Lib Dem councillor Wayne Hoban has accused Haringey Council of unacceptable delays over future improvements to “The Triangle” in Alexandra ward. Mr Hoban says that the site, at the junction of Crescent Road and Palace Gates Road, is an eyesore when instead it should be an attractive focal point for the local community. At present, the area is covered with graffiti and is often strewn with rubbish.

Following a Lib Dem consultation earlier in the year, local residents have suggested that more plants are needed, and have offered to help. A local landscape artist has even offered to help in any redesign work.

Cllr Hoban has been asking the Labour council to hold a meeting with local residents since February this year, but the excuse given is that the area is one of six sites in the borough that has been selected as a site for potential advertising revenue in partnership with a marketing company.

Mr Hoban says this is an unacceptable excuse – the site does not even have a sign indicating that it is available for advertising, to which local shops could respond, and that upgrade of the site is being unnecessarily delayed by the council.

Wayne Hoban comments:

“I have told the council how disappointed I am at their approach to the Triangle. Local residents have expressed strong support for improvements, and have even offered to help. There can be no excuses. I am asking again for a meeting to see how we can make progress in sorting this site out.”

Highgate’s Lib Dem councillors have secured agreement from Haringey Council that residents in additional roads to the north of the village will have their say over the possible controlled parking zones (CPZs) mooted for the area.

Residents in the Kenwood Estate, near the foot of the Great North Road, have expressed concern to their Lib Dem councillors that they should have a say on the plans, as they are within a relatively short distance of both East Finchley and Highgate tubes.

Local councillor Melanie Simpson, comments:

“Highgate residents living near the Great North Road should certainly have their say over the CPZ, as they could well be affected by any scheme, once Ken Livingstone congestion charging comes in.

“We will continue to champion the fullest possible consultation for Highgate residents, giving people the maximum number of options, when the consultation forms are distributed in the New Year – including the right to say yes or no to any council plans.”

Fellow Lib Dem Highgate councillor, Bob Hare, has attended a number of meetings with businesses on the CPZ, and adds: “We are concerned to ensure that the local businesses of Archway Road and Highgate village are provided with short-stay parking for shoppers, and will be making sure that further consultation takes place with them as well”.

Muswell Hill residents should experience a welcome reduction in noise from a popular local bar, following action from Lib Dem councillor Lynne Featherstone.

Bar Meze, at 462 Muswell Hill Broadway, was causing a noise nuisance for local residents in the flats around the area.

Ms Featherstone took up complaints from residents, which resulted in a request from Haringey Council for the bar to seal the air gaps between the building’s structure and its skylight.

The bar has agreed, and the action should help to reduce noise problems.

Lynne Featherstone comments:

“I am pleased that both Bar Meze and the council have listened to the concerns of residents, and I am optimistic that the works will reduce the noise problem.

“I will continue to monitor the situation in the coming weeks.”

Cllr Ross Laird, Leader of the Opposition, is pushing for a concerted effort from Haringey Council and Haringey Accord to clean up the entrance to Alexandra Palace Park and make surrounding roads safe for pedestrians and drivers alike.

Cllr Laird has received many complaints from local residents at the entrance to the Park, at the foot of Muswell Hill, about illegal dumping and abandoned cars, as well as traffic and speeding problems in the roads around the busy junction.

Cllr Laird comments:

“I have been given an undertaking from Haringey Accord, who look after street cleanliness, that they will look into dumping at the entrance to the park. I have also called on the Council to regularly check for abandoned vehicles at the site.

“Local residents are rightly concerned about the continued problems of speeding around Park Road, Muswell Hill and Priory Road and the urgent need to improve the junction. This is an accident black-spot and needs to be urgently assessed to see what safety precautions could be put in place.”

Lib Dem Councillor for Crouch End Ron Aitken has warned of a scam being carried out around Crouch End that resulted in a constituent losing £800 to a conman.

The constituent, who does not wish to be named, answered his door to a caller three weeks ago and was asked if he wanted his front garden cleared of rubbish. The man agreed a price of £130 and the work was carried out. Even so the conman asked for more cash and when the householder said he did not have any more money on him, offered to drive him to a cash point.

On reaching the Crouch End cash point the man demanded further sums, made threats and locked the unfortunate victim in his car until he handed over more money. The victim was extremely shaken and contacted Cllr Aitken in order to warn others of the risk.

“I am extremely concerned about this scam and want to warn other householders about the dangers of unwanted callers. You should always ask for identification from the gas, electricity people, and only use reputable firms to carry out work around the house. Above all anyone else who has been a victim in this way should immediately call the police.”

What the Audit Commission’s Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) report into Haringey Council says:

• “Services provided by the Council are generally weak”
• Children’s Services Scores 1 out of 4
• Environment scores 1 out of 4
• Libraries and leisure scores 1 out of 4
• “Service performance is poor, with some 60% of all performance indicators in the bottom two quartiles in 200/2001. Public satisfaction with the council is low and falling.”
• “Target setting is inconsistent. Some targets are unrealistic and not likely to be achieved by 2005”
• “Over the last three years, the overall level of satisfaction has fallen across all services.”
• “The lack of clarity over how and when some priorities will be delivered needs to be overcome quickly”

Commenting on Haringey’s dismal rating in the Audit Commission’s Comprehensive Performance Assessment, the largest ever independent assessment of local councils’ performance, Cllr Ross Laird, Lib Dem Leader of the Opposition, comments:

“This is a disappointing result, which shows that Labour Haringey failing local people across a wide range of services.

“Granted, the Audit Commission has recognised some of the management improvements, but front-line service delivery remains very poor across the board.”

Cllr Neil Williams (Highgate), Lib Dem performance spokesman, adds:

“After these dreadful results, no doubt the Labour council will tell everyone that they are ‘turning the corner’. However, for years Haringey has always said that, every time it is condemned by an outside body.

“According to Haringey, the council is always ‘turning the corner’ – but always ends up back where it started, near the bottom of the pile.”

Liberal Democrats in Enfield and Haringey have selected Councillor Wayne Hoban as their prospective candidate for the Greater London Authority constituency of Enfield and Haringey.

Wayne Hoban, Lib Dem Deputy Leader on Haringey Council and councillor for Alexandra, was chosen by party members across the two boroughs at a hustings meeting on Tuesday night.

Wayne Hoban stood as a general election candidate in Enfield Southgate constituency last year, and overturned a previously safe Labour ward when elected to Haringey Council this year.

Mr Hoban is a superintendent radiographer working in the National Health Service.In recent years, he has also been a co-ordinator of radiography service to United Nations mortuary in Bosnia and Kosovo established by the UN International Crime Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

Wayne Hoban comments:

“I am delighted to have been selected. The Lib Dems on the GLA are doing an excellent job, and I am looking forward to campaigning on London wide issues, such as the crisis in transport facing the capital, and Labour’s terrible handling of the Tube.

Mr Hoban was congratulated on his selection by GLA member and fellow local councillor, Lynne Featherstone:

“I am certain Wayne will make an excellent spokesman for Enfield and Haringey in the run up to the GLA election in 2004.I am looking forward to working closely with him in the coming months.”

Commenting on the forthcoming by-election in Tottenham Hale ward on 23rd January, Lib Dem Leader Ross Laird, said:

“Having pushed the Tories out of Haringey completely, this by election will be a straight fight between the Liberal Democrats and our unpopular Labour council.

“Local people are fed up with Haringey Labour, and this is an excellent chance for residents to show the council what they think of their inadequate performance, the controversial schools and leisure PFI schemes and Labour’s plans to raise council tax by over 40%.

“We have started a procedure for selecting our candidate, who we will have in place before Christmas.”

Lib Dem councillors in Wood Green have expressed dismay that Haringey’s Labour run council is not putting safety first at one of its libraries. The complaint follows a written answer at last night’s full council which revealed that Alexandra Palace library had provided an additional room on its first floor for public use before a health and safety assessment report has been received or a fire risk assessment had been carried out.

The news follows the replacement of the library’s reading room with an I.T. room in October this year. Previous council surveys had recommended that work was required to bring the staircase up to the standard of current building regulations, and a recent audit also identified that work was required to improve a means of escape from the first floor in event of fire.

Local Lib Dem councillor Wayne Hoban also says that although a wall-mounted heater which at present impedes access to the fire exit can be moved without capital expenditure, this has not yet been done, meaning that people with a mobility impairment are currently at risk – even according to the council’s own assessment.

Lib Dem councillor for Alexandra ward, Wayne Hoban, comments:

“It is absolutely clear that the council is taking risks with public safety at Alexandra Park Library. This is completely unacceptable. Public safety must take priority. The council should make the urgent safety improvements or stop public access to the first floor for the time being.”

The latest primary school league tables show Haringey Council slipping even further down the list of London councils, with the borough’s primary schools coming out the fourth worst in all of London. This is two places worse than last year, when Haringey came out sixth worst.

While other councils have improved their exam results compared with last year, Haringey’s results have got worse. Next door Islington council, now run by the Liberal Democrats, has seen a sharp improvement in exam results, overtaking Haringey.

Ross Laird, Liberal Democrat leader, comments: “These are disappointing results, and reflect the long history of poor management of our schools by Haringey Labour.While out schools are doing their best in difficult circumstances, there is clearly still a long way to go in terms of school improvement.”

Lib Dem Education spokesperson, Cllr Barbara Fabian, adds:”It is very important to ensure all primary schools are kept out of Special Measures and given sustained support.The council needs to ensure that this support is provided.”

Notes:

The league tables are compiled by adding together the percentage of pupils achieving the Government’s Level 4 benchmark in the English, maths and science tests for 11 year olds.

Haringey’s total in 2002 was 212.0, compared to a London and national average of 234.0.

Haringey’s figure of 212.0 was a decline on the 2001 figure of 213.7. By comparison, Liberal Democrat run Islington has improved from 208.8 to 219.1.