Changing Britain: Luton’s uncertain future

Luton is a town in receipt of millions of pounds of government money for regeneration, a town with its share of the millions who live dependent upon benefits long term, and a town where immigration has transformed both the social and the economic landscape.

Our aim was to find out whether social inclusion has flowed and whether the gap between rich and poor is narrower due to Labour’s efforts. Or is Luton emblematic of what the Tories call broken Britain?

We have interviewed about thirty people all over the area, from victims of crime to young mums afraid to leave their home because of a fear of it, from revolutionaries hell bent on localizing state funding, to those now convinced the BNP is the only party fit to lead.

In so many ways Luton sums up the crisis in post-Industrial Britain: broken by an acute shortage of jobs where they are needed most, tackled by a surfeit of benefits, broken too by an inheritance of appalling housing, remedied by a cumbersome centrally planned programme of renewal.

Broken by a widening gap between rich and poor, and a blame culture that focuses on immigrants.

These are big challenges and rich pickings, even for politicians. And that’s before you mention MPs’ expenses.

Luton is not conclusively declaring Labour dead or calling for a Tory take-over nor does it seem to be voting en mass for the BNP, but there is an unease, that as yet, few think a General Election will do anything much to change.

Turning around Marsh farm?
Marsh Farm is exactly the kind of estate Labour wanted to turn around. £50m of public money has been thrown at it.

The housing stock is being renewed, but the lives of the residents are still scarred by poverty, and joblessness. Labour has failed to break the benefits trap and the perception is that the issue of crime is unresolved too.

Tulsiras Katechip knows all too well about local crime. At 7.00am two weeks ago, he’d just started work when a robber armed with a knife burst in.

“I’m sure he would have killed him (pointing at his colleague) if I hadn’t handed over the money.”

Mr Katechip went on to say he was sure the intruder was on drugs, and that this single issue is to blame for so much unease in his community.

“Only the police and government can sort this out,” he concludes. “I fear coming to work now – I’d like to stay at home but I can’t. I can’t let them win.”

Another local businessman we spoke to straight afterwards blamed the acute lack of jobs – he told us that without work youngsters roam the streets looking for trouble.

They find profit in selling drugs and that becomes their means of living, he tells us. And drugs are easy to get hold of we’re told.

He shows us where to buy them, an open bit of land next to the estate with some so called hoodies roaming around. Who knows whether this is true, but the perception that it is seeps along beneath daily life on Marsh Farm Estate.

And perceptions are after all what swing votes.