Articles by Maggie Chapman
http://maggiechapman.wordpress.com
We need better regulation of Private Landlords
Posted on March 20, 2012 | No Comments
I was delighted to attend the Edinburgh Private Tenants Action Group (EPTAG) campaign launch for tougher enforcement against rogue and criminal landlords. Over 50 people turned out to a public meeting – tenants, landlords, council officers, politicians – to find out more about the campaign and listen to the often harrowing stories of tenants’ experiences. [...]
Why we need a more participatory and inclusive approach to local politics
Posted on March 19, 2012 | 2 Comments
At last week’s full council meeting I had two motions up for debate. One in support of participatory budgeting (PB) as a means of deciding 1% of the Council’s discretionary revenue budget, and the second seeking information about setting up a public petitions process. Both have, at their core, a commitment to inclusive and participatory [...]
A Year of BS: 3 Reasons why The Big Society is a Big Fraud
Posted on June 20, 2011 | 1 Comment
For some time in opposition David Cameron had been quietly supportive of a group of people doing things most people didn’t rate, but that made a huge difference to the country. The Labour Government had sometimes made overtures to them. But towards the end things had got a bit sticky. Cameron would surely move to [...]
Edinburgh Greens Give People Budget Control
Posted on December 1, 2010 | 5 Comments
Leithers braved the beginnings of the snow and ice and turned out to participate in £eith Decides, an innovative approach to funding community projects. Maggie Introduces £eith Decides Twenty five projects, from Pulse of the Place ( Samba drumming for young people) to the Friends of Montgomery Street Park improvement plan, gathered at Leith Academy [...]
Boycott: the Strongest Political Act we have Against Israel
Posted on June 8, 2010 | 1 Comment
On Saturday 5th June, somewhere between 3000 and 5000 people gathered in Edinburgh city centre to protest against the actions of the Israeli State. We were there because we are angry, appalled and disgusted at the way the Israeli State continues to flaunt international law and opinion, not least by boarding the flotilla carrying humanitarian [...]
Lack of Care in Edinburgh’s Tendering
Posted on February 6, 2010 | 3 Comments
UPDATE: See my latest personal blogpost for an update on this – the Direct Payment rate of £15.04 has been scrapped too, in favour of further dialogue and discussion with service users and providers – MC In my role as the sole Green Councillor on the City of Edinburgh Council’s Finance and Resources Committee, I’ve [...]