Hands off the Barnet One!

Are the people in charge of Barnet council mad? They seem incapable of avoiding making fools of themselves. Dangerous fools.

They have moved against North Finchley trader Helen Michael - by anyone's standards, a respectable woman - for putting up posters criticising Brian Coleman, during the elections to the Greater London Assembly.

She was visited once by local police in relation to these posters, but the police seemed satisifed with the remedy she offered.

Now the police have visited her again - a Scotland Yard investigations unit, no less - at the instigation of Barnet council's chief executive officer, Nick Walkley.

He is also the returning officer for Barnet. He earns a tidy sum for this, in addition to the more than £200,000 Barnet residents are paying him in his day job.

Replying to a complaint about a different incident, a small infringement of electoral law on polling day, Nick Walkley said he took a very dim view of such things. Dim views are what Nick Walkley specialises in, it seems.

Does anyone in Barnet, any resident aside from the most vindictive or pettifogging individual, care what infringement Helen Michael is supposed to have made?

Get a grip, Walkley! You are trying to foist the 'One Barnet' privatisation plan on us. Now you are making Helen Michael into the 'Barnet One'!

Other bloggers have more detail on this story. See Mrs Angry and the Barnet Eye.