With the Olympic stadium bid back in the news following Karren Brady’s outburst over the Beckham loan, Tottenham’s Member of Parliament David Lammy has slammed the clubs plans to move out of the area.

Moving from North to East London was always going to be a contentious issue for many reasons, but Spurs have angered their MP who believes any move will cause irreparable damage to the area.

During a debate in Westminster, Lammy is quoted as saying: “Can it possibly be fair that Tottenham’s legacy from the Olympics is for the largest private employer to be allowed by this government to depart?”

Lammy would clearly prefer to see the current site redeveloped and went on to say: “Never did I imagine our successful Olympic bid would mean that residents of Tottenham, and those of Enfield, Waltham Forest and the whole of the Upper Lea Valley would have the heart and soul ripped out of their communities.”

Spurs will be meeting with Lammy later this month as the MP joins the growing list of dissenters against the Olympic Stadium plans.

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42 COMMENTS

  1. Well if Lammy and his merry men pay Tottenham £450 million then they will stay put.The local council has done nothing to help THFC.

      • there are no old crap buildings at the olympic site that will cost 50 mill to preserve. the total cost of building will be half what the cost is in tottenham. i am happy to stay in n17 (frankly not sure which i prefer) but that is on the clear understanding that we have no reason to expect enic to invest 450 mill or even the 250 mill extra it will cost over stratford and so for me staying in n17 means no new stadium as that will threaten the future of the club as we have seen with so many others. look at a higher tier on one side of the current stadium maybe but even if we could borrow the money we could not service the debt and i do know i would rather bein e15 than bankrupt. and befor ei am attacked by mindless persons to be clear i have had a season ticket for many many a year and have been going to the lane, regularly, for well over 30 years

  2. Funny how THFC wasn’t the heart and soul of the area when planning permission was being sought, when improved transport connections were being asked for or when commitments to regeneration of the area, were being sought of the council. From everything I’ve read it looks like it will cost £200m + (could be wrong on that) to stay and redevelop. Much as I’d hate to leave North London to the parasites up the road, I think we have to concede its the better option.

  3. Exactly, Delboy. It all comes down to cash in the end. Is Lammy really expecting Spurs to foot the entire bill themselves with little help from the local authorities?

    Although if it is true that Spurs haven’t applied for any public funding, why doesn’t Lammy and co make the funding available straight away instead of waiting for the question to be asked??

  4. Any Tottenham fan with any link to the area will be heartbroken if we leave N17. I may not live on the manor anymore but I was made and born there whilst both my parents were born and bred.
    If we move to Stratford, how can we possibly be Tottenham Hotspur anymore. We will be no better than MK Dons and all jibes launched at the Woolwich will be forever rammed down our throats.
    I’m sure there will be many to take my place but if we do move to the Olympic site, my season ticket will be given up and I will never set foot in the place

  5. time to leave the benefits haven that is tottenham lammy has tried to screw spurs with all the extra social housing spurs must provide. let him sort his own community out we are a football club not a charity and lets finish off the pikeys whilst we are in stratford and kill off their future fan base of the pikey hammers coys

  6. Wes, you are so right everything you written is true. We need to get the council to drop their charge to a reasonable level and if that can’t happen then we move.

  7. Perhaps if he had imagined it then he might have tried harder to keep Spurs in N17. It seems like he and Harringay Council thought they had Spurs cornered and it’s only now have realised that Spurs might have a better option are they getting worried.

    As for me, it’s a 149 bus up to White Hart Lane or a North London Line round to the Olympic site – I suppose I could get used to being a Transporthub Hotspur supporter.

  8. cant wait to see the council cry when spurs leave to stratford . its of there own making for years spurs provided the chavs enough beer money and lottery tickets now there have to provide for their own . maybe open up drug dens on their estates lammy has tried to screw spurs for everypenny he can get now his so called community can all get jobs instead of relying on the cash cow that is spurs coys

  9. lame selfish idiot Lammy. I understand you have your constituents at heart and must put them first however, that does leave Spurs open to your pick pocketing and demanding more at every opportunity. Haringey thought they were looking at a cash cow and got all demanding. Now they’re crying to mummy cos the cash cow has seen greener grass.
    As delboy says, dip your hand in your pocket and make it financially worthwhile or enjoy the dust bowl when we’re gone.

  10. I will be sad if we leave N17 our spiritual home. However the financials, transport links, facilities all stack up. The more money poured into a new stadium would be at the detrement of football as seen by our rivals. It should be noted that HR probably wont be manager at that time and whoever is manager will have no player budget to manage and may be expected to do much with nothing.

    I have worked with Haringey council and typically the N17 planning request was not well supported. I am not surprised based on my experience. They should have seen this as so important and supported it in the way Islington did for the Gooners. The Olympic Stadium bid by us will be a lot cheaper, is scalable, is easier to get to (by fans outside N17) and is quicker to achieve. As someone said Haringey and Lammy for political reasons wanted to have their cake and eat it. Going back to when Ken was Mayor this has been a real problem for Enic to manage and I can see why they needed a plan B. Shame this wasnt putting pressure earlier when the plans for N17 were going through the beaurocratic process.

    I dont like the idea of moving. But progress is about change and in this case a move a few miles down the road (and not from Wimbledon to Milton Keynes)

  11. 5 reasons to leave , 1 to challenge the big boys as we want champions league every year and the extra 100 million could help that . 2 to finish off the pikey hammers forever . to teach lammy that he must get his so called community to actually work and not rely on spurs cash handouts 4 actually to get to the game without stress 5 we will always be spurs so new chants will evolve over time time to grow up and move on our history will always be there. only the chavs in the area will suffer coys

    • Dave – you’re an idiot.

      1. We’re challenging the big boys at the moment in case you hadn’t noticed. Moving to Stratford offers no extra guarantees of success. Things seem to be progressing nicely at WHL.
      2. West Ham will always be around. Us moving into their area won’t ‘finish them off’! It’s not a bloody invasion.
      3. Lammy is right to kick up a fuss about this. Tottenham is one of the most deprived areas of the UK. He is only looking out for his constituents best interests. Plus he doesn’t believe Tottenham moving away from the area is morally right (and he is right). How can you call a club ‘Tottenham Hotspur’ when it doesn’t play in Tottenham?
      4. I think it’s pretty selfish of you to allow Tottenham to ignore over 100 years of history and move away from their spiritual home just so you can have a bit less travel stress in your life.
      5. We might always be Spurs but we won’t always be Tottenham Hotspur if we move to another district of London. Someone here said moving to Stratford is not like moving to Milton Keynes – well yes it is actually. Stratford is a completely different district and it falls under West Ham’s territory. London is a big place and each borough and district has it’s own distinct differences.

      • 1. Things may seem to be progressing nicely at White Hart Lane but they have the potential to progress even nicer at Stratford.

        2. Agree who cares about West Ham fans, that should not bwe an issue in this debate at all. This is all about this club and it’s supporters.

        3. Lammy should quite clearly have been more helpful to Spurs in their attempts to expand the stadium if he wished to keep us in the area. Maybe this Olympic Stadium bid will encourage him to be more helpful regarding staying in Tottenham.

        4. It may be selfish to want a move for the reasons Dave has given but all in all it’s obviously the best decision considering the financial difference in the two proposals. Saving around €200m is an absolute no brainer for the club.

        5. Regardless of name I will still support the club and I will support them simply because it’s the best option for the clubs development. If there was no financial difference then of course staying at WHL would be my choice, but thats clearly not the case.

  13. Lammy is not the council so he wasn’t the one who originally refused planning permission. The Haringer Council seems to have thought they had the club over a barrel, as did the various heritage groups who made various demands, none of which will be met if the club moves away.

    I will be gutted if we move, for all sorts of reasons, club history being one, but also leaving north London to the Arse. Which is why I wonder whether all the supposed Spurs supporters I read on the net supporting the move really are Spurs supporters.

  14. Well said Iain mate. I can’t believe that any real Spurs fan would be happy for ‘Tottenham’ to move to ‘Stratford’. We aren’t an East London club even, we are a NORTH London club!! Shall we rename ourselves ‘Stratford Hotspur’ then too while we’re at it? I’m not having it, a totally rubbish idea and it would not only rip the heart and soul out of the area but out of the club too.

    Some of these probably Essex based Spurs fans need to stop being selfish and thinking about parking easily and then shooting off up the M11 ten mins before full time to get home in time for XFactor and a chicken nuggets… Or whatever is so much more important..

    Think about the identity of your club, we aren’t Tesco or PC World and i don’t want to see my famous old club stuck in some faceless hole out east near the Spammers!!! I can only hope Spurs are using Stratford as leverage in a deal to stay put… No Tottenham as an area isn’t great but neither’s the weather in this country but i’m not leaving cos it’s where i belong!!!

  15. I have been a Spurs fan all my 45 years of recollected life and a season ticket holder for a decent chunk of that time as well. But like a lot of Spurs fans, I am not from North London and I have no allegiance to an area that – without the club – is a carsey. If Tottenham want to compete with the so called big four then parochial supporters like Ian and n17ment and the Tottenham Supporters Trust need to wake up and smell the coffee: A huge majority of Manchester United fans have never been to Old Trafford, and doubtless the same can be said of Liverpool and the Woolwich Wanderers. Levy is concerned about Tottenham’s survival and so am I. Football is a global game. Get used to it.

  16. I scarcely believe any true Spurs fan wanta to leave Tottenham. I keep hearing that Tottenham is a dump, do people think that Stratford is paradise. It isn’t, I have been there many times and it is a East London hell hole. I here that it will piss off West Ham if we move into Stratford. I hate West Ham as much as the next man, but as much as it will piss off West Ham, it will delight the Goons, as we will leave North London to them. I here people saying that Levy, has Tottemham’s best interest at heart. Don’t make me laugh he cares about nothing but money. He would sell the club tomorrow, if he knew he was getting a big enough return. I here people criticizing Lammy and the council. Lammy has back the new ground at Tottenham from day one. He is quite rightly miffed that Levy, has gone back on his word. As for the council, they have given us permission – what more do we want. The Spurs fans who want out identity to die, and want to support a plastic club are welcome to Stratford. I as a season ticket holder for many years will not be joining them. And before anyone pipes up, I now reside in Essex, so moving to Stratford would mow be easy for me, but I will never set foot on the stadium, unless as an away fan. As I support TOTTENHAM Hotspur, the pride of North London, the Kings of White Hart Lane. Bill Nicholson, will be turning in his grave.

  18. What about I smash your face instead? Lammy is local Spurs fan who wants the club to stay in it’s Tottenham home of 111 years (and Tottenham based for 128 years) and not become an East London franchise. He wants to help his constituents at the same time. Good on him.

  19. The Council and London transport have done nothing to support spurs. I want spurs to be the biggest club in london, so we want a fan base from all over . The transport for 60,000 to Tottenham is rubbish. Everything will be in place at an Olympic stadium, for far cheaper than at Tottenham , letting us get extra revenue to be the best far quicker. It’s a global game now, we need a stadium where plenty of fans can get to see us. THFC pride of London, not Enfield and haringey, but the whole of London. love our tradition , but look after our future.

  21. Seriously how many Spurs fans live in Tottenham now, all the supporters i know now live away from the area, Harringay council are a bunch of tossers even stopped our fans from parking within a mile of the ground, so we now have to pay £10 to park our cars in private lots, annoys the shit out of me. They dont even offer any better train services, fecking disgraceful, now they are crapping them selves we are going to leave the area, i for one am enjoying every minute of it.

  22. Most of the locals are not even Spurs fans and support that red shit up the road, our main fan base is in the outskirts and home counties. I was asked to sign a petition when i was in the Irish club the other day, broad Irish accent knows nothing about Spurs, all they are worried about is all the money they will loose when we go to Stratford. I for one believe it will happen.

  24. the fact of the matter is in an ideal world no one WANTS spurs to leave tottenham, but because of a complete lack of support from the local council and mp levy and co feel they have no choice but to relocate, instead of slating them for trying to improve the club why dont all the people bitchin about the proposed move put presure on the council, you all make out your locals to the area so make it clear that if spurs have to leave then so will the current council and mp ,ie they will lose your votes, we do live in a democracy

  25. Unfortunately I think we will be given the first option on the Olympic site, and I personally would prefer to play in the Championship in Tottenham than the Champions League in Stratford. I do understand the pro-Stratford supporters point of views (although I suspect a lot of them to be scummers in disguise), as it would undoubtedly be the most sensible option from a business perspective. But preserving the tradition and spirit of the club is the only thing more important to me than winning.

    And also just a thought – imagine what would happen in the unlikely event that West Ham get the green light instead of us. Haringey could very well make the NDP a nightmare, by creating lots more obstacles in revenge for trying to move, and you can probably forget about raising any public financial support. Of course, they could realise how close they came to losing the best thing to ever happen to the area and support us every bit of the way, but with Haringey council I wouldn’t hold out much hope.

  26. there are no old crap buildings at the olympic site that will cost 50 mill to preserve. the total cost of building will be half what the cost is in tottenham. i am happy to stay in n17 (frankly not sure which i prefer) but that is on the clear understanding that we have no reason to expect enic to invest 450 mill or even the 250 mill extra it will cost over stratford and so for me staying in n17 means no new stadium as that will threaten the future of the club as we have seen with so many others. look at a higher tier on one side of the current stadium maybe but even if we could borrow the money we could not service the debt and i do know i would rather bein e15 than bankrupt. and before i am attacked by mindless persons to be clear i have had a season ticket for many many a year and have been going to the lane, regularly, for well over 30 years, of course season tickets wer not needed in the ’70’s.
    the public transport has been a joke for all of that time and just how 60 mill get in and out without improvements, improvements that lammy should have been pushing hard for, is beyond my ken. for me it is stay in n17 and dont have lots of extra capacity and be happy with what we have or move and have greater potential. we just cannot afford the cost, which has gone up considerably while lammy has sat on his fat behind and done nothing i can detect. as i said, it is a hard one and my great memories make me wonder re whether “progress” is worth it, but then i show my age as progress is a young man’s game

  27. there is a third option which may have been said but i havnt heard it and it is this, we rent a stadium (say wembly), pull whl down and build on that site once it is cleared, instead of building along side, this means less historic buildings will be affected so surely that lower the costs, this doesnt adress the travel issues but surely the council can sort that, that way everyone wins, we get a stadium big enough for our ambitions, the council and mister lammy get us to stay in haringley and then we can pass the extra costs off to whoever buys the land off us, oh and as i have just realised that if we move to the os we have to lease the ground, we would still own our ground

  28. who are these people who oppose us moving. il tell you fat cats council workers , chavs who will lose some benefits thieves who pray on supporters cars whilst at the match . people who live in tottenham who have never moved because they have no backbone to better themselves. if it wasnt for the council and silly heritage bodies becoming a nuisance this would never had arose lammy is to blame hes failed the area and now in opposition he crys in his pudding. spurs will becaome a dominate force and have even more capacity when the new stadium is built in stratford time to look to the future….coys

  29. I do agree with you 100%… been against it the whole time. But to think that people support the move because they can get to and from quicker (some do i admit) is just picking o0ut a msall group that support your argument. I’ve lived in North London my whole life – I was born in Enfield, however, the more I think about this tyhe more it makes sense…

    I understand your argument, because it’s the one i’ve been using right up until recently when I actually thought what uis best for the club.

    Change and progression happens, we’re staying in London, in fact I think the move is a couple of miles!

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