Skip to content or view mobile version

Home | Mobile | Editorial | Mission | Privacy | About | Contact | Help | Security | Support

A network of individuals, independent and alternative media activists and organisations, offering grassroots, non-corporate, non-commercial coverage of important social and political issues.

Stop UKCMRI [Camden Bio Hazard] Lab meeting at Camden Town Hall update.

Stop Camden Bio Hazard and Animal Lab [Mandy Ford] | 19.02.2010 03:23 | SOCPA | Animal Liberation | Bio-technology | Social Struggles | South Coast | World

There are plans to build a high level [3+] virus containment facility and animal testing lab in Camden on a council house estate in Camden, alongside St Pancras International behind the British Library. This week residents met with councillors at Camden Town Hall as a follow up to the meeting at St Mary & St Pancras Primary School meeting. Read the notes below regarding this meeting.

Residents at the meeting were in the majority against the lab. One resident was for the lab plans but wants the lab to be smaller than is planned.

Most of the residents have said that safety is an overwhelming concern. While it is true that there are other labs nearby that have not had [publicly reported] virus leaks and have not been protested against by AR activists, these are not situated close to an International train station as is Brill Place. The lab will be situated feet away from the station.

Residents are worried that the security is to be out contracted to a private security firm which could mean that the security staff might be poorly paid and open to bribery, infiltration by terrorists etc.

The problems that occurred with Pirbright are a major concern. Foot & Mouth disease escaped, devastating the countryside and the countryside small farmers. This was as a result of poor maintenance. [Pirbright will not be rebuilt or repaired as planned due to a lack of funds]. While the building would be still new at St Pancras this "should not happen" but the building will age as Pirbright did. Such a virus leak in central London would be catastrophic and have implications across Europe.

The site has already been hit by bombers and remains a target.

Residents have said that in the event of virus leaks or attack there is not much space in the surrounding area for evacuation. The lab's loading bay will be feet away from the Monica Shaw estate which is mainly sheltered housing.

Animal rights activists are also a worry for residents. One resident meeting attendee has said that she is close personal friend of one of the board of the Wellcome Trust and that he in turn is close to David Cameron...and that the lab will go ahead regardless of who is Prime Minister. She also said that she has [quote] "...seen on Indymedia that Animal rights people know about the lab, believe me they know, I've seen them on Indymedia and there is no way I want these people, these people are, well these people, no way no way no way, that's why I don't want the lab built here, they know, these people, they know, but the lab should be built but not here, they can't come here, these people the lab the activists any of them." which shows just how worried people are about the lab plan the problems it presents and how that it is and will be affecting residents.
[This woman also heckled Camden Councillor Roger Robinson telling him to "shut up, shut up, shut up" before being asked to remain quiet by Candy Udwin].

Other residents have expressed concerns about animal rights activists campaigning. Unfortunately this is leading to people in Camden being stereotyped...Camden is known for it's dreadlocked hippy community many of whom are now labelled as " potential AR terrorists" because of their appearance which could lead to police harrassment of innocent people throughout Camden. A dreadlocked resident was asked at the meeting if she is an "AR" activist because of her hair..she isn't and this might not seem important to some but this is important as it can lead to problems in Camden with it's two million "hippy" tourists coming every year to visit the famous markets and bars in Camden Town.

Animal rights activist violence against people working in or for the labs [or being linked in some way] is a genuine worry for residents as is recruitment of school children, teenagers and students into AR groups by activists.

Housing is another concern. There are council houses being knocked down and they are not being replaced in a borough with 20,000 people on a housing waiting list.

Some of the residents are divided as to how to proceed with the campaign leading to a couple of walkouts at the meeting but this will happen with all or any campaigns and we remain united in fighting this as residents.

There is another residents meeting planned for a few weeks time.

The lab website is at :

http:www.ukcmri.ac.uk

www.myspace.com/stopcamdenanimallab
 stopcamdenanimallab@yahoo.co.uk
07981111602

Stop Camden Bio Hazard and Animal Lab [Mandy Ford]

Comments

Upcoming Coverage
View and post events
Upcoming Events UK
24th October, London: 2015 London Anarchist Bookfair
2nd - 8th November: Wrexham, Wales, UK & Everywhere: Week of Action Against the North Wales Prison & the Prison Industrial Complex. Cymraeg: Wythnos o Weithredu yn Erbyn Carchar Gogledd Cymru

Ongoing UK
Every Tuesday 6pm-8pm, Yorkshire: Demo/vigil at NSA/NRO Menwith Hill US Spy Base More info: CAAB.

Every Tuesday, UK & worldwide: Counter Terror Tuesdays. Call the US Embassy nearest to you to protest Obama's Terror Tuesdays. More info here

Every day, London: Vigil for Julian Assange outside Ecuadorian Embassy

Parliament Sq Protest: see topic page
Ongoing Global
Rossport, Ireland: see topic page
Israel-Palestine: Israel Indymedia | Palestine Indymedia
Oaxaca: Chiapas Indymedia
Regions
All Regions
Birmingham
Cambridge
Liverpool
London
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
Wales
World
Other Local IMCs
Bristol/South West
Nottingham
Scotland
Social Media
You can follow @ukindymedia on indy.im and Twitter. We are working on a Twitter policy. We do not use Facebook, and advise you not to either.
Support Us
We need help paying the bills for hosting this site, please consider supporting us financially.
Other Media Projects
Schnews
Dissident Island Radio
Corporate Watch
Media Lens
VisionOnTV
Earth First! Action Update
Earth First! Action Reports
Topics
All Topics
Afghanistan
Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-Nuclear
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Energy Crisis
Fracking
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Policing
Public sector cuts
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista
Major Reports
NATO 2014
G8 2013
Workfare
2011 Census Resistance
Occupy Everywhere
August Riots
Dale Farm
J30 Strike
Flotilla to Gaza
Mayday 2010
Tar Sands
G20 London Summit
University Occupations for Gaza
Guantanamo
Indymedia Server Seizure
COP15 Climate Summit 2009
Carmel Agrexco
G8 Japan 2008
SHAC
Stop Sequani
Stop RWB
Climate Camp 2008
Oaxaca Uprising
Rossport Solidarity
Smash EDO
SOCPA
Past Major Reports
Encrypted Page
You are viewing this page using an encrypted connection. If you bookmark this page or send its address in an email you might want to use the un-encrypted address of this page.
If you recieved a warning about an untrusted root certificate please install the CAcert root certificate, for more information see the security page.

Global IMC Network


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa

Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india


United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech