I will never forget the 2005 LGA Conference. We partied well into the night of 6 July – the ALG had the foresight to organise our late evening reception on the day London won the bid for the 2012 Olympics. On Thursday 7 July, I awoke late and heard the first news reports about explosions on the London Underground. Arriving at the Conference Centre, I entered an unreal world. Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks in America, local government, the emergency services and a wide range of other partners in London had prepared for an emergency, led by the-then local government minister, Nick Raynsford, with strong support from the mayor of London, Ken Livingstone. We had practised with scenarios just like the images and sounds we were now seeing and hearing. David Wechsler, chief executive of Croydon, was the duty ‘LA Gold’. He had a mandate to speak and act on behalf of all 32 boroughs and the City of London. In London, local government was concerned with a wide range of issues, such as the immediate impact in the affected boroughs, the emergency mortuary and the Family Assistance Centre. There were other issues to grapple with too, such as whether to close schools and what arrangements were for the return to normality. In Harrogate, we kept London’s local government leaders informed. Although I could not add much to the news they were receiving from the media or from their own boroughs, I was able to reassure them that our plans were working. The LGA decided to continue with the conference but to hold an emergency plenary session in the early afternoon. I was privileged to be asked to address the conference. I did so with pride – in local government’s part in the planning that contributed to the successful response in London; in the efforts of my colleagues in the boroughs who were managing the local response; and in the major part London local government was playing in the whole of the national and London endeavour. We know the threats remain. Twelve months on, we are still implementing some of the many changes that July 2005 showed we needed to make.n Martin Pilgrim is chief executive of the Association of London Government Dermott Calpin’s view from City Hall Londoners were still basking in the success of Olympic victory on Thursday 7 July 2005, when I arrived at City Hall around 8.30am to work with the London Assembly’s media team. The first indication that something might be wrong came around 9am, very shortly after the first bombs exploded. There was no panic and the initial emphasis was on the disruption to services and delays for peak-hour commuters. It was not until after the fourth bomb exploded on a bus in Tavistock Square at 9.47am that it became clear the explosions had been caused by bombs. It was 10.30am before the decision to open a dedicated media centre at the QEII Conference Centre was taken. Although the mayor was still in Singapore, he played a pivotal role within the resilience structures that link the boroughs and the Greater London Authority with the emergency services. His statements articulated the dismay and defiance of the city in the face of the attacks. London 7/7 had been brutally and violently changed forever. n One year on from the 7 July bombings in London, and the capital is still counting the cost. The London Assembly’s recent report into the terrorist attacks paid tribute to the emergency services, local authorities and unsung members of the public who all rallied together on that day. But it also highlighted a number issues which need to be addressed, such as radios failing to work underground and relying on mobile phones instead. London Assembly member Richard Barnes, who chaired the investigation, says: ‘London’s emergency plans have been tested, practiced and refined, but on 7 July it was clear they ignored the needs of many individuals caught up in the attacks. ‘They focused on incidents, but not individuals, and processes, rather than people. It is vital that these plans are reviewed and updated to address the major issue.’ The report’s findings centred around problems emergency services had with communication on the day. Staff had to rely on mobile phones, there were difficulties with radio systems – particularly for the London Ambulance Service – and there was a lack of communication systems on the Underground. ‘This can no longer remain in the “too hard to do” tray,’ says Mr Barnes. ‘In the 21st century, in one of the most sophisticated and technologically-aware cities in the world, it is unacceptable for the emergency services to have to rely on runners to gain and exchange information. The report also says there were problems with caring for survivors who were not seriously injured, but still traumatised. ‘The NHS estimates that some 4,000 individuals were affected by the explosions on 7 July, but up to 3,000 of them are still not known to the authorities,’ he says. The four boroughs of Westminster, Camden, Tower Hamlets and Croydon were directly involved on the day, since the blasts occurred within their boundaries. Looking back, Camden’s head of community safety, Tony Brooks, remembers: ‘Liaison officers were deployed at King’s Cross, Tavistock Square and Russell Square to act as a link between the emergency services on site and the council. And social services teams were actively involved in providing counselling at the rest and reception centres set up across London. ‘We worked closely with schools to ensure that no child went home alone, and the culture and environment directorate played a large part in getting Tavistock Square ready for the public and facilitating the use of our parks for floral tributes.’ Mr Brooks says that as a consequence of the attacks, the council has invested in digital airwave radios, which its staff can now use in emergencies. It has also set up a system where employees can e-mail local businesses to notify them of major incidents. Chief executive of Croydon LBC, David Wechsler, was involved in some of the key emergency planning decisions that day, as it was his authority which was designated as ‘local authority gold’ on 7 July. ‘The London Assembly report is useful,’ he says. ‘It seems to be comprehensive, and covers a lot of ground. It has taken an interesting angle, looking at the situation from the point of view of the survivors, not the agencies.’ When he gave evidence to the report committee in January, Mr Wechsler said the emergency systems in place had worked ‘extremely well’. ‘One should not lose sight of the fact that even now, hundreds of people’s lives have been ruined by these events,’ he said in January. ‘We in the local authorities and our colleagues in the health service, and the police continue to provide support for those people, and will continue to do so for many years to come.’ One figure in local government who will play a key role in shaping the post 7/7 environment is Ealing LBC chief executive, Darra Singh, who was appointed last month by Ruth Kelly as chair of the Commission on Integration and Cohesion. The commission will look at how communities can balance the needs of different groups, stop segregation and fight the growth of extremism. ‘We must learn more about what works and how government can best support areas to overcome problems themselves,’ said the secretary of state. Meanwhile, a statement by Phil Woolas and Ken Livingstone, the chair and deputy chair, respectively, of the London Resilience Forum, which was set up immediately after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US, says: ‘The sheer scale and unique nature of events on 7 July mean that naturally, there will be lessons to learn about our response. Ultimately, as Mr Barnes concedes, the true story of 7 July will remain untold, and instead will stay with the many unsung heroes who have not come forward. According to the London Assembly member, these include passengers who helped save the lives of their fellows and held them when they died. He continues: ‘Underground staff who rushed in without a thought to their own safety. The Marks & Spencer manager who turned his store into a casualty clearing centre and provided clothes and equipment. ‘The Metropol Hotel manager who did the same after Marks & Spencer was cleared because of a bomb scare, and then emptied rooms for emergency services.’ ‘It was London at its humane best,’ he adds. ‘An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us.’ n
