Sadly, it's time for this blog to start putting the boot into Barnet Council again

 If you look at the desktop version of this blog, you will notice the blog archive history, that tells you how many blogs I've posted every year since the start. 

Blog Archive

• ►  2024 (190)

• ►  2023 (275)

• ►  2022 (336)

• ►  2021 (321)

• ►  2020 (314)

• ►  2019 (325)

• ►  2018 (379)

• ►  2017 (396)

• ►  2016 (429)

• ►  2015 (407)

• ►  2014 (447)

• ►  2013 (487)

• ►  2012 (784)

• ►  2011 (782)

• ►  2010 (764)

• ►  2009 (697)

• ►  2008 (88)

The peak year was 2012, with a record 784, more than two a day. In November that year, I posted 78 blogs. I had a look at what I posted and it seemed the council were doing so many band things that I have no idea how I had time for anything. Closing Friern Barnet Library, outsourcing the council to Capita, Brian Coleman assaulted Helen Michael and ended up before the beak, getting slung out of the Tory party, after intervention from Central Office. I helped make two documentary films about what was going on. We saved Friern Barnet Library, reversed the policy on Pay and Display and many other small things that year. Sadly, although we won the argument comprehensively about Capita, and were proved 100% right, we learned that when you deal with idiots, you can't get them to change their mind.

The following year, the number of blogs dropped by nearly 300. There were two reasons. The first was that Brian Coleman was ostracised from Barnet politics. There was less to write about. The second was that Richard Cornelius took over as leader of The Barnet Tories and much as I disagreed with him, I liked him as a person and, to a degree, the vehemence I fel abated. Cornelius was a decent person handed a shit sndwich by Coleman, Freer and co. The tone of my blogs became more forensic and less sarcastic.

When Labour won in 2022, I decided to take a sabatical from spending hours reviewing Council papers and writing blogs about their incompetence. I felt Labour deserved a chance to get their house in order. Well, two and a  bit years have passed. Like Richard Cornelius, I personally like Barry Rawlings, Labour Leader. He had an impossible task, taking over a hollowed out council that was completely disfunctional. But two years is long enough to start making a mark. There are quite a few areas that Barnet Council are massively failing and Barnet have had long enough to do something. 

I don't want to spoil the surprise, except to say that normal Barnet blogging services are resuming and I have several rather critical blogs in the pipeline. As the Tories are too useless to properly hold Labour to account, I am resuming the thankless task of giving the council a kicking. It won't be two blogs a day, maybe one or two a week. But Labour have had an easy ride for two years. 

In the meantime, here is some lovely music from my band, The False Dots, to entertain you, celebrating the wonderful ambience of the Borough!