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Gospel Oak councillor Keith Sedgwick raises a blooded hand |
BLOODY, BUT HE'S UNBOWED
Politician attacked for seventh time on doorstep
BLOOD dripping from a wound in his hand, campaigning Gospel Oak councillor Keith Sedgwick has revealed how he was beaten up with a belt buckle on his doorstep.
He was attacked on Friday night by a crowd of teenagers and a man in his 30s as he walked home to his flat on the Gospel Oak 7 and 8 estate after buying milk.
They called him a “snitch” and a “grass” as one youth lashed him with the belt across his stomach, shoulder and hand. The attack only ended when he staggered through his front door and called police. He was later treated in hospital.
The Conservative councillor said it is the seventh time he has been attacked since moving into the area in 2002 – and has called for council estates to be made secure.
He said that housing land should be reserved for residents and their visitors only, with groups of teenagers from outside not welcome.
Cllr Sedgwick, who defeated former Labour leader Raj Chada in council elections last May, said: “If you were in a private house and a group of youths was in your garden, you would complain to the police. The same should apply for council estate residents and the communal gardens they share. The estate should be for residents and visitors only.”
He said that the threat to his personal safety would not stop him campaigning for better security on estates, adding that drug dealing needed to be tackled in Queen’s Crescent and that youths had made links with cannabis peddlers.
Cllr Sedgwick said: “The youths are full of bravado. The only reason they attacked me was because they were in a group. They stand on the corner drinking alcohol and smoking dope with impunity.
“The Safer Neighbourhoods teams in the area have done good work but the question to the police is how are they going to fill in the gaps. Whenever there is a clampdown on dealing in Camden Town, the dealing comes up to Gospel Oak. It goes on in Gilden Crescent.”
He also blamed a shortage of council housing patrols and a failure to implement plans for an anti-social behaviour hotline to which residents could report crime quickly.
In the past, Cllr Sedgwick has been hit with his own cycle helmet and had a firework thrown at him. He added: “I see this as my job. I am a front-line representative. I have been elected to represent this area and I have to raise these issues.
“They were calling me a grass and snitch but I am not scared. I have seen them before. A man in his 30s was there as a conduit – to step in, in case I fought back. We have to claim this area back for the community.”
Liberal Democrat community safety chief Councillor Ben Rawlings said he was aware of problems in Gospel Oak but was trying to strike “a delicate balance”.
He added: “There was support for the idea of making estates for residents and visitors only during the recent anti-social behaviour review. But we have to be careful. We do not want to create gated communities. We don’t want a situation where the council estate has its own community. We want to be bringing everyone together.”
Cllr Rawlings warned of the danger of “demonising” all teenagers.
He said: “One of the most popular things adults do is to hang out with their friends in pubs. It’s not productive but they enjoy it. It could be the same with teenagers. They are just hanging out. We have to see whether there is anything more productive that they want to do.”
Cllr Rawlings added that he would be looking at the possibility that drug dealing was being displaced from Camden Town to Gospel Oak.
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