Open letter to Richard Cornelius and Barnet councillors: time to get a grip on parking!

Brian Coleman - Parking Stealth tax supemo

The 'Famous Five' bloggers of Barnet yesterday sent a joint letter to the Leader of Barnet Council, Richard Cornelius and all of the other Barnet Councillors. As a signatory we are asking our local Conservative Council and all of our councillors to do what they were elected to do and look after the interests of residents and local businesses. The document detailing the paring mayhem in Barnet, caused by Brian Colemans parking stealth tax has been laid bare. He is clearly not up to the job. It is time for him to be sacked and replaced by someone who is not completely out of touch with reality. 


It beggars belief that a supposedly Conservative Council can be so anti business, anti car driver and anti local resident. Whilst David Cameron speaks of less regulation and business friendly policies, Brian Coleman, the GLA Car tax and regulation rampage, causing irrepairable damage to business, local communities and the environment. 


I spoke to one specialist shopkeeper in Barnet who is now considering relocating to Boreham Wood in Hertfordshire, as most of his customers are not Barnet residents, are not registered to pay by phone and so are refusing to use his business. This is being repeated all over Barnet. It beggars belief that a Conservative administration, which has been made fully aware of the problem, is still burying its head in the sand.


This is a major test of the Leadership of Richard Cornelius. It is clear that Brian Colemans park and tax policies are an abject failure. How will he respond?
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Dear Leader and Barnet Councillors,

On 20th March a document was placed upon the Barnet Council website entitled - Bittacy Hill_Introduction_of_Waiting_Restrictions - (http://committeepapers.barnet.gov.uk/democracy/reports/reportdetail.asp?ReportID=11110).

This document details the mayhem caused by the abolition of free bays in Controlled Parking Zones as part of Councillor Brian Coleman's parking policies.
This document details how the Barnet Police have had their time wasted, congestion has been caused, buses have been delayed, residents inconvenienced, and people's safety has been endangered. In short, it is the most damning indictment of a Council policy possible.
The background information section of this document says:

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8. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

8.1 In June 2011 the Council completed a scheme whereby all ‘Free’ parking bays were converted to permit holder or paid for parking bays in the borough’s Controlled Parking Zones (CPZs). As a result of the changes made to the Mill Hill East CPZ, a proportionate level of displaced parking is occurring on both sides of Bittacy Hill on the outskirts of the CPZ boundary.

8.2 The council has been contacted by roads users and local residents, complaining of the congestion being caused as through vehicles are being obstructed by the displaced parking.

8.3 London Buses have reported to the council that the displaced parking is obscuring sightlines and obstructing through traffic, preventing their buses from gaining suitable access through the road, resulting in the delay of their services. They also stated that this situation has caused major congestion in both directions on Bittacy Hill and therefore, have had to temporarily put some of their buses on diversion.

8.4 In addition, the Police have also expressed concerns regarding this location, and have requested for waiting restrictions to be introduced.

8.5 Following investigations including site observations, Officers concluded that major congestion occurs on the hill at this location, and in order to keep traffic moving through the borough considered that the provision of waiting restrictions would be appropriate given the obstructive parking which is taking place.

8.6 Therefore, proposals to introduce lengths of ‘at any time’ waiting restrictions on certain lengths of Bittacy Hill including around its junctions with Bittacy Close and Engle Park, were designed in order to deter obstructive parking and improve traffic flow, sightlines and safety.

8.7 In anticipation of the statutory consultation, Mill Hill Ward Members were consulted on the proposals with all advising of their agreement and support of the measures for the area. In particular, Councillors Khatri and Hart stated that they had also received complaints on this matter or have experienced problems themselves. Councillor Hart did raise the issue that more restrictions may cause more problems to the wider area as did Councillor Schama.

8.8 However, Officers consider that any displaced parking that may occur as a result of the introduction of the restrictions can be absorbed into the local network with minimal impact.

8.9 In mid August it was necessary to introduce emergency temporary waiting restrictions on the eastern side of Bittacy Hill, as nearby Devonshire Road was closed to allow for essential maintenance works to take place, which resulted in an increased traffic flow on Bittacy Hill that exasperated the problems occurring at the location.

8.9 Traffic cones were placed on street to indicate the temporary waiting restrictions, and the location was monitored by Officers. Observations showed that displaced parking was minimal and what did occur had little impact on the area. It was concluded that the removal of the parked vehicles at this location was very effective in relieving the congestion normally experienced.

8.10 Additional supporting evidence underlining the concern via photographs showing buses being obstructed and the congestion experienced were sent to the council and a petition signed by all residents of Bittacy Close was also submitted, asking for waiting restrictions to be implemented at the junction of Bittacy Close and Bittacy Hill.

8.14 Councillor Khatri and Councillor Hart have since also reaffirmed their views and support for the proposals. In particular, they advised of their concerns regarding safety being an issue at this location. Councillor Hart also re-iterated his concerns for residents of Bittacy Close, who suffer from obstruction at the junction of Bittacy Close and Bittacy Hill.

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Councillor Brian Coleman ignored all wise counsel in order to introduce these policies. He ignored all efforts to mitigate the problems caused.As a result, we have a situation where ever more parking restrictions will be required to fix a problem that did not previously exist.
To what end? To inconvenience and overcharge local residents.

It is time for Barnet Council to have an urgent rethink. It is time to reinstate free bays, cut parking charges on Barnet’s high streets, and, most of all, it is time to put someone in charge of parking who is competent.

There is no way that Barnet Council can pretend that Coleman’s parking policies are anything other than an unmitigated disaster. Your own document says so in black and white.

Signed:

Derek Dishman
John Dix
Vicki Morris
Theresa Musgrove
Roger Tichborne

Official document prove Brian Colemans parking policies are a disaster

Have you noticed how people in Barnet seem to be parking their cars in the strangest places, how congestion has got worse recently, how roads which previously were quiet are now awash with cars during the daY?

Last July Councillor Brian Coleman sneaked through a whole raft of changes to Parking restrictions in Barnet. He is well known for his stealth tax his parking policies. The five main ones, which have affected just about everyone are as follows :-

1) Hiking up parking charges on High Streets and car parks, driving away customers and shutting shops
2) Aboloshing pay and display parking on High Streets
3) Hiking up the price of Resident CPZ permits
4) Abolition of "free bays" in Resident CPZ parking zones
5) Outsourcing the parking warden contract to a company with a reputation for overzealous enforcement

All of these measures are designed to do one thing. Squeeze more money out of motorists and residents. Sadly for Brian Coleman (and the rest of us), not only have these policies failed miserably in their target of raising extra cash ( rumour has it that the parking account is down by £500,000 as people shun council car parks). As people have sought free spaces outside of the restrictions, roads have become clogged, congestion has risen and residents have been inconvenienced.

Given that the sole purpose of parking restrictions is to "ease the flow of traffic", this means that the policy has not only been an abject failure, but it is probably illegal. Coleman cannot claim that the policy is to ease traffic flow, because papers published on the Council website prove this is not the case. The Barnet Eye suggests that a judicial review should be performed of Colemans policies and in the meantime they should be reversed. The complete failure of Colemans policies are laid bare in this document on the Barnet Council website -
http://committeepapers.barnet.gov.uk/democracy/reports/reportdetail.asp?ReportID=11110

Let me quote the document :-

8. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

8.1 In June 2011 the Council completed a scheme whereby all ‘Free’ parking bays were converted to permit holder or paid for parking bays in the borough’s Controlled Parking Zones (CPZs). As a result of the changes made to the Mill Hill East CPZ, a proportionate level of displaced parking is occurring on both sides of Bittacy Hill on the outskirts of the CPZ boundary.

8.2 The council has been contacted by roads users and local residents, complaining of the congestion being caused as through vehicles are being obstructed by the displaced parking.

8.3 London Buses have reported to the council that the displaced parking is obscuring sightlines and obstructing through traffic, preventing their buses from gaining suitable access through the road, resulting in the delay of their services. They also stated that this situation has caused major congestion in both directions on Bittacy Hill and therefore, have had to temporarily put some of their buses on diversion.

8.4 In addition, the Police have also expressed concerns regarding this location, and have requested for waiting restrictions to be introduced.

8.5 Following investigations including site observations, Officers concluded that major congestion occurs on the hill at this location, and in order to keep traffic movingthrough the borough considered that the provision of waiting restrictions would be appropriate given the obstructive parking which is taking place.

8.6 Therefore, proposals to introduce lengths of ‘at any time’ waiting restrictions on certain lengths of Bittacy Hill including around its junctions with Bittacy Close and Engle Park, were designed in order to deter obstructive parking and improve traffic flow, sightlines and safety.

8.7 In anticipation of the statutory consultation, Mill Hill Ward Members were consulted on the proposals with all advising of their agreement and support of the measures for the area. In particular, Councillors Khatri and Hart stated that they had also received complaints on this matter or have experienced problems themselves. Councillor Hart did raise the issue that more restrictions may cause more problems to the wider area as did Councillor Schama.

8.8 However, Officers consider that any displaced parking that may occur as a result of the introduction of the restrictions can be absorbed into the local network with
minimal impact.

8.9 In mid August it was necessary to introduce emergency temporary waiting restrictions on the eastern side of Bittacy Hill, as nearby Devonshire Road was closed to allow for essential maintenance works to take place, which resulted in an increased traffic flow on Bittacy Hill that exasperated the problems occurring at the location.

8.9 Traffic cones were placed on street to indicate the temporary waiting restrictions, and the location was monitored by Officers. Observations showed that displaced parking was minimal and what did occur had little impact on the area. It was concluded that the removal of the parked vehicles at this location was very effective in relieving the congestion normally experienced.

8.10 Additional supporting evidence underlining the concern via photographs showing buses being obstructed and the congestion experienced were sent to the council and a petition signed by all residents of Bittacy Close was also submitted, asking for waiting restrictions to be implemented at the junction of Bittacy Close and Bittacy Hill.

8.14 Councillor Khatri and Councillor Hart have since also reaffirmed their views and support for the proposals. In particular, they advised of their concerns regarding safety being an issue at this location. Councillor Hart also re-iterated his concerns for residents of Bittacy Close, who suffer from obstruction at the junction of Bittacy Close and Bittacy Hill.

Here is the full document for your perusal.

Bittacy Hill Parking restrictions

This document lays bare the failure of the parking policies of Brian Coleman. It exposes the fact that rather than easing traffic flow, they are creating mayhem, tying up Police resources, ruining the lives of residents, making buses late and worst of all threatening public safety. In short Brian Coleman and his polices have been thoroughly discredited. Even worse is the fact that rather than admit that Colemans policies are to blame, the lame Mill Hill Conservative Councillors have buried their heads in the sand and refused to address the real cause of the problem.

The Barnet Eye will today be contacting local press, local councillors and the Leadership of Barnet Council to demand a full review of the disaster which Brian Coleman has inflicted on the London Borough of Barnet. Is there anyone in Barnet who seriously thinks that Brian Coleman deserves re-election for a £52,000 a year part time job at the GLA in MAy? His level of competence is laid bare here.

Rog T's Cancer Blog - If the Cancer doesn't get you, the stress will (and some important news)

For those of you who are regular readers and have read the previous posts, you can skip this first paragraph.This is the latest installment in my occasional series about how I'm adjusting to living with a big C in my life.  For those of you who aren't, here's a quick summary. I'm 49 years old and I recently had a prostate biopsy following two "slightly high" PSA tests - 2.8 & 4.1. The biopsy took ten tissue samples and one of these showed a "low grade cancer" which gives me a 3+3 on the Gleason scale. I'm now on a program of active monitoring.  In early February, I got the results of the latest PSA test - down to 3.5 and an MRI scan which found absolutely nothing. I've no symptoms and sadly for a few people, if I'm gonna die soon, it won't be from Prostate cancer. Got the picture?

My accountant Mike is a lovely bloke. He was originally a friend of my older sister Val. When my studio business started making money, we needed an accountant to sort us out, and he seemed the natural choice. He's been looking after the books now for more years than I can remember. He was originally based in North Finchley, but moved to Dorset a few years ago, when his children left school. He wanted to relax and chill out. We mostly communicate by email now, PAYE and annual returns. On Friday, I got a phonecall out of the blue. Mike had heard about my Prostate cancer and wanted to give me some support (he's not an avid reader of this blog). The reason? Mike has a far more advanced form of the disease. Wheras I have a low Gleason score 3+3, Mike is on 4+5. In short, if the number 9 bus doesn't kill him, the cancer probably will.

We chatted for the best part of half an hour. There is a big difference between the situation I find myself in and Mike's. Why is this? It is because I have received a very early detection. I can be monitored, I have changed my lifestyle and I have a range of choices. Mike is on hormone therapy. His disease has reached a stage where he's managing the disease rather than trying to get rid of it. For both of us, the ideal solution is a medical advance. Mike is a bright guy and has read all about the subject. He needs the magic bullet to kill his cancer far more urgently than myself.  For me, treatments are things I can put off, worry about when they become necessary. For Mike, the choice is simple go along with it or face a shortened life. The hormone treatment is used to suppress testosterone production, which fuels growth of the cancer. The worst side effects of this are fatigue and loss of sexual appetite. Still when you have a family, these are a price worth paying.

Mike is a naturally positive bloke. He is coping OK and is doing what he can to ensure that he hangs around as long as possible. It is interesting, the prostate cancer club is one where you learn a whole new language. The first question is your Gleason Scale score. at 3+3, I'm a novice, but no one wants to be a master in this art. Then there is the discussion about biopsys. My brother in Law, Tim is a doctor. he practised medicine in the USA. I discussed the truama of having a Prostate biopsy and he was horrified that the NHS don't sedate people for the procedure. He felt it amounted to cruelty. I also recently had a colonoscopy. This was done privately and I was sedated. The procedure was completely pain free and untraumatic. I will insist on this for the Prostate biopsy I'm having in November. Cancer is bad enough, without the stress of such a horrible, violating procedure to endure. If I can a pass one thing on, it is the fact that you can make the process less unpleasant and a clinician should make this a priority. I suspect many men don't go back for a follow up biopsy, purely because it is so horrible. Mike hadn't realised that sedation was an option, he will also be insisting next time.

Having had a good chat with Mike, I then felt the need to have a couple of beers, on my way home from the Big Smoke launch. I have recently joined the Mill Hill Services Club and decided to take advantage of my membership. After a couple of beers, I bumped into another old friend - Junior the Blasphemer. Junior used to work for my Dad, in the good old days of Mac Metals. He is a larger than life Maltese builder, who has done well for himself, wheeling and dealing. Like me, he is also Mill Hill through and through, as are his large family. Any conversation with Junior is a joy.  Like me, he's a musician and loves to regale everyone with stories of how his songs have been stolen and used in Guinness commercials etc. He is a great songwriter, so I do believe him. I asked how the rest of the family were. This was when I got a shock. His elder brother also has Prostate cancer. like Mike, he found out at a stage when it was past easy treatment. He's just had an operation and is recovering. Wheras Junior the Blasphemer is a loud and very extravert character, his brother is quieter, more considered and introvert. Like Mike, he's lucky to have a great family to support him, but it seems he's struggling. Contemplating ones mortality is not great.

Which brings me to the crux of the matter. What is the big difference between Mike, Junior's brother and myself? Well I have choices and I have time to make them. They don't in the same way. Why? Because I had a PSA test from the doctor at the age of 49, which flagged the disease up at an early stage. If you are a male and you are over 45, then you really should seriously consider asking your doctor for a PSA test. I had no symptoms and was shocked to find out that I had a problem. Whilst I suspect that most of the people who read these cancer blogs are fellow sufferers, please impress upon your friends who are not the fact that they should consider getting the test. Both Mike and Juniors brother are under 60. Chances are that if they'd had the test at my age, they may have been able to go down a far less painful path with their disease.

Today I published a couple of April Fool spoof blogs. I have to be honest and say that I'd not really wanted to do this. I've not been feeling particularly cheerful since Friday. My wife and eldest daughter are in Sheffield for a swimming gala, so I've had no one to talk my feelings through with. All of my ten mistresses have also turned their mobile phones off (in joke there)! Last night, I took middle daughter out for fish & chips, watched Black Hawk Down and had an early, sober night. I pondered how hard it must be for people living alone, without a family to support them. I've always lived in a large family environment. I find loneliness and isolation difficult to deal with at the best of times. Men are generally extremely bad at dealing with their feelings and talking about their problems. I cannot imagine how much harder this must be if you have cancer and you are on your own.

I'm in the process of a massive business project at the moment,which is taking all my spare time, but in May when that is finished, I am seriously considering doing two things. The huge success of the film A Tale of Two Barnets has convinced me that there is a massive need for small budget, local community films. As even the previous Leader of Barnet Council, Lynne Hillan has been laid low by cancer, I believe that there is a need to make a film tackling the issues which cancer raises. We need to explore the effects it has and how people in Barnet are coping or not coping. I want to make a film, which will hopefully help and inspire everyone affected by Cancer in Barnet and to get people who aren't affected to stay healthy, get screened and know where to go to find out how to cope.

When Charles Honderick and myself made A Tale... we did it on fresh air and no budget. We needed to know what was really required to do such an undertaking. It was really an experiment to see if a local film could be made, if it could work in a cinema and if people would respond. We also needed to know how much it would cost. Now we know. I estimate that to make the film which I want to make about Cancer, we'd need a budget of £8-10,000. This would mean that Charles could be properly renumarated for his time, we could get proper post production grading performed and that we could sort out the other minor technical issues which we couldn't address with the time and budget of A Tale....

So if you think that this is a project you would like to take part in, either as a suffered, a carer, a family member or anyone else affected by cancer let me know. Even more importantly, if you have some spare cash, which you would like to invest in a film, with virtually zero chance of ever seeing a return on, please email using the link in the top right hand corner of the this blog.

Which brings me on to the second thing I'd like to do. The Cancer blog series on The Barnet Eye has been extremely well read and generated many expressions of interest from readers.  Now, whilst many of you may have read my April fool spoof story about buying the Barnet Times, there is a grain of truth in the story. No, I'm not buying the Barnet Times. I don't know any rich Irish racehorse owners who have a couple of million quid to invest. What I do know is that The Barnet Eye has been an incredibly successful blog. I have been faced with a choice. What can I do with it next. Approx 10% of the content currently is guest blogs. These generate approx 30% of the hits. We get approx 1,000 hits a day purely from people who want to read about Barnet. I believe that there is a huge interest in hyperlocal news and local interest stories. I believe that issues of healthcare and other similar things are neglected in the local press. I believe carers, cancer suffers and other people struggling to manage with debilitating illnesses need a voice. I believe that our local sports teams need a voice. Many are struggling to stay afloat, whilst other people who may wish to join them don't even know they exist.

So what I propose to do is this. I want to expand the Barnet Eye from just being my blog, to being a community website, which is in effect self administering. I want sections for Health, local sport, community news and announcements and anything else which people want covering. I want our existing "Guest bloggers" to become fully fledged local journalists working for their communities, with their own section on the site. So if you wish to get involved, now is the time to start by sending me a guest blog. Just to prove I'm not bullsh*tting about this, I've spent a few quid on a website registration for five years - although there is nothing on it now and won't be until the summer - http://www.barneteye.com/

From the end of May I will commence working on a new design and putting the site together.

Whilst this may seem an oddly low key way to launch two such important new ventures, there is method in the madness. Many aspects of both these projects are still just in the early stages of development. I just wanted to share them with you in a fairly quiet way.

Exclusive : Barnet Eye announces plans to take over the Times Group Newspapers in Barnet

Press Release : Monday 2nd April - 9am

Irish Racehorse owner and social entrepreneur Aibreán Amadán today announced that he has formed a partnership with Roger Tichborne, to launch a new news media corporation, Barneteye Universal Media Ltd. The new company will be based at the new development at Frogmore House, Mill Hill and will comprise of all Barnet Eye website media, Mill Hill Music Complex studios and The Mill Hill Space Company Ltd - a recently formed office services company. 


Barneteye Universal Meidia Ltd also announced it's intention to procure the rights to the Times Series Group of Papers operating in the Barnet Area. Mr Amadán said "I have been highly impressed with the way that the Barnet Eye blog has grown from nothing to develop a committed readership and following. Whilst local press and media have been in a state of terminal decline, it is clear that the online market is experiencing explosive growth. We believe that electronic publishing is the way forward and we believe that this should be managed with a phased migration away from paper based news products".  Mr Amadán also announced an intention to invest heavily in the local Library service. He added "We believe that local libraries should be developed as technology hubs for local councils. We believe that the current plans to run down libaries is a criminal waste of resources. We intend to refresh and revitalise the libraries of Barnet, with new technology to enhance and rebuild the service".


Mr Amadán stated that every person over the age of 85 should receive a free Kindle or other similar technology with free downloads. This would cut millions of pounds worth of overheads from the councils library service, freeing up space and resources for more fit for purpose developments in keeping with the 21 century. Mr Amadán explained that as many elderly people see the library as a meeting place and social hub, it is important to develop this aspect of the service. 


Mr Amadán was also named as the secret backer behind the film "A Tale of Two Barnets". He explained "Roger Ticborne explained the project to me at Kempton Park last year over a pint of Guinness. I was truly excited by the concept of  a community film and have invested heavily in the project to ensure the success of the film. I also became interested in Mr Tichborne's ideas of developing a truly community based news media outlet, written for the people and by the people. An online newspaper where everyone in the community is a journalist and the most popular stories are the ones which make the front page. We are developing a truly revolutionary news portal, which will be democratic and inclusive. Unlike the existing paper news, every community, Irish, Jewish, Greek, Hindu, Moslem can have it's own local news section and will be able to generate revenue for their own communities by placed advertising. A traditional newspaper can't have street level news, but we can and it will be 100% up to date. We will utilise local twitter feeds and subscriptions to ensure that you see news in your neighbourhood as it happens." 


As to the role of the existing paper based Times product, Mr Amadán explained "The role of the traditional newspaper in this, is to use it's distribution network to ensure that everyone is made aware of the Barnet Eye website and associated services. We envisage doing many joint promotions with local High Streets and using vouchers and coupons to reinvigorate Barnets High Streets. We are also planning to work with the council to pioneer "parking charge suspensions on key days and times of the week, in association with the promotions. We believe that this will show a true commitment to the High Street in Barnet."


Mr Roger Tichborne, editor of the Barnet Eye stated "I have known Mr Amadán for many years. We are lucky that he has chosen to work with us in Barnet to rebuild our community. These are truly exciting times to live in the London Borough of Barnet". Mr Tichborne added "I have been working to build a successful blog for the last four years. With the vision and backing of Mr Amadán, we can build a truly world class news outlet here in Barnet. One which we can all be proud of. It is interesting because Mr Amadáns name, Aibreán Amadán, in Gaelic means Maker of Change and that is what we are going to see in Barnet as our plans develop.


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Notes to News Editors.


1. This publication is embargoed until 9am on Monday 2nd April.


2. Mr Aibreán Amadán is a resident of County Kildare and his role in the organisation is purely one of backer and mentor. 


3. Barnet Unoversal Media Ltd is in the process of being incorporated. 


4. Mr Aibreán Amadán will be staging a press conference at 3pm on Tuesday 3rd April at Frogmore House, Bunns Lane Works, Mill Hill, London, NW7 2AJ.


5. Mr Aibreán Amadánis keen to stress that there will be no redundancies within Times Group newspapers for a minimum of 3 years following successful completion of the takeover. Mr Aibreán Amadán hopes that all staff can be transitioned to the new online delivery channel.


6. Mr Aibreán Amadánwill be contacting Barnet Council on Wednesday 4th April to discuss his plans for a large investment in the Barnet Library network, subject to suspension of plans to close Friern Barnet Library.

Breaking News : Brian Coleman to join Barnet Lib Dems

Barnet Lib Dem Leader this morning announced that Brian Coleman is to join the Liberal Democrat Party. The deal has been brokered by Nick Clegg and David Cameron, in an attempt to revitalise the coalition in Barnet. The existing Lib Dem candidate for the GLA elections has agreed to step aside to allow Mr Coleman a free run at the seat.

The Barnet Eye suggests that this is clearly a panic move, sparked by recent reports that Labour candidate Andrew Dismore is a shoe in for Barnet. Jack Cohen added "Although Brian and myself have had our run ins in the past, we are really the best of friends. Brian and his mum often pop in for tea and scones on their way to functions in London". The Barnet Eye rang Mr Coleman for a comment but got the phone slammed down on us. Conservative Leader Richard Cornelius said "I urge everyone in Barnet to support the Coalition candidate. This arrangement is great for Conservatives and great for our partners"

************* Updated 11.20 *****************
In a surprise announcement this morning, the local Barnet GMB branch announced that it is dumping Labour candidate Andrew Dismore and will be backing Lib Dem candidate Brian Coleman. Local branch sec Avi Newon said 'in the GMB we like to back winners'. In a seperate move, Coleman was seen in Brent Cross with Ceo Tom Nathan shopping for wooly jumpers and was heard to say 'i suppose i'll have to grow a beard'

The Top 10 London politicians

I thought I'd compile a list of the top 10 most influential politicians in London. This isn't a list of who I like, but who I think actually has a degree of effective power. I've excluded politicians on the national stage

1. Boris Johnson

2. Brian Coleman (head of LFEPA and de facto leader of Barnet Conservatives)

3. Ken Livingstone

4.  Lufter Rahman (Mayor of Tower Hamlets)

5. James Cleverly (Tory GLA Leader, Dustman in chief for London as Head of London Waste & Recycling Board)

6. Stephen Carr (Leader of Bromley Council)

7. Kit Malthouse - (Deputy mayor for policing, GLA Member, Deputy Leader Westminster Council)

8. Jeanette Arnold (Chair of the GLA)

9. Jenny Jones (GLA Member, Green Mayoral Candidate)

10. Cllr Anne John OBE (Leader of Brent Council)

The key word in my choice is "influential". These people mostly have influence far beyond their actual powers. For instance, whilst Jenny Jones has zero real power, she is able to exert a significant amount of influence over decision making and is also responsible for development of the Green movement in London.

People like Ann John in Brent have a long and distinguished record in Local Government, which in her case has been recognised with an OBE.

I also took into account whether people made good positive role models (although in one case I'd say the opposite was true). I also felt that people who were "game changers" deserved a slightly higher ranking. Please feel free to comment or add your own suggestions.

Please be assurred that inclusion on the list is not an endorsement for any of them, it is just a bit of fun really.

Boris Campaign is planning to "Blitz Barnet"

Given the strong Jewish connections in the London Borough of Barnet, am I the only person who thinks that the BackBoris Campaign Director Lynton Crosby could have chosen his words better when putting this tweet out?

Lynton Crosby ‏ @LyntonKCrosby

Another blitz by Boris today. In Acton,Ealing,Southall,Finchley,Barnet,Enfield Southgate, Enfield Town to sell his 9 Point Plan.

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Crosby is building a reputation for being inept and ham fisted in the arena of social media. Adam Bienkov recently exposed this ineptness in a very revealing blog - http://www.adambienkov.com/2012/03/does-anyone-on-boris-johnsons-campaign.html

I have started to wonder about what is going on with the BackBoris campaign. I spoke to a couple of Tories in Mill Hill, who had read my recent blog about the "what has Boris done for Barnet" leaflet and were horrified that his greatest achievement was "planting 88 trees" - http://barneteye.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/oh-dear-boris-this-is-bit-embarrassing.html

Given that Boris is generally well liked, he has all the press on his side and he hasn't been as bad a disaster as many people on the left suspected, could it be that employing a buffoon like Crosby could be the masterstroke (for Ken Livingstone) that snatches defeat from the jaws of victory for Boris.

Given the fact that Barnet is the most populous borough, surely any vaguely competent campaign manager would have got Boris to replace the GLA rep, Brian Coleman with someone who may actually be a campaign assett.
 

Brian Coleman and looking for sex in all the wrong places !

Regular readers of this blog will know that I keep a close eye on my blog stats and what people are searching for when they find the Barnet Eye. This morning, I was rather surprised to know thatthe Barnet Eye has an extremely high ranking on Google for people who type in "Looking For Sex". we are actually on page 2. It points to this blog - http://barneteye.blogspot.co.uk/2011/03/brian-coleman-looking-for-sex-at.html - which details how Brian Coleman (see this article - http://www.times-series.co.uk/news/902588.print/) went looking for sexual activity at Scratchwoods (purely in his capacity as Borough Safety officer with a team of Policemen -  I hasten to add). Now what is interesting is that the Google preview about the blog on the search screen says :-

Brian Coleman looking for sex at Scratchwoods. Locals watching QI this week will have been intrigued to find out that HMS Belfast, the

Which means that whoever hit upon the blog was looking for sex and clearly was intrigued by the fact that Brian Coleman was mentioned in regards to Scratchwoods, a local "dogging" hotspot? It begs the question as to whether this secret community are big fans of Brian? I've always wondered who the armies of people who have repeatedly voted him in at the GLA elections are. Is this community being given preferential treatment. Scratchwoods is one of the very few Barnet Council Car parks which is still free of charge. Whilst High Street small businesses and cafe's come under the cosh of outrageous parking charges, the doggers of Barnet seemingly get off scott free. Why is it that this is seemingly the only pleasure you can enjoy in Barnet, where there is not some hidden stealth tax? Now I'm not calling for Brian Coleman to institue a "Dogger Tax" or even to charge to park at Scratchwoods. Far from it. I believe that Parking charges should only be used for the purpose for which they are designed. That is to regulate the flow of traffic. Sadly under Brian Coleman, we have rip off Barnet, where the motorist is fleeced at every turn. Every time parking has been discussed in Council, the issue of revenue is raised. Considering that it is technically illegal to use parking charges as an income stream, this is disgusting.

As to the dogging activities at Scratchwoods, I have a pretty relaxed view as to what people should and shouldn't get up to in their spare time. Having said that, it is a shame that Scratchwoods is no longer a place I'd feel comfortable taking my children and dog for a walk on a Sunday afternoon, due to the various adult activities taking place in broad daylight.In a free society it is hard to regulate, if adults are not prepared to give consideration to the wider community. What is worse is the debris left by casual sexual encounters. Is it too much to ask for people to clean up their mess and put it in the bins provided. Is it too much to ask people to restrict their activities to times when children are not likely to be in the area? Perhaps the worst thing for me was the fact that Barnet Council engaged in a pseudo paramilitary operation to prevent the Iranian community from having picnics on their Holy days in the park (a policy first started under Brian Colemans time as Cabinet member for Community Safety AKA Borough Safety Officer), but do nothing at all about selfish people who make the park a no go area for families during the middle of the day. What sort of strange double standard is this?

Apologies to anyone who arrived at this blog expecting salacious stories of spicy goings on.

The Big Smoke - Official Launch Party

Last night I made my way to Camden Town Hall for the official launch of The Big Smoke - http://www.bigsmoke.org.uk/ - what is The Big Smoke, you may ask? Well for those of you who are old hippies, looking to get mashed, sadly it's not a blog for Stoners ! Nope, in there own words it is

An online magazine for London that cares about environmental issues and covers community news. In short, a place that wants to help make London even better.

So who was at the launch? There were a few bloggers, a few environmentalists and a few politicians. It was particularly nice to finally meet Adam Bienkov - AKA The Tory Troll, a fellow big fan of Brian Coleman and Darryl, the Greenwich 853 blogger.I've followed both of these blogs for years. I've spoken on the phone a few times to Adam, so it was nice to put a face to the name.

One of the things that seemed to win a good deal of support was the idea I floated of a London bloggers conference in the Autumn. It is something I have been toying with for a while. Fortunately, now my work commitments put me in a place where I can make this happen.

The Barnet Eye supports all local bloggers, online magazines and anyone else involved in trying to build a better community in London. We operate an open access policy, so we publish guest blogs from anyone who has something to say about life in the London Borough of Barnet. We are on the verge of a big announcement ourselves. I have a very important meeting today and expect to be able to share some very exciting news on Monday (if not sooner!).

The Barnet Eye announces the Cash for Din Dins initiative

Ok, so David Cameron has explained to the Country, via the Sunday Times, how you get policies changed. Everyone in Barnet knows that the only person on the Council with any real power is Brian Coleman and rather fortuitously, he is rather partial to a free dinner. It's only March and he's already bagged ten free dinners on his GLA Free dinner list - http://www.london.gov.uk/pls/apex/f?p=135:2:8906446594086415:fsp_sort_2_desc::RP&fsp_region_id=10248804584908268 - and a whopping £200 free dinner at the Grosvenor House Hotel on his LFEPA free dinner list -  http://www.london-fire.gov.uk/gh_brian_coleman.asp - No wonder that old chunkychops is looking as well fed as ever.

But why, oh why, should it only be the great and good who get to fete our Brian? Why can't the ordinary man on the street get to enjoy a slap up meal with Our Brian? The Barnet Eye has decided that it's time that everyone should get to share in the fun. We have come up with the idea of a fantastic "Cash for Din Dins" raffle. The rules are simple. We will limit this to the first thousand people in Barnet to enter. For the measly sum of £1 you can get the opportunity to have a night out on the town with Brian Coleman. We will arrange the hire of a taxi for the evening, with the clock left running as you scoff down dinner, in true Brian Coleman style. You can eat dinner with him at any venue he chooses and any cash left, he can stick straight in his pocket ! We expect this offer to be extremely popular, so make sure you register early.

You may never again get the opportunity to have such a fantastic night out.