Parking charges review won't save Coleman's backside

If I read this report in the Barnet Press right, Barnet council is to review its hike in parking charges. This is the result of the 4,500 signatures the Labour group got on its petition on the council's website. They presented these at the business management scrutiny committee on 29 February, which agreed to the review.

Here's an extract from the report:

In January Labour councillors had a motion calling for a review into charges rejected at an extraordinary council meeting.

But speaking before the committee, highways manager Neil Richardson agreed that a review into the parking regime would begin in April.

He said it would look at a number of aspects of its parking regime, including fees and hours of control. He added that measures to attract shoppers to high streets, such as making car parking free for the first half hour, would not be ruled out.

“We need to make sure that the parking regime is suited for the needs of the trading environment,” he said.

This review is a coup for the Labour group, particularly as they now look like Barnet's most pro-business party!

And every time an issue such as this is re-politicised it reminds Tory voters how angry they are and costs the Conservative group support. With the GLA elections in the offing - 3 May - and their anxiety about whether Brian Coleman will win or not, Barnet's Tories might even start to wobble on their policies. (The Save Friern Barnet Library campaigners must certainly be hoping so - and I with them!)

However, the parking review results will not appear until September, which is an age away. That is not good for the traders who are losing business now! And it won't come in time to save Coleman's backside.

Fellow Barnet bloggers have reported the election by the Conservative group of Brian Schama (seen as some sort of dissident from the ruling clique!) as Barnet's next mayor and Kate Salinger (who is some sort of dissident!) as his deputy. So it looks as though Barnet's Tory councillors are starting to worry for their council seats in 2014 and to put some more voter-savvy people in charge. Will it be enough to save their backsides?