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p10
by Louis Levy
With reference to an article in the April 99 edition of N16
magazine regarding the 73 bus route. I can remember in the 1930s as a schoolboy the pirate
and private buses, as they were called. There was the Westminster (chocolate colour),
Claremont (red), Thomas Tilling (red), Public and Havelock (blue). The Westminster and
Claremont were garaged opposite Penton Street in Pentonville Road.
My father was a conductor on the Westminster bus. If he did not collect £5.00 per day in
pennies and twopences, he would lose the next day’s work.They paid for their own
uniforms and caps which they wore with pride, winter and summer.
These busmen were knights of the road. They used to help passengers on and off the bus,
carry their shopping and see them across the road if need be. These men had compassion.
Just like today, ha, ha! Can you imagine?
My uncle owned the Public and Havelock buses. He was the last person to sell out to the
General Omnibus company before it became London Transport. As boys, my brother and I would
go to the Angel Arcade opposite Liverpool Road and wait for the 73 bus which my father was
on and give him his sandwiches for his lunch. In return, we would get on his bus and go to
Richmond and return to the Angel. It was a great ride, out to the country and back again.
These private buses would race along to the next bus stop and beat the General to it. It
was great fun.
Green Money
by Stella Rice
As a financial adviser I am often asked about ethical or socially
responsible investment. This aims to maximise long term profits balanced with concern and
respect for wider social issues. These can be many and varied, involving companies that do
not pollute, manufacture tobacco or armaments and those who protect the ozone layer. Equal
rights in the workplace is also an ethical issue.
A woman from Stoke Newington came to see me as she had inherited some cash and wanted to
make regular payments towards a pension. She had heard about ethical investments and
wanted to be environmentally friendly but had little idea of what they were or how they
worked. She also wanted to achieve a good return on her money. Did ethical funds really
perform?
The public perspective of this type of investment is still lagging behind its actual
performance. The typical ethical investor is not necessarily a radical vegetarian —
some are — but an astute forward planner. Ethical issues are now part of the hard
facts of business life, shaping policies in government and in boardrooms around the world.
Companies understand clearly that their behaviour can affect how they are perceived by
potential customers and the public.
Shell recently advertised in the Financial Times saying that they were now focusing on
solar and renewable energy rather than oil. Amoco and BP have adopted similar policies.
The size of the ethical market is growing, doubling in size last year, with total funds
under management in the UK now exceeding £2 billion. This makes it one of the fastest
growth areas. All the signs are that this will continue. In the USA one in ten investors
chooses ethical stocks, with a total of over a trillion dollars. Research suggests that
ethical funds have outperformed other investments. A typical managed pension fund could
have an annualised average growth rate of around 12 per cent whereas an ethical fund, such
as Friends Provident Stewardship, has grown by 17.8 per cent each year since its launch.
There is a wide range of schemes available, including the new ISAs, life assurance, unit
trusts, bonds and many others. Green definitely means growth.
Locally Grown Organic Food
Public fears about genetically modified food have given a boost to
organic vegetable supplies in Stokey. After newspapers and TV revealed the potential
dangers of eating genetically modified foods, demand for the fresh, organic vegetables
supplied by locally-based Growing Communities has rocketed.
As well as supplying more than 100 households with organic vegetables, Growing Communities
has demonstration gardens at Clissold Park, near the butterfly tunnel, and at Oaktree
Community Centre. Here locals can see how tasty food can be grown in urban areas without
using chemicals or genetically modified seeds.
‘Growing food in urban areas like Stoke Newington is one way to improve the local
environment and help build a sense of community’, explains coordinator Julie Brown,
who was assisted by more than 90 volunteers last year.
The not-for-profit organisation is now established enough to move out of a garage on
Nevill Road and into offices at the Old Fire Station, Leswin Road. ‘We always wanted
the scheme to be more than just about vegetables so we are very excited to be moving into
the Old Fire Station as it will give us scope to become better known in Hackney and to be
involved in more community activities’, said Julie.
Information: 020 7502 7588 |
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