Politics and democracy

Two Enfield councillors who quit the Labour Party to become independent members have given an interview to the Enfield Dispatch. Derek Levy, a councillor in Southgate ward, and Dinah Barry, from Winchmore Hill ward, left Labour earlier this year, and now form the Community First group.

Amid continuing criticism from some civil society groups, Enfield Council has issued a defence of the abolition of separate consultative panels covering green belt issues, conservation and public transport and their merging into a new Environment Forum

Tributes have been appearing on social media to Chris Bond, a Labour councillor in Enfield for 34 years and former cabinet member for the environment

The list of 2020/21 Enfield Council committees and panels and their membership - taken from list amended on 13 July 2020.

Enfield Council's Annual Meeting - the first ever to be held online - saw a council-wide welcome for the appointment of Cllr Sabri Ozaydin as Mayor of Enfield. However, when debate turned to changes to committee structures and scrutiny arrangements there was dissent - not just from Conservatives and the new Community First group, but also from within the controlling Labour Party ranks. There was also disagreement over an increase in the number of councillors who will receive special responsibility allowances.

The leading story in June's Enfield Dispatch is a warning about a crisis in the borough's care homes.

Enfield Dispatch will be among the news providers to benefit from grants from the European Journalism Covid-19 Support Fund, which is being provided jointly by the European Journalism Centre (EJC) and Facebook Journalism Project. In contrast, the UK government has neglected the plight of the country's independent news outlets.

The May issue of Enfield Dispatch is now available in print or online. The prospects for the paper surviving the coronavirus pandemic are looking brighter.

Hidden behind the front window blinds of a house in a Palmers Green street is the centre of a discussion network that is international in scope, but never forgets that global issues are always felt locally.

Last week the government launched a public health campaign by taking out advertisements in hundreds of national and local news outlets, which will help them weather the financial storm caused by coronavirus - but they did not include the many small independent and non-commercial publications that fulfil a vital role in many parts of the country, including Enfield. One of the publications left in the lurch is Enfield Dispatch, which has lost at least half of its advertising revenue because of the vi