I am writing in response to Councillor Phillip O’Dell’s letter (‘Petition was a waste of money’, Your Views, May 15).

In Harrow we are incorporating what they did in Waltham Forest with a by-law, because without the latter there’s no guarantee of being able to issue fines in certain situations, for example, when spitting doesn’t include other substances like gum or khat. So our approach is therefore more thorough, and more likely to be successful in stamping out this disgusting behaviour.

I would remind Cllr O’Dell that in January his Labour colleague Cllr Sachin Shah gave his party’s support to our plans and announced spitting fines would be in their manifesto on the back of the steps the Conservatives were already taking. As Cllr O’Dell knows full well, petitions cost next to nothing to organise – but showing resident support is vital in obtaining a by-law. He would know this too, if he focused more on the issues and less on trying to be political about a policy we all agree is good for Harrow.

Cllr Susan Hall

Leader of Harrow Conservative group