An open letter to the Leader of Barnet
Open letter to Councillor Barry Rawlings, The Leader of the London Borough Of Barnet - sent on 23 May 2024
The London Borough of Barnet (the Council) has committed itself to the implementation of an experimental Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) to extend across East Finchley, a process which began as early as 2021.
The Council’s engagement has been sporadic, inconsistent and with significant periods of silence leaving the local community unaware of the current situation. The last communication issued to residents gave four days prior notice of the commencement of works, but lacked information relating to zones, bay arrangements and locations of pay & display facilities.
We believe that 16 weeks have elapsed since the Council ‘paused’ the rollout of the scheme, following on from widespread concerns about the implementation and an 1100-strong petition demanding transparency. Despite being such a significant decision, there has been no formal communication from the Council, instead relying on private WhatsApp and Facebook groups for news to be disseminated.
At a recent public meeting hosted by the Town Team, residents were assured by your Cabinet Member for Environment that we would be engaged and listened to. Nothing has been forthcoming from the Council. This lack of engagement has significantly undermined trust in the Council to carry out its function as a competent authority.
Local concern is well-publicised and there is a growing belief that the Council did not consult all those affected by the proposal, weighted the questions in favour of implementation, allowed stakeholders outside of East Finchley and the borough to influence its decision, and wilfully misrepresented the results of your own ‘informal’ consultation where the results demonstrated 71% of respondents were against the proposal.
Six weeks have now passed since the cabinet member gave his public address - we have been left in the dark over what is happening. In the absence of action from the Council, a community-led consultation (www.n2cpz.com) has been established by local residents, which has already attracted hundreds of responses.
The consultation is independent, fair and transparent and enables local stakeholders to express their opinions - whether they be for or against. It is our desire that the results of our community-led consultation will support the Council in its decision-making and allow for a fair, robust and evidence-based approach to the management of the highway, and where necessary, enable those areas where there is local support and evidenced-need for the implementation of a street-by-street CPZ.
With that in mind, we would like to seek your endorsement of our initiative and offer a guarantee that the Council will afford weight to the outcome of our community-led consultation, and commit to work with us to ensure a fair, trustworthy and transparent process.