Now that the Labour ‘maladministration’ has got its feet under the table, the ‘savage cuts’ are being blamed for the changes to street cleansing, the near halting of road repairs, reductions in frontline staffing and mooted changes to bin collections.

However, it’s full steam ahead for new executives, a plethora of consultations (for everyone except residents) and a new blight of controlled parking zones), yellow lines, signage and other high-profile municipal graffiti that Labour uses to mark out its territory in the same way dogs use lamposts.

Top of the list must be the imposition of a raft of new CPZs in areas where they are unnecessary. Labour relies on short consultation periods and apathy to bludgeon these through with the penalties, fines and permits used to fund ever more of these creeping malignancies.

Councillor David Perry states Labour is ‘listening to the people’ and is ‘business friendly’ — tell that to the over-taxed residents and businesses around Belmont Circle and Honeypot Lane, who will see shops close just as they have in central Harrow.

So much for the 20-minute free parking and the tens of thousands spent on new machines.

Welcome to four years of blundering Labour incompetence, excuses and wastage. And remember when those consultation letters arrive from Harrow Council, do not ignore them.

If you don’t want to pay for permission to park outside your property; if you would like to have visitors or tradesmen without their getting a £60 ‘welcome to Harrow’ ticket and if you really would like your local shops to survive, then your only option is to vote no and ask your neighbours to do likewise.

Jeremy Zeid

Chairman, UKIP Harrow