Nice party, but it’s a shame about closure of day centre

Published: 7 January, 2011

• IT was interesting to read about the pensioners’ party at the Town Hall (Cracker of a people’s party, December 24). What a nice gesture from the council – if it hadn’t been planning to close our pensioners’ day centre at the same time.

It’s a crying shame your reporter didn’t cover the story about one of the pensioners at the party, who pleaded with Labour council leader Catherine West not to close the much-loved Sotheby Mews Day Centre in Highbury. Cllr West just brushed aside this plea.

It’s extremely disappointing that your reporter seemed to have missed this, yet still managed to find room for the six pictures of Labour politicians. Talk about a council “love-in”.

Sadly, our recent Christmas party at Sotheby Mews could be our last.

Despite more than 900 residents and users signing a petition calling on the council not to close Sotheby Mews, it looks like it will ignore us and push the closure through. 

All this council seems to be interested in are PR gimmicks, using pensioners for photo opportunities, and selling off our centre for luxury housing.

This council is not on our side, and never has been.

ELIZABETH CLARE
Petherton Road, N5

• THE pensioners’ party held on December 22 was a great success, well-attended and, no, not by a hand-selected audience (Party was just a PR stunt, December 31). 

It was originally the Pensioners Forum which was going to organise the party but Islington Council offered to take over and extend the invitations throughout the wider borough.  

So Councillor Terry Stacy, keep your politics to yourself.  

B WOODBRIDGE
Central Street, EC1

• ISLINGTON Council’s Lib Dem opposition leader Terry Stacy asks the question: How two-faced can you get?  

If Cllr Stacy really wants to know the answer to that question, he should ask somebody poor who was aspiring to go to university. We all know the answer.

RICHARD CROOK
City Road, EC1