Abigail Marshall Katung
Chair Scrutiny Board
It is a privilege and honour to serve as an Elected Member for Leeds City Council representing Little London, Woodhouse and the City Centre. I am proud to chair the Scrutiny Board for Infrastructure, Investment & Inclusive Growth. I am also privileged to have chaired the Scrutiny Board for Adults, Health & Inclusive Growth as well as chaired the West Yorkshire Joint Health Overview Scrutiny Committee.
My role as Chair involves bringing partners together to examine issues that directly impact upon the lives of people living in Leeds. Scrutiny has the potential to influence policy when boards examine emerging evidence, trends, and proposals ahead of decision making most effectively. The process of testing policy proposals in the earliest stages of their development strengthens the final decision-making process and therefore improves outcomes.
Please click the links below to have an insight into the work we have dealt with on the scrutiny boards that I chair.
Infrastructure, Investment & Inclusive Growth Scrutiny Board
- 01/11/23
- 27/09/23
- 19/07/23
- 28/06/23
Adults Health & Active Lifestyle Scrutiny Board
- 21/03/23
- 21/02/23
- 17/01/23
- 22/11/22
- 15/03/22
- 07/09/21
- 09/07/21
Regional Health Scrutiny
Chair Hate Crime Strategic Board
- I am the Chair of the city’s Hate Crime Strategic Board which brings together key statutory and third sector partners.
- Board members support partners responsible for the operational delivery of services to effectively respond to and tackle hate motivated incidents in Leeds. This is done through a brilliant Hate Crime Operational Group whose work feeds into the Strategic Board.
- Leeds is a welcoming city, a city of sanctuary and one with a growing economy and increasingly diverse population. The city thrives because of the rich co-existence of people of different backgrounds, characteristics, faiths, and ethnicities. It is a rich co-existence that we must treasure and strive to protect.
- Through the commitments made within the hate crime strategy and the associated action plan, we aim to strengthen our protection of communities by upholding and underpinning our fundamental values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and the mutual respect, tolerance and understanding of different faiths and beliefs that are shared by the majority of people in Britain.
- I’m delighted that Third Party Reporting Centres are being relaunched and refreshed in the city as they offer a good safe opportunity for people to report hate crimes.
Lead Member for Faith and Religion
Being a voice on faith matters in the city has been a blessing and could also be challenging. But through it all, I am delighted to serve in this capacity and have learnt a great deal about the diverse faiths and religions in our city. In the words of Jo Cox, “we have far more in common than that which divides us”.
Videos of the Council’s Inter-faith memorial for the late Queen Elizabeth II.
Leeds Food Champion
This is one of the roles that means so much to me. The Covid pandemic amplified the need to fight for food justice in our nation. As a Co-operator, I joined the Cooperative campaign to ensure food is accessible, affordable, and most importantly – nutritious. I am proud that under my watch, we launched the Council’s commitment to Low Carbon Food in tackling climate change. We were the first council in the country to do so. We are committed to achieving the following:
1.
Buy local, Serve local
We’ll increasingly source more of the food we serve from producers that are based in Yorkshire and surrounding counties, to support local businesses and cut food miles.
2.
Ban air-freighted imports
Where we use ingredients that can be produced locally, we’ll reduce the impact of transporting it by only using boat, road, or rail.
3.
Halve the carbon footprint of meals served by 2030
We’ll review and update all the meals we serve to cut their environmental impact without sacrificing flavour, variety, or nutrients.
Under my watch, we have produced a comprehensive Food Strategy for the city in collaboration with our food partners and in consultation with residents.
Please click the Food Strategy to read more.
Facilitating the seting up of a Food Pantry in my ward has been a practical intervention to fighting the cost-of-living crisis. We have also teamed up with the Food Savers Scheme to help residents save an extra pound each week they attend the food pantry. The pantry has been a source of assistance to many families struggling with food poverty.
Co-Chair David Oluwale Memorial Association
My work with the David Oluwale Memorial Association is one of the highlights of my voluntary role as a trustee, fighting social justice. I am delighted to see the hibiscus rising sculpture erected in Meadow Lane, Aire Park, Leeds city centre, LS11 in honour of David Oluwale, a Nigerian who came to Leeds for a beter life but was sadly hounded to his death by two police officers in 1969.
The Hibiscus Rising was erected on 24th November 2023
Funded by Leeds City Council, Leeds 2023 and lots of well wishers, the Hibiscus Rising sculpture was designed and produced by Yinka Shonibare CBE, RA.
Set in the Meadow Lane Green Space, a new footbridge known as the David Oluwale footbridge has been constructed by the Leeds Mott McDonald Group across the River Aire, from Sovereign Square to the 10-metre-high Hibiscus Flower.
Walking on David’s Bridge you can see the Leeds Bridge, where the Leeds Civic Trust’s Blue Plaque for David Oluwale is mounted, overlooking the point where David drowned in 1969.
The Hibiscus Rising sculpture is a major piece of public art, attracting visitors from all over the world. Its a welcoming space where people can reflect on David’s life and death in Leeds from 1949 to 1969, as well as the issues that afflicted his life: Homelessness, mental ill-health, racism, and police malpractice.
And of course, like all great public art, it is expected that this world-class sculpture will help generate new businesses and promote the Leeds economy.
Cooperative Party National Executive Committee (NEC) England North 2020
Chair NEC Policy Committee
