At the latest meeting of the Harrow Police & Community Consultative Group,last week, the Borough Commander very honestly expressed his deep concern about impending Policing cuts,due to be announced on October 20.

The true extent of these will only become clear after the Spending Review is out in the open and thoroughly analyzed.However,he re-assured us that Harrow is still one of the safest London boroughs and that every effort is being made to keep it that way.Please, let's not panic!We all have a job to do.

The HPCCG is doing its best,with the help of its members,to give full support to the Police,the Local Authority and to our diverse communities in Harrow,to ensure that safety and harmony remain at the top of our priority list.Our Safer Neighbourhood Panels and Neighbourhood Champions are also adding value to local policing and providing a worthwhile service.

However,it is high time that the top brass at the Met Police, the Home Office and our Cabinet Ministers all woke up,double-quick,to the reality of our borough.Their perception is that we are STILL "a leafy,green borough".They are looking at us through rose-tinted glasses.

Of course,we have the good fortune to have the prestigious Harrow School, up on the Hill, as well as a number of other heritage sites.Sadly,this is not the whole story.

We need to educate these leaders at the top and bring them down to have a close look at the thoroughly unacceptable plight of many of our citizens.They, too, are Harrovians and are therefore, equally entitled to a decent quality of life.

Times have moved on and brought in its wake a host of difficult challenges.Our demographics have undergone a sea-change ,in the last decade.It seems inconceivable, but,today, good old Harrow's 21 Wards encompass at least six which suffer from deprivation.A scenario,hitherto unimaginable!

HARROW and DEPRIVATION just don't fit together!Well, dare to come down and check it out for yourself.Seeing is believing.We have the evidence.Our requests are intelligence-based and carefully reasoned.

Some of us are too proud to admit that parts of Harrow are so "out of synch" with the rest of our borough.Time to GROW UP and admit we have a genuine problem, growing day-by-day.

Being in denial is desperately hurting our prospects and doing us all a great deal of dis-service.We have to be gutsy, roll up our sleeves and get to work on tackling the harsh realities which are destroying our way of life.Tough times merit tough actions.

It is imperative that we get FULL support from the Centre.Our MP from Harrow East,Bob Blackman, warned at the HPCCG meeting, on 27 September, that we need to put our cards squarely on the table, sooner rather than later.This is because those at the top have a very rosy and completely inaccurate picture of Harrow in their minds.Otherwise,we stand to lose alot more in the coming months.Harrow simply cannot afford to bleed like this.This haemorraeging is doing us no good!

Being fiercely proud, Harrovians are doing their best to get to grips with the problems assailing them.It is no mean task.

We have already drawn up plans and joined hands with a number of key partners in the borough and cross-borough,wherever possible,to optimize our resources.Innovative ideas are encouraged and best practice shared widely.However,this on its own, will not be enough.Loads more needs doing.

We need a very determined and high-powered delegation of all those who run our Council and Police Service along with our MPs,Bob Blackman and Gareth Thomas,our GLA member,Navin Shah, leading Community leaders and anyone else who can assist, to see the Prime Minister and his Cabinet as soon as possible.We are already in dire straits.EMERGENCY ACTION IS NEEDED. Let's hope they go into fast forward very soon.

They must convince those at the top,once and for all,that Harrow is being very unfairly starved of desperately-needed funds.This delegation must,somehow,get through to them that,regretfully,we are no longer the "well-heeled borough"we are incorrectly perceived to be!Our citizens do not deserve a raw deal.Our delegation must broker a deal in line with our needs,so that every single Ward in Harrow is a great place to be.

Meanwhile,please take extra care during these darker evenings.Make sure you lock all doors and windows and implement the safety messages from your local neighbourhood police teams.Simple precautions such as installing external security lights,leaving a radio or indoor light on,using CCTV,getting Smartwater from your local police,and also installing a home safe--will dramatically reduce the chances of being burgled.Lock your cars,even on your drive and keep all keys out of sight.Please don't make it easy for the villains.

The Hindu community,in particular,who are celebrating Navratri and Diwali, can prevent being robbed or burgled ---primarily for their valuable gold jewellery ---by remaining alert and implementing a variety of handy and easy-to-follow crime prevention messages from Harrow Police. Many of these tips apply to ALL our communities in Harrow.PLEASE FOLLOW THEIR ADVICE.Make this a regular habit and help us beat the criminals.

Our warmest wishes to ALL our communities celebrating many religious festivals in the coming months.Keep safe,have fun and be happy.