waiting for you can help.” He says there’s been a dividing up of the working class over recent years, with “cracks worsened by economic failures [being] used to fracture the working class, telling us there’s this difference between us – but it’s untrue”, and says that the centre will help to bridge these divides by dealing with issues at their root. On an individual level by offering practical support, and on a community level by educating about unions and building worker solidarity. “And then, to punch upwards, we’ll be advocating for a society which addresses the needs of its populus directly to local and national government [by] lobbying against local authority cuts, and for a union and community driven Unemployed Workers’ Centre to be resourcesupported.” ■

OPINION

“It will be a safe, secure environment, where people know we are objectively on their side”

The pandemic has brought on another unemployment crisis, like we saw in the 70s

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