Labour-run Haringey Council’s budget shows that they planned to have at least two CPZs in place by January, and the two ‘Stop-and-Shop schemes up and running by September this year.

They are being criticised for having budgeted before ensuring that local people wanted the schemes to go ahead, a decision which has led to the service responsible predicting an overspend of half a million pounds by the end of the financial year.

A report to the Council’s executive shows a projected overspend by the Environment Services of £500,000, and explains “This projected shortfall is in parking income and is the estimated impact of the recent changes in the CPZ plan.” Through enquiries to the Council, Lib Dem councillor Robert Gorrie has been able to confirm that the Haringey Council budget had been drawn up with an assumption that the parking schemes would bring in at least £265,000 in this financial year.

The remaining quarter of a million pounds’ difference is likely to be due to the Council being forced to carry out further stages of consultation following the overwhelming opposition to the schemes.

The Council’s response shows that Labour had planned to have the Stop-and-Shop schemes in place by September, and the CPZs up and running by January 1st 2007. The Liberal Democrats are criticising Labour for having made financial assumptions before knowing the outcomes of the consultations with residents.

Councillor Gorrie comments:

“It is incredibly disappointing, but not surprising, to discover that Labour are counting their chickens before they’ve hatched. To have actually made financial assumptions that the CPZs were going to be in place shows a worrying lack of financial prudence, and it is arrogant to have assumed that local opposition to the schemes would not be an issue. This is just one more stain on the record of a Labour administration that simply cannot run the finances of the borough effectively.”

Councillor Martin Newton, Lib Dem Spokesperson for the Environment, comments:

“Labour have budgeted for these schemes before finding out whether local people want them or not. In many cases, as we have seen in Muswell Hill and Crouch End, local people are deeply unimpressed with Labour’s proposals. They should have taken the trouble to properly consult the residents before going ahead and making assumptions about how much money these schemes were going to bring in.”