More evidence that the Metropolitan Police approach last week was far from cricket. The advise given to businesses in the City last week was the "Climate Camp" had permission to stay overnight. Obviously the Metropolitan Police had other ideas and in the clip below launch into a mixed crowd of men and women expecting to camp overnight. The police have battons and riot shields. The prospective campers do not:
"I may disagree with what you have to say, but I shall defend to the death your right to say it"
Voltaire
Showing posts with label The City. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The City. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Thursday, April 02, 2009
G20 Day in the City of London
A Bank of England "heavy" stands at the steps to an entrance on Threadneedle Street.
Four female protestors discuss the day's events.
A statue boarded up had become an unofficial shrine to a man who died outside the Bank of England on Wednesday night. His cause of death remains unclear but many have questioned the controversial Metropolitan Police practice of "kettling" where protestors are herded into an enclosed placed for hours on end in order to exhaust them in a situation where they have no access to food, water, lavatories etc.
The Bank of England in the closing stages of the two days of protests. A few miles away in Docklands, the G20 leaders had just agreed a $ 1 Trillion stimulus package (I don't think I have ever needed to write "trillion" before)
The Duke of Wellington's statue with the addition of a a red flag. It is unclear what we can (yes) do !
Thoughtful graffiti on the Bank of England. Although not always true the statements are difficult to reject out of hand. Do the rich laugh though ?
City of London Police take a breather at the front of the Royal Exchange. They have been racking up the overtime this week.
Protestors and Police winding down.
The scene at the front of the Bank of England, Thurday April 2nd.
Winding down Police
Traffic had started flowing past the Bank of England by Thursday afternoon.
Shielded and helmeted riot police prepare to get a few teenagers out of an empty building near the City of London.
"Move along there. There's nothing to see !" Police block the road while their highly protected colleagues gather a few teenagers up.
"Older Bill"
The dark blue vehicle behind the police is more Amoured Personnel Carrier than Police Car. Who thought these would be necessary in London ? After all their effort the police have finally located a rather bemused looking teenager in a squat in Earl Street, EC2.
Commuters pass graffiti on the Bank of England on their way to work.
Pictures of April 1st City of London
Below is a selection of photos from the protests in the City of London yesterday. As I was at work during most of the day, these were taken in the evening. The low quality is due to the fact they were taken on a mobile phone camera. Nonetheless I think they give a flavour of the scenes around the City yesteray.
Crowded scene outside the Bank of England, 5.30pm Wednesday 1st April. Two hours later a man died in this area.
"Castle Greyskull" aka RBS HQ in Bishopsgate, City of London.
Anarchists and Police face each other in the approach to the Bank of England.
Police "centurion" overlooks the crowd near the Bank of England.
"Climate Campers" underneath Tower 42 (formerly the Natwest Tower).
A line of riot police. Anarchists wanted !
Chit chat. The lady on the left is dressed identically to her male colleague.
Not so much "bobbies on the beat" as "bobbies ready to beat". The uniform is both intimidating and dehumanising. British Police increasingly "don riotgear" when so much as a papercup gets thrown. While it can save lives, the use of riot gear should be proportionate to prevent ordinary people becoming alienated.
THe much reviled RBS is protected by a line of police. This very branch had been attacked round the corner by anarchists a few hours earlier.
A crowd is "kettled" (blocked in) outside the Bank of England.
Protestors gather in Poultry, City of London
Crowded scene outside the Bank of England, 5.30pm Wednesday 1st April. Two hours later a man died in this area.
"Castle Greyskull" aka RBS HQ in Bishopsgate, City of London.
Anarchists and Police face each other in the approach to the Bank of England.
Police "centurion" overlooks the crowd near the Bank of England.
"Climate Campers" underneath Tower 42 (formerly the Natwest Tower).
A line of riot police. Anarchists wanted !
Chit chat. The lady on the left is dressed identically to her male colleague.
Not so much "bobbies on the beat" as "bobbies ready to beat". The uniform is both intimidating and dehumanising. British Police increasingly "don riotgear" when so much as a papercup gets thrown. While it can save lives, the use of riot gear should be proportionate to prevent ordinary people becoming alienated.
THe much reviled RBS is protected by a line of police. This very branch had been attacked round the corner by anarchists a few hours earlier.
A crowd is "kettled" (blocked in) outside the Bank of England.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
R
Almost in the blink of an eye, life in the City of London seems transformed.
As little as six weeks ago it seemed a hub of the global free market, bristling with brave hope that all would be well.
Now there is a distinctly gloomy atmosphere and the City the centre of a quasi nationalised economy. The R word (recession) is out of the bag and there is real concern for personal prosperity as well as corporate survival.
All parts of the City seem effected and my own employers are no exception. Turnover is down and this year will be a tough year. I am working (or seem to be) harder than ever hence the lack of recent posts.
Hopefully back with something more cheerful and enlightening soon........
As little as six weeks ago it seemed a hub of the global free market, bristling with brave hope that all would be well.
Now there is a distinctly gloomy atmosphere and the City the centre of a quasi nationalised economy. The R word (recession) is out of the bag and there is real concern for personal prosperity as well as corporate survival.
All parts of the City seem effected and my own employers are no exception. Turnover is down and this year will be a tough year. I am working (or seem to be) harder than ever hence the lack of recent posts.
Hopefully back with something more cheerful and enlightening soon........
Monday, November 26, 2007
London November 2007
Various views of the City and Docklands taken from Greenwich Park on a cold but clear November Day.
Thursday, August 16, 2007
A grey Thursday of Subprime
Subprime woes continue across the world and London is no exception. It's not a very cheerful time in the City.....
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Subprime reckoning
I am not a financier but I do work in the City and next door to Bloomberg in London.
A few weeks ago I had never heard of the "subprime" mortgage market. This, as far as I understand it, is low grade lending- to poor people i.e. people less likely to be able to pay back. Eventually a peak was reached, too many people had overstretched themselves and the US property market started to fall. Then last week a major US subprime lender got into trouble.
Now it seems to be spreading accross the pond. The European Central Bank today pumped £63 billion pounds into the lending market in a bid to make more money available to squeezed lenders.
The stock market has taken a battering as a result. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aaoIf.bbBn.8&refer=home
These are uncertain times in the financial world and the financial health of all of us depends, to some extent, on the outcome.
Look out for subprime ! It is a reminder that ultimately lending and property prices do have to bear some resemblence to the income of the people borrowing and living in the properties.
A few weeks ago I had never heard of the "subprime" mortgage market. This, as far as I understand it, is low grade lending- to poor people i.e. people less likely to be able to pay back. Eventually a peak was reached, too many people had overstretched themselves and the US property market started to fall. Then last week a major US subprime lender got into trouble.
Now it seems to be spreading accross the pond. The European Central Bank today pumped £63 billion pounds into the lending market in a bid to make more money available to squeezed lenders.
The stock market has taken a battering as a result. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aaoIf.bbBn.8&refer=home
These are uncertain times in the financial world and the financial health of all of us depends, to some extent, on the outcome.
Look out for subprime ! It is a reminder that ultimately lending and property prices do have to bear some resemblence to the income of the people borrowing and living in the properties.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
The City 2006
By the time the lorry started to turn the corner into the narrow lane in the centre of the city, it's driver was already a marked man. He was observed by a member of a group operating throughout the city. Loitering behind a nearby bus stop the hidden observer knew all too well that the driver had to stop and make his delivery at a restaurant in the lane. Once he was stopped and unloading his lorry he would be powerless to avoid the attack.
Sure enough the red brake lights of the lorry signalled its halt outside the restaurant. Silently and still unseen the stealthy observer made his way up the narrow street between the high buildings. He lingered a minute while the driver got out of his cab and opened the back of the truck up. He took some boxes of fruit and a sack of onions and walked into the deserted restaurant.
The malign observer watched the delivery driver at his daily work and as he walked into the restaurant door, he pounced. Out of his bulky coat he pulled a state of the art.........................
.....................ticket printing machine, quickly punched in the vehicle's details against the location details he had already entered and slapped a £80 ticket on the windscreen of the lorry. By the time the driver emerged from the restaurant exchanging a quick joke with the owner, the ticketing terrorist had disappeared up another street to seek another target elsewhere in the city.
The helpless driver could only curse the moment for he knew that his employers would expect him to settle any parking fines he incurred in his delivery.
This is not a work of fiction but sadly a common occurrence that I see almost daily in the narrow streets of the City of London. To those unfamiliar with the City, it is a square mile home to many financial institutions who employ tens of thousands of people. Undoubtedly it is one of the wealthiest areas of London. Few people live in the City but many work there. To service the City workers there are numerous shops, bakers, barbers, pubs, cafes and restaurants. The City has at least 3 characteristics: i) Grand old institutional buildings like the Mansion House and Bank of England; ii) Mega towers like the Gherkin and Tower 42; and iii) a dwindling number of narrow lanes left untouched by German bombs in the 40s, Irish terrorists in the 90s and the super-developers of the millennium.
It is in the narrow lanes that many of the most interesting sights of the City can be found. Ancient taverns or gardens can surprise the visitor only a stone's throw from a modern financial tower. It is in these areas that delivery drivers are most prone to attack from the traffic wardens. They have no option but to block the road for a few moments while the delivery is made.
What is so depressing is that the modern traffic warden takes full advantage of those doing their work and penalises some of the least wealthy who work in London.
Traffic wardens have long been held in the same esteem by the British public as estate agents, politicians, serial killers and tabloid journalists.
However I feel that up until recently their inclusion in this group was a little unfair. After all how many people would really want to a traffic warden ? Ask the average 8 year old what they would want to do and I doubt there would be too many traffic wardens amongst the prospective astronauts, firemen and doctors. A traffic warden is doing an unpopular and unrewarding job. Don't they deserve some sympathy ?
In the provincial towns that I grew up in there was always a bit of give and take with traffic wardens.
My father would agree an extra five minutes while a quick visit was made to a shop or something collected. In that time a traffic warden wasn't popular but they still sometimes acted with a little humanity.
However the modern traffic warden is completely uninterested in dialogue. They are interested in issuing tickets to get commission. The tickets can be issued by fair means or foul but they must be issued.
This is a pity as it adds further to the stress and lack of humanity seen in our cities. To the traffic wardens of London, I say we sympathise with your boring and tough job but occasionally give us a break especially the delivery drivers who are only trying to earn a living. If not , surely it is only a matter of time before someone takes revenge on one of these ticketing terrorists......................
Sure enough the red brake lights of the lorry signalled its halt outside the restaurant. Silently and still unseen the stealthy observer made his way up the narrow street between the high buildings. He lingered a minute while the driver got out of his cab and opened the back of the truck up. He took some boxes of fruit and a sack of onions and walked into the deserted restaurant.
The malign observer watched the delivery driver at his daily work and as he walked into the restaurant door, he pounced. Out of his bulky coat he pulled a state of the art.........................
.....................ticket printing machine, quickly punched in the vehicle's details against the location details he had already entered and slapped a £80 ticket on the windscreen of the lorry. By the time the driver emerged from the restaurant exchanging a quick joke with the owner, the ticketing terrorist had disappeared up another street to seek another target elsewhere in the city.
The helpless driver could only curse the moment for he knew that his employers would expect him to settle any parking fines he incurred in his delivery.
This is not a work of fiction but sadly a common occurrence that I see almost daily in the narrow streets of the City of London. To those unfamiliar with the City, it is a square mile home to many financial institutions who employ tens of thousands of people. Undoubtedly it is one of the wealthiest areas of London. Few people live in the City but many work there. To service the City workers there are numerous shops, bakers, barbers, pubs, cafes and restaurants. The City has at least 3 characteristics: i) Grand old institutional buildings like the Mansion House and Bank of England; ii) Mega towers like the Gherkin and Tower 42; and iii) a dwindling number of narrow lanes left untouched by German bombs in the 40s, Irish terrorists in the 90s and the super-developers of the millennium.
It is in the narrow lanes that many of the most interesting sights of the City can be found. Ancient taverns or gardens can surprise the visitor only a stone's throw from a modern financial tower. It is in these areas that delivery drivers are most prone to attack from the traffic wardens. They have no option but to block the road for a few moments while the delivery is made.
What is so depressing is that the modern traffic warden takes full advantage of those doing their work and penalises some of the least wealthy who work in London.
Traffic wardens have long been held in the same esteem by the British public as estate agents, politicians, serial killers and tabloid journalists.
However I feel that up until recently their inclusion in this group was a little unfair. After all how many people would really want to a traffic warden ? Ask the average 8 year old what they would want to do and I doubt there would be too many traffic wardens amongst the prospective astronauts, firemen and doctors. A traffic warden is doing an unpopular and unrewarding job. Don't they deserve some sympathy ?
In the provincial towns that I grew up in there was always a bit of give and take with traffic wardens.
My father would agree an extra five minutes while a quick visit was made to a shop or something collected. In that time a traffic warden wasn't popular but they still sometimes acted with a little humanity.
However the modern traffic warden is completely uninterested in dialogue. They are interested in issuing tickets to get commission. The tickets can be issued by fair means or foul but they must be issued.
This is a pity as it adds further to the stress and lack of humanity seen in our cities. To the traffic wardens of London, I say we sympathise with your boring and tough job but occasionally give us a break especially the delivery drivers who are only trying to earn a living. If not , surely it is only a matter of time before someone takes revenge on one of these ticketing terrorists......................
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