Cabinet Resources committee to agree to selling Friern Barnet Library BEFORE court case is heard

In an extraordinarily provocative move, Barnet Council has moved to agree to sell Friern Barnet library BEFORE the court case to determine whether the Peoples library will be evicted. The court date for the hearing is on the 18th Dec, wheras the cabinet resources committee is on the 17th. The papers are listed here

http://barnet.moderngov.co.uk/documents/g7370/Agenda%20frontsheet%2014th-Nov-2012%20Advanced%20Notice%20of%20Proposed%20Decisions%20under%20Executive%20Functions.pdf?T=0

The Barnet Eye believes that this move is a highly stupid ploy. One wonders what the District Judge hearing the case will make of this snub to the judiciary?

Here is a list of the members of the Cabinet Resources committee, their emails and their surgery details. I urge every reader of the Barnet Eye who cares about the future of the library service to attend at least one of these surgeries and to make clear to them that the people of Barnet love and cherish their library service.

The strongest message you can send the councillors about keeping your own library is to support the people of Friern Barnet in their battle to save Friern Library. I attended (and did the sound) for the Will Self booksigning at Friern Library. It brought home to me just how underused the space is at the other libraries and how dynamic the Peoples library has become. Barnet Council should be working with the people on the ground at Friern, to build a beacon of literacy and learning. Instead they seem not to care. There ware between 150 and 200 people there for Will Self and a fantastic night was had by all. People from all walks of life attended. One man, who works in the City of London said to me as I packed up "I used to sneer at the Occupy people outside St Pauls, this is the first time I've been to this Library and they have done a magnificent job. I can't believe I'd ever have said that they would have lessons for Barnet Council". 

The truth is that there is a big lesson for Barnet in what is happening at Friern. The lesson is that people love their libraries and care for them. If an uncaring council scorns the people, then groups like occupy will fill the vacuum. If the Council succeeds and shuts the library, they will have made Occupy into heroes of the people in Barnet, even with staunch Tory voters. That would be a spectacular own goal. I urge all councillors to listen to reason.

Cabinet Resources Committee emails and surgery details. Please make the effort

cllr.d.thomas@barnet.gov.uk  

Surgery : First Wednesday of each month, 7.00-8.00pm. Avenue House, East End Road,Finchley N3. 

cllr.r.cornelius@barnet.gov.uk 

Surgery : Third Saturday of the month 10.30am-12noon. Barnet House, 1255 High Road, N20.

cllr.t.davey@barnet.gov.uk

Surgery - 1st Thursday of each month 6pm-7.30pm.

Alternating between:

Edgware Library, Station Road, Edgware HA8.

Mill Hill Library, Hartley Avenue, Mill Hill NW7.

Call 020 8958 3364 to confirm location of next surgery.

cllr.a.harper@barnet.gov.uk 

No Surgery details listed

cllr.s.rajput@barnet.gov.uk

Surgery Details - Third Saturday of the month 10.30am-12noon. Barnet House, 1255 High Road, N20.

cllr.r.rams@barnet.gov.uk

Surgery Details 10.30am -
12.00 noon on 1st Saturday of each month at New Barnet Community Centre, 48-50 Victoria Road, New Barnet EN4 9PF.

10.30am - 12.00 noon on 3rd Saturday of each month at East Barnet Library, 85 Brookhill Road, East Barnet EN4 8SG.

BarnetEye TV - Barnet Council Parking Fiasco - Brian Coleman wins cabinet approval

Tonight at Barnet Council Cabinet Resources committee, half the cabinet turned up and spent less than three minutes discussing changes to the way Barnet manages parking services. Councillor Coleman described it as "a good, old fashioned Conservative Privatisation". One cabinet member (Councillor Andrew Harper) asked a half hearted question and the committee chairman (Councillor Dan John Thomas) displayed a complete lack of knowledge on how parking appeals are managed (which earned a scornful rebuke from Coleman).

So next time you get a ticket from an over zealous employee of "Parking Fines-R-US", just remember "it's a "good old fashioned Conservative Policy" to screw as much out of you as possible. Enjoy

Hendon Times publishes article backing Mark Shooter for leadership of Barnet Council

Today on the Hendon Times website an article popped up backing Mark Shooter for Leadership.Rather interestingly it has a right old pop at "Mr Nice" - ie Richard Cornelius, msaying he had a leading role in the existing regime, without even mentioning that Andrew Harper was the Deputy Leader (and de facto Leader for most of the period).  The comments about Cornelius are most unfair, given that Harper is hardly mentioned.

Whilst I have no problem with a local paper publicly backing one candidate, it is clear that the treatment of Richard Cornelius is blatantly unfair. To quote :-

Cornelius is coloured by his leading role in the present regime and his disinterest in looking into the gross misconduct of the Council and its senior officers. I have had no contact with Andrew Harper but I fear the same applies to him.

Richard Cornelius has been the only cabinet member to publicly be sceptical at Council meetings regarding many of the bonkers policies of the Council. There is no way that Harper as Deputy Leader can be let off so lightly, when a comment such as this has been made. I am not like the Barnet Tories, who used to demand anything I wrote on the Times website was taken down, when I wrote a blog there. I say leave it up and let the world see just how the Harper team are using every trick in the book to discredit Richard Cornelius.

As to the Times supporting Mark Shooter, if this is the tactics Shooter supporters are deploying, then it is all the more clear that only Richard Cornelius has the integrity to bring Barnet Council together after the Metpro fiasco. I suspect that this story on the Times shows that the Harper and Shooter Teams are collaborating to knock Cornelius out in the first round.

I have this question for the Tory Councillors voting on Sunday. Please show us you have some integrity and vote for Richard Cornelius on Sunday

Barnet Council Leadership Election : Is Boris backing Shooter?

I have been deluged with calls & other info regarding the Barnet Council Leadership election. A source in NLBP tells me the officers are supremely confident that Andrew Harper will walk it. Given their track record, one can only wonder what that really means. Perhaps a more interesting source of information came from a good contact at County Hall. When the Barnet Bugle twittered that Brian Coleman was supporting Mark Shooter, I was rather puzzled. What deal could have been done here? Perhaps I should have been quicker off the mark? In the words of Mrs Merton "What could Boris Johnson possibly see in millionaire Mark Shooter?" Yes, that's right, there is a Mayoral election next year. Boris is on the look out for influential backers for his bid. Who would he rather see running Barnet? A pauper or someone who is minted? Especially if that person owes him a favour or two? Boris has been wondering exactly how he can shore up the Tory vote in Barnet and Camden, with a bonkers Tory council and Brian Coleman as candidate. Brian Coleman may not be Shooters biggest fan, but an endebted Shooter splashing his cash for the Brian and Boris show is a powerful political aphrodisiac.

Boris can't be seen to intervene, but he knows how to find the G-spot of the Tory party and push their buttons. A wink in Shooters direction is a powerful weapon. Word on the street has it that in return for pulling a few strings in Barnet, Boris wants the following in return :-

a) Some wonga towards his campaign next year
b) Full and unequivocable backing for Brian Coleman in his GLA bid
c) A bit of gratuitous Union bashing, which Boris has a whole team waiting to assist with, and Coleman as the mentor.

If Shooter gives these commitments, then he will walk it. Brian Coleman, yet again set to be the kingmaker, knows that Unison in Barnet is his only credible adversary (apart from a few bloggers, who he can't really do too much about). I am told that Coleman believes that a castrated Unison will make the council a far more "malliable" organisation. He has form as leader of LFEPA. This leaves UNISON stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea. Harper will go flat out for OneBarnet outsourcing, Shooter will go flat out to clobber the Unions. Word reaches the Barnet Eye that the Unions are quietly hoping for a Richard Cornelius victory as the "best of a bad world" candidate.

I'm starting to come around to the opinion that of the three, Councillor Richard Cornelius is the best of a bad bunch. If Harper is the choice of an executive, responsible for disaster after disaster and planning the OneBarnet fiasco's next stage, he simply has to go. If Shooter is simply going to be a Union bashing sock puppet for Brian Coleman, who is a union bashing sock puppet for Boris, then lord help us. At least Cornelius is his own man. He seems like a decent sort of a chap to me. I daresay he needs my endorsement like a hole in the head, but if our Tory Councillors care about anything beyond their own pockets, maybe they should seriously consider backing him

Barnets most expensive tea boy - The end of Councillor Andrew Harper as Leader

So we now know that the battle for leadership of Barnet Council is a three way battle between Andrew Harper, Richard Cornelius and Mark Shooter. An interesting fact has emerged. Andrew Harper has not resigned his post and plans to try and hang on to the deputy leadership post, if he fails to take the top job. Word reaches the Barnet Eye that Richard Cornelius is non too impressed with this. Cornelius is old school. He believes that people should do the decent thing and in Harpers case, the decent thing would to be to bugger off back to the back benches if his abject failure is recognised and he loses the leadership, based on his record thus far. Richard plans to have a nice little chat to explain why a new leader should have freedom to appoint who they like.

As to Mark Shooter, what would he do if he won? Well lets just say that whilst I'd love to play poker with Harper or Cornelius for hard cash, I think Shooter would be a different proposition. He gives me the impression that he may well have a trick or two up his sleeve. I suspect that Harper would have a whole new set of responsibilities under a Shooter Leadership, with a whole new set of responsibilities "Yes Andrew, I think you can take over responsibility for the Leader Listens program. We've booked you a session in the Bald Faced Stag in Burnt Oak next Saturday night at 10pm, to find out how we can interact better with the people of Burnt Oak".  "Yes Andrew, I think that we need to understand the issues which the Police have, so I've booked you to go out on Patrol with a few PCSO's at Tally Ho Corner on Friday Night at Midnight". "Yes Andrew, we are launching a blood donor drive, I've booked you in to give a few pints down at the health centre that government cuts are shutting, those lovely nurses who are being made redundant are really looking forward to seeing you, and have promised that you'll only feel a little prick when they sort you out". "Oh yes Andrew, make sure that the tea isn't late for Tuesday's cabinet meeting, and make sure you search Barry Evangeli for pilfered biscuits before he leaves the building".

I must say that Brian Colemans support for Shooter is rather interesting.  How much do you reckon Harper paid Coleman to say that? (Tee Hee Hee) As Brian Coleman has withdrawn from the race, you may wonder who the Barnet Eye is now backing. Harper is a complete disaster. Whoever wins, he would be bad for everyone. The man has shown a complete lack of aptitude. As for Cornelius and Shooter? As far as I'm concerned there is only one way to choose. I'll go with Brian Colemans recommendation. I was going to toss a coin, but as the biggest tosser (of coins) in Barnet has already made his recommendation, who am I to argue?

And as for Harper, the sooner he is despatched to tea making duties the better. I look forward to hearing the manifesto for the three candidates.  Here is the what my spies tell me the platform the three candidates are standing on is.

Councillor Andrew Harper - Continuity (ie more Metpro style scandals and more money down the bog with One Barnet schemes)

Councillor Richard Cornelius -  The Sensible Party (ie get a grip on the executive and try and salvage the useful bits from One Barnet, whilst taking a machette to the consultant crazy culture that has sprung up)

Councillor Mark Shooter - The slash and burn party (ie have a bonfire of the vanities in Barnet, kick the shit out of the executive, have a sacking frenzy for all the people doing non jobs and hope that at the end of day, injecting a bit of sanity into the council can save a few quid and sort out the huge black hole which Mike Freer built).

Current Betting  : Cornelius 11/12 , Shooter 2-1, Harper 3-1

For what it's worth, I think that the Shooter & Cornelius teams are working together to stitch up Harper, because they both recognise the fact that Harper = Disaster. Lets look at the maths. Shooter lost by one last time. That means that as Lynne Hillan is indisposed, it is a dead heat. Brian Coleman has backed Shooter which means Shooter has 19 to 17, if every Hillanite backs Harper. Rams does what Coleman tells him, so that is 20 -16. All Harper can offer is cabinet jobs, but he can't really afford to lose anyone, so the next question is how will Cornelius split the vote. I hear that he's likely to get a minimum of six cabinet members and possibly 10 other councillors  (6 from Shooter and 4 from Hillan camp). So this means the following :-

First Round
Cornelius - 15
Harper - 8
Shooter - 13

The Harperites are likely to swing behind Cornelius as they know that Shooter means the firing squad.

Second Round
Cornelius - 22
Shooter - 14

What this means is that Harper isn't the second most popular Leadership Candidate so he hasn't got a leg to stand on for retaining the deputy job (hence my view that it's a stitch up). That my friend is the way the cookie will crumble. It is possible that once Harper's mates realise what's going on, even more will defect to Cornelius in the first round and that will be that.

Friday Roundup - Barnet Council, the Metpro Scandal, One Barnet and basic competence

The Conservative Councillors of Barnet Council are currently going through the process of choosing a new leader. Now the more naive amongst us may possibly think they will choose based on who they think will do the best job. Sadly those of us who know how these things work, know better. A game of "name your price" is going on. The contenders do the maths and it works like this. Tot up all the people who hate your guts. Discount them. Then make a list of all of the others and work out what you have to offer them to vote for you. This usually involves a promotion or a bit more money. As you can kick out all of your opponents big supporters, there are usually a few cabinet posts up for grabs and a few committee chairmanships. The biggest gift is the deputy leadership. This is generally offered to someone who leads a faction and can bring a few extra votes in. Back room wheeler dealers such as John Marshall are past masters at using this process to secure maximum personal advantage and ensuring the stitch up works well. In the last election, he suckered Mark Shooter into standing and managed to get a nice juicy promotion, getting his hands on the wheels of power to save Lynne Hillans neck (allegedly).

This time round? My money is on Richard Cornelius because a) He isn't Brian Coleman and b) he isn't Andrew Harper. Sadly he is what is known as an invertebrate (doesn't have a backbone), so he won't actually stand unless he's sure of winning. If he bottles it, the it's who has upset less people, Coleman or Harper. That's one battle I couldn't call, but I reckon Coleman would be knobbled, because the Tories would prefer someone weak, mallable and stupid, to Coleman who may well destroy the whole group with is enormous, overbearing ego.

The sad thing is that whoever comes in, will immediately have a crisis. You see a few days after they have the election, the Audit committee will report on it's findings. This is likely to reveal a train crash (if it doesn't then, judging by the documents I've seen) the council will unleash a storm the likes of which has never been seen in Barnet. Myself and a group of Barnet residents concerned about this, recently had a meeting and you will soon see the fruits of that discussion. It was a small group, and all I can say is that we have access to some very interesting information and we have some big hitters in our group (nope, not me). Watch this space (and the blogs / press).

One thing is crystal clear. The Metpro scandal has proven beyond doubt that Barnet cannot effectively manage even the smallest contract or contractors. In a sane Council, it would spell a top to bottom overhaul and immediate abandonment of the One Barnet Outsource the world program. Sadly, dim idiots such as Councillor Robert Rams, who clearly don't read council reports, are still marching forward, proclaiming that such a broken model is the way to go. At our meeting, we saw how the Metpro Scandal was flagged up in 2009 and yet here we are in 2011 and they did nothing. More will be revealed here and in other blogs. We are co-ordinating and liaising as to how best to ensure that we can emsure Barnet Council meets it's statuatory obligations. Again watch this space.

Having seen and heard all that I have as I researched this, over the last couple of months, I can say this without fear of contradiction. The Metpro Scandal will fundamentaly change the way Barnet Council conducts it's business and some senior officers are likely to lose their jobs. I recommend that all Conservative Councillors bear this in mind when they choose their leader, because they really do need someone on top of their game. The Metpro scandal inquiry/audit will have national press coverage (especially if it is a cover up). They will need someone to save their bacon.

Barnet Council elections :Andrew Harpers winning strategy

One rather interesting constitutional question has been posed to me. Councillor Andrew Harper is currently deputy Leader of the Council. This position was confirmed at the recent Council AGM. Surely as he's standing for the Leader job, he should resign as deputy Leader. The incoming Leader will clearly want to appoint their own deputy, so his position (should he lose) would become rather problematic. Surely any attempt to hang on to the job indicates a certain lack of conviction about his ability to do the job.

A rather mischievous source within the Barnet Conservative party has suggested that Harper has offered Robert Rams the deputy leader post in an attempt to stitch up the leadership race. The Barnet Eye is forced to ponder the question "Is even Andrew Harper dim enough to think that Rams would be an asset as deputy Leader?"

If you are lucky and you've never heard of Ramsbottom, here's his blog and here is his fan club.

Anyone know where I can get some tumbleweed ?

I'm trying to film a restaged version of Andrew Harper giving his acceptance speech for the Barnet Leadership role and I want to make it as accurate as possible. I'm also looking for someone to play Barry Evangeli as deputy Mayor, sadly my first choice, Barry Humphries, can't make it

Barnet Council Metpro Scandal - The Inquiry is not an Inquiry !!!!!!!

I was forwarded this email tonight.
----------------------------------------

From: Palmer, Cllr Monroe Liberal Democrat [mailto:Cllr.M.Palmer@barnet.gov.uk]
Sent: 20 May 2011 19:43
To: John Dix
Cc: Giritli, Aysen; Lustig, Jeff; Salter, Maryellen
Subject: FW: MetPro inquiry - submission of information

Thank you for that

I am passing on this message:

To Democratic Services to note your request to speak at the meeting

To Mr Lustig

To our Head of Internal Audit who is leading the Audit work

This is not an ‘inquiry’ but a detailed  internal audit

The report will be published as all Council committee reports are published. Members of the Public can apply to speak prior to the committee discussing the audit report.

I welcome information from all sources

Monroe Palmer

-----------------------------------------------------

So after all the press coverage, all the investigations, all the revelations, we don't even get a proper inquiry, just a "detailed internal audit". I have asked on several occasions for the terms of reference, but these have not been published.  What we do know is that this "detailed internal audit" will be conducted by the very same people who were meant to be keeping an eye on the whole process in the first place. They have a vested interest in sweeping all of the embarrassing information under the carpet, because it was caused by a systemic failure, WHICH THEY CAUSED AND PRESIDED OVER.

As far as I am concerned, this shows beyond doubt that Barnet Council cannot be trusted. It shows beyond doubt that the CEO, Nick Walkley is only interested in "damage limitation" and keeping his job, with it's £200,000 a year salary. It seems no one in a position of power is in the slightest bit interested as to how the Council could pay over a million pounds to a company which was operating illegally.

The use of the term audit as opposed to inquiry, indicates a steadfast refusal, in face of all of the evidence, to actually admit they've cocked up. What I want to know is whether Nick Walkley will be publicly grilled, in front of cameras, as to why he allowed this to happen. He's paid more dosh per annum than the Prime Minister, which implies a degree of responsibility in his job. He allowed a company to operate in a sensitive role, with no checks whatsoever on their legal status. It is clear that security staff with no accreditation whatsoever had access to the most sensitive parts of Barnet Town Hall.

One question nobody seems to have bothered to ask is this. As we now know Metpro Rapid Response Ltd had no accreditation and Barnet hadn't bothered to check their status or paperwork, and their staff wore video recording equipment, allegedly without permission from Barnet Council, what sensitive areas of the council, what private records and what personal information COULD they have covertly filmed? It is clear from the discussions on the night of the March 1st Council meeting, that these people had access to all sorts of areas, where sensitive information could be held. As a Council Tax Payer who's personal information including bank details are held by Barnet, for all I know these staff have had access to record this information. Metpro have stated that their staff worked at both Hendon Town Hall and NLBP. They did not have any accreditation. They had access to vulnerable people and secure areas in the Council buildings. What did they get up to? The sad truth is that no one at Barnet Council has a clue. It is a matter of record that I was asked to stop filming  public meetings, in public areas on two occasions by Barnet Councillors. How come these same councillors are not tearing down the walls, trying to find out how a private contractor was allowed to film God knows what?

Sadly, the answer is because it might embarrass their bosses. With every day, it becomes more patently obvious that we will never know the truth, unless we, the people of Barnet, drag it out of the Council bosses. This is not how democracy is meant to work. Councillor Andrew Harper has been the de-facto leader of the Council since the turn of the year. He's now said that he wants to officially take over the job. Harper has presided over the whole Metpro scandal and has shown himself to be completely ineffective. Barnet Eye readers may be interested to know that "sources close to" Brian Coleman have let us know that Coleman (allegedly) considers Metpro to be an almighty cock up and that if he becomes leader he'll have it properly investigated. They have also informed us that Coleman thinks senior Council officers need  a major kick up the backside. You can take this with however many pinches of salt you like (I certainly have). It does however show us that there is a split at the highest level of the Barnet Tories on the matter and the most ambitious of the lot of them realises that there are no votes to be won in protecting people who have blatently failed to do their job. I rather suspect, based on what I've been told, that Coleman will be quite happy for Lord Palmer to cock up the "detailed internal audit" so he can shout out loud that he was the only person in Barnet with the guts to deal with the executive. Coleman (allegedly) is briefing that it shows Andrew Harper lacks the cojones to take on the executive.

I do wonder when we will hear from Colemans challenger for the GLA seat, Andrew Dismore, on this sorry matter. He'd better kick his troops into action soon, or he could find that Coleman pulls an ace from his sleeve and trumps him.

I simply cannot believe the behaviour of senior Barnet Tories

Firstly, I have to say something about the public statement from Lynne Hillan. I've lost several of my closest friends and family to cancer. My best friend and business partner, Ernie Ferebee died of cancer in 2001 aged just 52. My wifes mum, Margaret Harrison died of lung cancer two years ago, who I dearly loved. There are many other people, but these two hit me hardest. When I read Lynne Hillans announcement, it brought these emotions back. Although I disagree with many of her policies, of all the things I hate on planet earth, I hate Cancer the most. It is a vicious and evil thief and I loath and detest it. That is why all I can feel about the news of Lynne Hillan is deep (and if I'm honest unexpected) grief. I feel desperately sorry for her and her family. Whatever I think of her, she was the democratically elected leader of Barnet Council. Unlike her predecessor, Mike Freer, she won an election as council leader and also increased her majority.  No one can argue with that. In fact I have a grudging respect for her, for fighting the campaign whilst suffering from the illness. I admire spirit and guts, and she clearly has those by the bucketload. My headline does not refer to her.

It refers to her colleagues. Nick Walkley had hardly finished reading her statement when Brian Coleman and Andrew Harper made speeches, clearly written in anticipation of the announcement, staking out the ground for leadership bids and trying to stitch up their rivals. In a decent world, that alone would disqualify them from standing for the job, but we don't live in a decent world. In the world of Barnet Council, careers are built on other peoples misfortune, and every unfortunate turn of events is an opportunity to be exploited.

On a purely personal level, I find this repugnant. That is all I really want to say about Barnet politics right now.

Barnet Council : Metpro Scandal

A few more rather interesting things.

Just when I thought the Metpro Scandal could get no murkier, Mrs Angry reports that Barnet Council have admitted that the CCTV footage of the Council meeting on 1st March, which they claim to have destroyed, was a copy.Mrs Angry also reports that the Council have admitted that they never bothered to check the SIA registrations or CRB status of the Metpro staff, even though they were clearly working with vulnerable people.

Another rather interesting fact was brought to my attention last week. Now I have no idea whether this is relevant to anything, but the head of audit, who will be responsible for overseeing the work of the Audit Committee is Maryellen Salter. It appears that Ms Salter joined Barnet Council in October. I was rather interested to be informed that she is an ex employee of Barnet Council's auditors, Grant Thornton. Does this matter? Well Grant Thornton have been responsible for auditing Barnet Council. They have presumably signed off on accounts with the payment of large invoices to Metpro Rapid Response Ltd. (Metpro Rapid Response have been a supplier of Barnet Council since 2006, working without a proper contract).

Does the fact that the person leading the enquiry for Barnet Council worked for the people who were meant to ensure that Barnet behaved in an above board manner matter? I'm sure Maryellen Salter is an exemplary auditor, I'm sure she will do the finest job possible. But I am also concerned that the whole thing may  APPEAR to be a rather, shall we say, incestuous inquiry.

Local residents have been pushing for an Independent inquiry for this very reason. No one is questioning the goodwill, abilities or intentions of any of the people conducting the inquiry. We just want it to be completely free of all vested interests and all possible suggestions of any party having an "pre existing interest" in the matter. I believe that it is in everyones interests to see  a credible and thorough inquiry, with no stone left unturned and full public confidence.

As the whole Metpro issue gets murkier and murkier, when will Nick Walkley wake up to the fact that the people involved in the internal inquiry are too close to the issue. What we need is a team which is independent and can either (hopefully) give Barnet Council a clean bill of health or alternatively identify the weaknesses in the processes and procedures. I'm not an expert on what auditors are meant to do, but given Grant Thornton's involvement with the Council, I'd suggest that people with no connection to the firm would be better placed to undertake the inquiry. This is not in any way because I have an issue with Grant Thornton, in fact they have done stirling work identifying major problems with the whole Future Shape/Easycouncil/Barnettrack process. I just feel that given the length of time Metpro Rapid Response Ltd had a business relationship with Barnet Council, we need an inquiry completely independent of all vested interests.

To me it completely beggars belief that the CEO of Barnet Council, Nick Walkley and the de facto leader of Barnet Council, Andrew Harper do not want an inquiry which will restore credibility. How can they possibly fail to see that a) The Audit Committe have missed all of this for years  b) Other members of the team have also missed things for years c) The head of audit has an association with the company responsible for signing off the accounts. When Councillors tell me it doesn't matter because they have a marvellous team, I have to ask - if that is so, how come we got into this mess in the first place

Dear friends .......

I felt the need to have a weekend where I completely ignored the shenanigans at Barnet Council, the issues with the Metpro inquiry, the scandalous plans to outsource all council functions under the easycouncil/OneBarnet/BarnetTrack project, the Catalyst Legionella outbreak, the fact that the Leader of the Council - Lynne Hillan has disappeared and no on is in charge, the fact that they've been exposed by Mr Reasonable for spending over £20 million on an IT project with a budget of £2.5 million, the list goes on and on. I feel much better for having a weekend where I concentrated on football, family and films. Sadly the problems have not gone away and if we don't keep writing blogs and highlighting all of the things which are going so badly wrong, they will get away with it all.

We need to keep the pressure on about all of these things, if not redouble it. I have been passed some rather interesting information, which I will start sifting through tomorrow. Watch this space, there will be some very interesting blogs appearing here later this week, concerning the shenanigans within our Council. I really don't want to say too much until I've done my homework, but I'd strongly advise the de facto Leader of Barnet Council (in Hillans absence) Andrew Harper, to have a long chat with his CEO - Mr Nick Walkley and ask him this question -  "Nick, have you checked the CV's of some of the senior officers you've brought in. Are you aware of their previous track records".

I'm playing a rather interesting game now called "join the dots". If things go where it appears they are going, we are in for some exciting times.

Barnet Council : Metpro Scandal - The catalog of failure by Barnet Council

Barnet Council, it's CEO Nick Walkley and its (de facto) Leader Andrew Harper are doing their utmost best to bury the truth about this scandal. Our Barnet Conservative Councillors have collaborated in this blatant attempt to hide the truth, by voting en mass to reject the opposition call for a debate at the last Council meeting. There can be no doubt at all that they put party loyalty before good governance or the interests of the Council Taxpayers of Barnet. I have made a list (I'm sure I've left a couple of things out) of the many worrying failures of Barnet Council in this sorry mess. Can any reasonable, fair minded person read this list and conclude that an internal enquiry by the very organisation which allowed this catalog of shame to occur, is acceptable or appropriate.

The latest edition of the Ham & High details more disturbing details (go to page 4 of the E-Edition)
http://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk/launch.aspx?referral=other&refresh=c08F1Pn5o4J0&PBID=42cf8fb4-cfd5-4c0b-8866-4ec86a74133d&skip=

This blog renews its call for an Independent Public Enquiry. If Barnet Council are unwilling to do this, then we will take our cause to Eric Pickles, the Local Government Minister, David Cameron, The Prime Minister and Nick Clegg, The Deputy Prime Minister. A full press release on the issue is currently being drafted by a group of concerned Barnet Residents and Taxpayers. If you wish to participate in this campaign, please email me via the link in the sidebar.We cannot allow the Council to behave in such a shoddy manner. Every responsible Council Tax payer suffers through such shoddy deals. Contracts are meant to be awarded on the basis of an open honest tender, not by backroom arrangements such as this.

Here is the list of reasons why Barnet Council cannot be allowed to sweep the matter under the carpet. An internal investigation can have no credibility, given that the Council have a vested interest in closing the whole matter down. We say that the procurement process in Barnet has failed and needs a comprehensive overhaul to ensure a debacle such as this can never happen again.

a) Metpro Rapid Response had been paid a total of £1.2 million pounds by Barnet Council, although there is apparently no evidence of a proper contract.

 

b) Barnet Council have been unable or unwilling to provide any evidence that such a large contract was ever properly tendered.

 

c) Barnet Council never sought documentary evidence that the Directors of Metpro Rapid Response Ltd were properly accredited by the SIA to run such a business.

 

d) Barnet Council never sought more than assurances that staff were CRB checked for work they undertook with vulnerable people.

 

e) Never asked Metpro Rapid Response Ltd staff to wear ID badges with SIA registration details, despite this being a legal requirement.

 

f) Were unaware that the company was undergoing liquidation proceedings, whilst continuing to work for Barnet Council.

 

g) Had transferred their business to another company Metpro Emergency Response Ltd (which had bought the database, assetts and Website of Metpro Emergency Response Ltd).

 

i) Were unaware that Metpro Rapid Response Ltd staff routinely and covertly filmed residents whilst undertaking work on behalf of Barnet Council.

 

j) Have claimed all such film was obtained and destroyed, even though it could contain footage of criminal activity.

 

k) Have subsequently stripped Metpro Emergency Response Ltd of the contract and awarded it to Blue 9 Security Ltd, using delegated powers (ie with no democratic oversight).

 

j) Have claimed that as of th 13th April the matter was not of public interest, despite numerous press articles, including an article in the Eevening Standard the day before (12th April).

 

l) Have claimed that the chair of the business Managament and Overview Scrutiny Committee, Councillor Hugh Rayner has discussed the issue of Metpro with nobody, despite this being a clear matter for his committee, indicating that Councillors have been kept in the dark.

 

m) Barnet Council refused to sanction a debate on the issue, which was asked for by Councillor Alison Moore, the Leader of the Labour Group.

 

n) Metpro Rapid Response Ltd have debts reportedly of over £245,000  to the inland revenue, which implies they have paid no tax at all on their income from Barnet Council.

 

o) Many FOI requests regarding the issue have been late or worse still, not responded to at all.

Matthew Offord and RBS

I saw this twitter on our local MP Matthew Offords Twitter feed.

Meeting with business owner and the Royal Bank of Scotland to discuss lending to local businesses before surgery. about 14 hours ago via web

HendonMP

Matthew Offord

 

I formally invite Matthew down to my studio to discuss RBS lending policies in the week that redevelopment of  part of the site we are located at is due to start. I sincerely hope that Matthew Offord is going to raise the roof on this issue. It is the biggest issue affecting small business and has been the no 1 topic raised at every meeting of the Federation of Small Business strategy group that I've attended in the last two years. 

By their nature Small businesses do not have the same voice as other areas of the economy but are the lifeblood of a healthy society. They have been S*** on by the banks and  the government for the last 40 years (if not longer). This is equally true of Conservative and Labour Governments (in fact most have done better under Labour than Tory regimes - a pattern yet again repeating itself). 

Last year I invited the Deputy Leader of Barnet Council, Andrew Harper to discuss the issues affecting small business and Barnet Council with myself or a representative of Small business. His response was that he wasn't interested in talking to pressure groups. I sincerely hope Matthew Offord MP takes up this offer. I think it is worth reminding people that Mr Offord is our MP. His job is to represent his constituents, whether he agrees with them or not. If he is taking up the fight for small business that is a step in the right direction. Personally I think that if anyone needs a good duffing up it's RBS for their lending policy to small business.

The Friday Joke

As Vicki has given you a joke for Friday, I thought I'd have a go

Pol Pot, Col Gaddafi and Joseph Stalin go into a bar, get some drinks and sit down. Pol Pot says "All my efforts for my people and yet today no one has a good word to say about me". Stalin pipes in "I saved the world from the yoke of Nazi tyranny and what thanks do I get, nothing". Gaddafi dolefully looks on "You think you've got it bad, the only people who want me are Mike Freer and Andrew Harper".

Barnet Council : The big comeuppance

Back in 1995/6 when Alan Williams was running Barnet Council in a Lab/Lib coalition (remind yourself bretheren, not all coalitions are with the devil) I happened to chance upon him backstage at a rally to save Edgware General Hospital in Montrose Park. I had organised the music/Pa/Marquee/refreshments for the event. Now at the time I wasn't a blogger (bloggers hadn't been invented). I was just an ordinary Labour Party member who wanted the best for the London Borough of Barnet.

At the time Mr Williams was an all powerful presence at the top of Barnet Council. Unlike the current Tories, he was a decent administrator. It is fair to say I didn't see eye to eye with him on several issues. One issue I had grave misgivings about was the fact that he seemed intent on shutting down all dissent, centralising all decision making and introducing a system of control freakery at the top. I pulled him on this. I pointed out that one day the Tories would get in and then it would be payback time. All the control freakery, all the exclusion, all the anti democratic conniving would then be in their hands and I predicted to Williams that it would destroy Barnet. He dismissed me with the following statement "You know nothing about Barnet Politics, the Tories are finished".
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Cut to 2011. At the Council meeting on Tuesday, someone paid me a very kind and very undeserved compliment. They said "If it wasn't for you, this Borough would be completely F****d". Now this isn't true. There are many people who do far more than me. It's just this blog has been around a bit longer than most, been a bit noisier than most and I've been shouting loudest longest. What my kind admirer meant though was that as a result of blogs, protests and community action there is a feeling that we will very soon turn the corner. I honestly believe that the tide has changed in Barnet. There is one very uncomfortable fact that everyone on the centre & left who want to see a change in Barnet has to face up to. The last non Tory administration was a Lab / Lib coalition. If we are to stop this madness in Barnet, we need to start the campaign now to oust the Barnet Tory Junta. When they first got in, they had a majority of one, so realistically that means three wards have to flip. I believe that by 2014, the Coalition Government will be hated. I believe it is realistic to expect that a proper campaign in Barnet will oust the Tories. The question is what sort of administration will replace them? Due to what has happened nationally, despite the local record of the Lib Dems, there is a huge mountain of trust to climb with the Labour voters who have always lent their votes in Mill Hill & High Barnet. Is there any prospect of these wards flipping to the Lib Dems. I don't believe that this will be possible unless Tory voters wake up to the local problem and vote Lib Dem in protest. Such a campaign "The sane voice of the coalition" is fraught with political risks. If the Lib Dems are serious about remaining a political party in Barnet, they'd better do something soon. What about the Residents Party? I would dearly love to see them have a presence. I believe they are a big part of the solution and need to get campaigning now in Tory wards.

The biggest question is Labour. Any replacement administration will presumably be Labour lead. For this to happen,  the Labour Party needs to get out on the streets campaigning, building alliances and doing the donkey work they did in 1992 to win the Council. Wards such as Hale would be winnable if there is a big enough anti Tory backlash. What we need is a new generation of activists on the street. The students loan issue has energised young people. This needs to be focussed into campaigning.

And what if the Tories were replaced. When the Tories took over and Williams departed, they were chuffed to find that he'd concentrated the instruments of power in the hands of such a small number of people. The likes of Brian Coleman soon realised the potential to destroy the old structures of Barnet, build a new Future Shape and destroy the old enemies of Labour and the Trades Unions.

Sadly, they have probably exceeded their wildest dreams of 1992 in their scheming. I guess the only thing which they didn't foresee and can't control is the blogosphere. As I sat filming the Council on Tuesday, in defiance of orders from on high, I felt good to be making a visible protest (which was lawful and peaceful).

We have all paid the price of the terrible comeuppance which Alan Williams bequeathed to us. His biggest gift to Barnet Council was the Cabinet System. It has been a disaster and a joke. The Tories love it. They will never get rid of it because it suits their distorted view of how power should be used. Would Labour dispense with it, if they ever came back? I hope so, but do I believe so? only if they wake up to the damage it's done. Barnet isn't a national laughing stock because of Brian Coleman, Lynne Hillan and Andrew Harper. It is a laughing stock because Alan Williams set up a structure that allowed them to run the council and be answerable to no one. What we need is  a clear acknowledgment from the Barnet Labour Party that they understand this and if they get to power they will undo the stupidity of implementing it in the first place

Barnet Tories - Mean and Spiteful

Perhaps the meanest and most spiteful action I've ever seen at a Council meeting happened on Wednesday night. Over 200 protestors had gathered outside to protest about the proposed Pinkham Way incinerator. Now surely it doesn't matter what side of the Political divide you are or whether you agree with their case, surely anyone could understand that they have a valid point. I'm not a scientist so I can't say too much other than that I wouldn't want to raise children next to a potentially risky incinerator.

Many of these protesters (infamously described as a rabble by Councillor Brian Gordon - what is it with Barnet Brians?) had children. Some were in the public gallery and had come for the debate. Labour Councillor Barry Rawlings tabled a motion to debate this first, so the kids could see the debate and get home at a reasonable time (it was the last item scheduled for 10pm). The Tories (apart from Kate Salinger) to a man voted to keep it last. Why? It didn't matter to them? So they could inflict Andrew Harper droning on about his mate Col Gaddafy for ever as punishment. Tories talk of big society, but they deliberately stick their fingers up at the voters at every opportunity.

A woman was sitting next to me with two young children. She announced that she couldn't keep them up that late. She was really upset and left. She was replaced by Linda Edwards, Residents Party Candidate for Edgware. Linda is a campaigner for disabled rights. She said to me "It's a shame we didn't get a few candidates elected to sort this lot out". I couldn't agree more. They are a bunch of self serving creeps.

Barnet Council : Live in action at Hendon Town Hall 12/4/2011

Here is some video footage of Barnet Council in action last night at Hendon Town Hall.


As ever the stupidity of Barnet Council Council is unbelievable. They voted against a debate on MetPro, passed a motion in favour of Col Gaddafy's property rights, voted against allowing a debate on Pinkham Way Incenerator to be held first (inconveniencing the vast majority of people in the public gallery who'd come especially for this), and supplied a whole chain of non answers to members questions. As ever we had the pantomime of the Mayor telling us to stop filming and us ignoring it because he can't legally stop us. We also had the new private security force in action. Rather than paramilitary uniforms, they had nice suits and smiles. Maybe it means nothing, but it certainly gave the impression of democracy.

I suppose that if I have to single out a Tory Councillor for being an arse, Councillor Brian Gordon must win the honour for his insulting comments about the residents protesting outside about Pinkham Way. Sadly I missed this question on my video. Also missing was the Leader of the Council, Lynne Hillan. I hope she is on holiday again and it is not something more serious

A special mention to Mayor Anthony Finn, who finished his term. He didn't do a bad job and had the sense to slap down Brian Gordon, which was most appreciated by the public. I suspect that in another Council, with different colleagues, he's probably make a great councillor. The incoming Mayor, Councillor Lisa Rutter sat next to him. I suspect she probably was thinking that next time it'll be her job to keep order and keep things moving. I wish her all the luck in the world, as she'll need it.

Sorry for the shaky, blurry pictures. When they finally get rid of this ridiculous charade and broadcast and archive meetings, we'll all be happier. Oh and I'm now the proud owner of the Coffin for Barnet Council Services. More on that later.

Barnet Council - Col Gaddafy - I get by with a little help from my friends (in this case Andrew Harper)

Whilst I wait for my video clips to download, here is a little clip of Joe Cocker singing "I get by with a little help from my friends" as Woodstock. It is specially dedicated to Councillor Andrew Harper who made a total arse of himself tonight sticking up for the property rights of ruthless, bloodthirsty, maniacal dictators everywhere. I wonder how the Policemen patrolling the meeting felt, knowing that Barnet Council is sticking up for the property rights of the bastard who was responsible for the murder of WPC Yvonne Fletcher (and god knows how many of his own countrymen). Barnet Council has done many stupid things but starting a purge of squatters because Gaddafy's house has been taken over as part of a political protest just shows how out of touch these idiots are.



If I was a Tory and I was worried about squatting, I'd wait till the Libyan protest at the Gaddafy mansion was over before starting such a crusade.

Barnet Council : Metpro Scandal - Time for Lynne Hillan to go

Apparently at last weeks meeting of Conservative Councillors the subject of Metpro Rapid Response was discussed, Leader Lynne Hillan reassurred her flock that "it is under control" (or words to that effect - 3 different Tory Councillors have given me three slightly different quotes).

Tonight the Evening Standard detailed how the Council have given the company £1.2 million pounds. They had not bothered to check whether the company was legally licensed to provide the service. Apparently the company had assured them that the licenses were in place. It rather reminded me of a court case I read about where a man stated that the girl he'd had sex with had assurred him that she was 18, when in fact she was 13. His defence? "She looked 18". What is Barnet Councils defence for using this company? They looked like a proper security company? Now whilst my little analogy might seem frivalous, let us remember that I recently attended a Council meeting where Councillor Andrew Harper discussed the "corporate parenting strategy" that the Council were developing. You see Barnet Council is the Corporate parent to many vulnerable people. One such site where  is Barbara Langstone House in Finchley. Young and vulnerable people are housed here. This was one site which Barnet Outsourced the scurity of to MetPro.

Now I've no idea whatsoever how this arrangement worked, but the bottom line is that vulnerable people were guarded by a company, at great expense to the Barnet Taxpayer, who were operating illegally according to the Standard. On theMetpro website, they advertise that they wear CCTV recording equipment. They have stated that this has been used on Barnet Council duty.

It is also known that children were video'd without consent at the Council meeting where this whole scandal came to light, by MetPro staff fitted with hidden cameras, without consent. When requests were made to see this footage, Barnet Council claimed it had destroyed it, although they didn't state whether they had any evidence or logs to prove that all footage had been destroyed or only the footage in their possession. Who knows if other copies exist or not (like the phantom SIA registrations).

As I stated above, Barnet Council are a corporate parent to a large number of vulnerable people. They have both a moral and legal duty to safeguard the people who are in their care. By failing to develop proper procedures to ensure safeguarding measures are in place, they have failed those people. Barnet Council Leader, Councillor Lynne Hillan is where the buck stops. There are two massive scandals currently affecting Barnet. Metpro, where a firm of private contractors have not been properly managed, potentially placing vulnerable people at risk. There is also the Legionella outbreak at Barnet Care Homes. Again this is down to Private Contractors not being properly managed, with the net result that vulnerable people have been put at risk. With two such extreme examples of corporate failure, you would think that Barnet Council would be undertaking a root and branch review of their procurement procedures. On the contrary, they are rushing through a mass program of outsourcing, in some cases even bypassing the scrutiny process.

What has happened at Barnet Council can only be described as corporate failure. The Leader of the Council has done nothing to address it in five weeks. She has not taken her role as corporate parent seriously. She has done nothing to regain public trust. The only way forward now must be for Lynne Hillan to resign and Barnet Council to have a public enquiry under an independent chair. The council needs to be sorted out. The processes and procedures need root and branch reform. Metpro was not a small company, Barnet paid them £1.2 Million. They were not involved in trivial matters, they were on the front line dealing with residents and vulnerable people. The council has engaged a company who may or may not have been operating illegally and without the proper safeguards and protections. Barnet Council only found out because of  a concerted campaign by local residents, through the blogs. The very people that the Leader of the Council described as "not respectable residents". It should not be a job for bloggers to ensure that Barnet discharge their legal responsibilities. She has to go and go now, before any more damage is done.