Over 30 people including George Galloway MP started an Occupation in Bradford this weekend over the space that Westfield have left in the town centre. As well as putting up tents and collecting essentials, they have published an initial statement.

The statement states that the current state of Bradford City centre is unacceptable. Businesses are closing or relocating, the few shops that are left are struggling, there are many empty buildings and regeneration has been at a standstill for nearly ten years.

We will occupy in a peaceful, lawful manor and come from all ethnicities, backgrounds, genders, generations, sexualities, disabilities and faiths to work together.

Our  intention is to stay until these demands have been met:

• We demand an audience, here, with the leaders ofBradfordcouncil and the head of regeneration.
• We demand an audience with all local MPs and all Councillors to stand with us and discuss how to prevent this City sinking further.
• We demand a public inquiry be conducted into how and why Bradford has been left devastated by Bradford council and Westfield.

The people of Bradford feel very let down by Westfield and the council. Westfield were awarded planning permission in 2003, have since demolished an area of around 3 football pitches and just left it hidden behind fences.

I visited the occupation on the Sunday evening when around 30 people were putting up tents and talking to people passing.

As around the demolition site is a fence which hides the area, it is difficult to understand how much space there is. The occupiers have open up this fence and created a space where people can look at the giant hole of wasteland.

Local MP George Galloway had spent Saturday at the occupation and one of the occupiers had emailed all the local mps and councillors asking for their support and appearance.

The atmosphere was really good with lots of people stopping to talk, look at the site and take leaflets.

Previous Occupy camps served to highlight the role of unaccountable companies and bosses in putting profit before the needs of the people. But without a concrete strategy to turn their demands into mass action, they were isolated by the authorities and harassed by the police.

The demands on Bradford councillors and Westfield to explain themselves are a step in the right direction. Now we need to organise to draw in wider layers of support to ensure that those in charge can’t get away with this scandal any longer.

We should appeal to local organisations, including the Trades Council and residents’ associations to support the occupation.

We should organise a mass meeting for Bradford residents where councillors and company representatives can listen to the demands of the public and explain what they are going to do to sort out this mess.

Ultimately we should not leave those responsible with the last word on the matter. Ten years have shown that there is a real lack of interest in developping the site and now things have come to a head. If we are ignored then we must organise a campaign to turn up the pressure on our elected representatives.

The Westfield side is an aesthetic eyesore. But more than this, it’s a criminal waste of opportunity. We demand that either Westfield resume work on the site, or the council take it over and start a building programme for socially-useful services to be decided by the people of Bradford themselves.

This would provide much-needed jobs and investment both now and for the future.

We demand that Bradford city council take the necessary steps to put the needs of the people before the profit of the bosses!