Chaos in Barnet - Fantastic snow pictures in Mill Hill Broadway

If like me, you enjoy the snow, here are a few pictures taken at Noon today in and around Mill Hill Broadway.

Here is a lovely picture of a couple of boys tobogonning in Mill Hill Broadway. It seems they've lost their reindeer and are relying on a boxer dog to tow them up the Hill.

I had hoped to get a picture of the guy skiing to Marks and Spencers but he was at the Gherkin counter by the time I'd got the Camera out of the box.

Here's a lovely snowman in Station Road Mill Hill, outside of the M1 Cab office. In the background there's a 186 bus. Due to the lack of gritting the cab office had cleared the pavement outside of their office and made this rather jolly snowman on the pavement.

In the background you can see a 186 bus, the one Boris Johnson has diverted from the Watford Way, effectively putting Brent Cross well beyond the reach of the many elderly who live on the Watford Way between Mill Hill and Aerodrome Road and who used to use the bus to go shopping.

Here's a rather deserted looking Mill Hill Broadway. As you can see, at noon, no attempt had been made to grit the pavements and as a result, rather sensibly no one was out and about shopping. Given that the traders in Mill Hill have effectively lost a days trade, I wonder if the Council has any plans to refund a days business rates? Sadly for the owners of the shops, staff costs are the same, heating costs are higher, but takings will be well down due to the dangerous state of the pavements. I doubt that too many people at Barnet Council care too much about the effect on the business community.

Earlier today, I suggested that Barnet Council Leader Lynne Hillan should have at least been answering her emails and helping to coordinate the council response to the problem whilst on holiday. I asked why she hadn't delegated responsibility to the new Deputy Leader of the Council, Andrew Harper. It turns out that he's on holiday as well and the relatively junior Melvin Cohen is coordinating the response. Both Hillan and Harper receive generous allowances for their jobs. Is it too much to suggest that they coordinate their diaries and holiday at different times of the year. According to the Not The Barnet Times Blog, Hillan receives a "special responsibility allowance" of over £34,000 a year as Council Leader. Surely for such a figure, the least we should expect is that she ensures her or her deputy is around at all times.

Today we've had Mayor Brian Coleman on the Vanessa Feltz show saying Barnet are doing a fine job gritting. We've got the Leader of the Council and the Deputy Leader on holiday at the same time, leaving a junior cabinet member in charge. What is the result of this management drift? Boys sledging up and down the Broadway pulled by dogs, cabbies building snowmen because they can't navigate the sidestreets. Who suffers? The hard pressed businesses who pay rates and have no customers. The normal taxpayers who need to take time out of work to look after school children whos schools are closed. I'm sure Hillan and Harper will get straight on the case. Just as soon as they return from their holidays.