Residents in Hornsey are still waiting for fading parking bays on Campsbourne Road to be repainted – three months after Haringey Council were asked to complete the job.

The fading lines on the parking bays, which serve homes close to Hornsey High Street, were reported to Labour-run Haringey Council at the end of May, after residents complained that cars parking over the lines were making it difficult for pushchair and wheelchair users to use the pavement. Despite Haringey Council having twice promised to finish the work – after pressure from local Liberal Democrat Councillor Monica Whyte – the work has not been finished.

Cllr Monica Whyte commented:

“Residents on Campsbourne Road have been asking for these parking bays to be repainted for months, but all they have got from Haringey Council are delays, broken promises and a little bit of spray paint.

“As they are doing in other areas, Labour-run Haringey Council are failing to provide a decent service to its residents. It is amazing that, with a poorly completed job adding yet more waste for taxpayers, they can’t even properly complete something so simple as painting some road markings.”

Noel Park councillor Fiyaz Mughal has been chosen by the Liberal Democrat party leader, Nick Clegg, as his new national adviser for Interfaith Work and Tackling Radicalisation and Extremism.

Fiyaz, who is CEO of Enfield Citizens’ Advice Bureau and a past Vice President of the party, also pilots his own charity focussed on bridge-building in Israel, called Faith Matters.

The appointment will support local Liberal Democrats plans to make a national impact next week at their Bournemouth Party Conference with a Fringe Debate entitled “Islam: conflict or opportunity?” The event includes guest speakers Lee Jasper and Oxford Professor Tariq Ramadan, and is chaired by Cllr Mughal.

Cllr John Oakes, fringe event organiser and the Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Community Involvement, commented:

“The news of this appointment confirms Fiyaz as a major player in the reconciliation field – one which is vitally important if we in this country are to pull off the biggest multicultural experiment in the world – which is what the UK’s social mix now is.

“And now our party Leader has confirmed my instincts by appointing Cllr Mughal, who will chair our fringe event, as his national adviser on inter-faith dialogue.

“Liberal Democrats are in the forefront of this huge effort, hence the title of our fringe event, which we think highlights the greatest cultural fault-line in the world today.”

Cllr Fiyaz Mughal (Noel Park) comments:

“The Liberal Democrats have a vision of community safety and tackling extremism and radicalism which does not isolate certain faith communities, but actively tries to engage with them.

“Haringey is one of the most diverse boroughs in London and it is vital that we use this vision to engage our communities.”

Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrat party leader, commented:

“I am proud of the links that already exist between the Liberal Democrats and minority groups across Britain. However, I am very conscious that we have to do more to engage with minority communities and this team will help us do that.

“I know from travelling around the country that there are so many members of minority ethnic communities who share Liberal Democrat values, and I’m delighted to have such a talented group focusing on the crucial issues which affect them.”

Lynne Featherstone, the area’s MP, said:

“Whilst a lucky few might have got some free petrol, hundreds of local residents have faced misery on their daily journeys this morning.They deserve an apology for being the victims of such an ill-thought out media stunt.”

Nearly 1,500 Haringey residents had their parking tickets cancelled last year after appeals found Haringey Council road signs, markings and traffic management orders were at fault, it has been revealed.

Information revealed by Haringey Liberal Democrats under the Freedom of Information Act shows that of the 8,096 tickets issued for offences at yellow box junctions 351 were cancelled and 1,051 out of a total of 21,159 PCNs issued by Haringey Council’s smart cars were annulled due to incorrect signs.

The total number of cancelled tickets (1,402) represents 40% of the number of Parking Charge Notices (PCN) cancelled and over 5% of the total number of PCNs issued.

Cllr Martin Newton, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Transport and Highways comments:

“These statistics are the tip of the iceberg and only reveal the picture for those penalty charge notices that were appealed and cancelled. Many motorists decide to pay up and take up the ‘offer’ of paying at a reduced rate and avoid the headache of appeal and possibility of a larger amount to pay.

“Out of seven yellow box junctions monitored by CCTV in Haringey, five of these had incorrect lines or signs and penalty notices were cancelled as a result. The Labour Council needs to play fair with residents and visitors and make sure all lines and signs conform to regulations and stop issuing penalty notices at junctions where they know they have got it wrong.”

Lynne Featherstone MP added:

“This is a shocking figure and local residents are suffering as a result. “

Questions have emerged over the fairness of Haringey Council’s CCTV smart cars after an investigation carried out by the Liberal Democrats revealed that nearly one in eight of the 21,159 parking tickets issued last year were cancelled.

Information revealed under the Freedom of Information Act shows that 2,686 Penalty Charge Notices (PCN) were cancelled in the period August 2007July 2008. In the same period the Council accumulated a minimum of £550,000 from parking tickets issued by the CCTV cars.

Liberal Democrats have called on Haringey Council’s parking chief, Cllr Haley, to provide evidence that the vehicles provide a fair service and are not just a revenue-raising scheme for the council.

Cllr Martin Newton, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Transport and Highways, comments:

“With around 400 penalty notices being issued weekly by these vehicles, one has to question if these are being issued fairly for genuine safety and traffic control or whether this is yet another sneaky way to tax and annoy residents and visitors to Haringey. This is equivalent to a massive £11,500 per week earner for Haringey Council even if all penalties were paid at the 50% reduced rate.

“Even when Haringey Council has used incorrect lines and signs, these vehicles happily carry on dishing out penalties. The Labour Council should come clean and provide evidence that enforcement is fair in Haringey.”

Distributors of the London Lite newspaper have had their basic right to drink water on the job defended after intervention by Liberal Democrat MP Lynne Featherstone.

The Hornsey & Wood Green MP acted on a complaint from her constituent that the distributor – ‘The Network’ – was banning its staff from drinking water on the job.

Hornsey resident Alex Chobur got fired from the company for drinking liquids and contacted his MP to inform her of the health and safety violation. Lynne Featherstone then intervened to right the illegal practice by pointing out relevant legislation (Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992) to The Network. Earlier this month Ms Featherstone received confirmation that all distributors are now allowed to drink water on the job.

Alex Chobur comments:

“A shift lasts for three hours, and many people do two shifts a day without being allowed to drink anything!

“I was shocked when fired out of the blue for drinking liquids on my shift. I was given no induction and didn’t know I wasn’t allowed to drink anything until fired. It was terrible to be treated so badly, and that’s when I turned to Lynne for help.”

Lynne Featherstone MP adds:

“I was gobsmacked listening to Alex’s story. The behaviour of The Network sounds like something from a Dickens novel, and should not be happening in 21st century London.

“I’m glad that that The Network has come to its senses, but it does beg the question how many other companies continue to ignore basic labour rights.”

Haringey Council is failing to protect residents from the effects of alcohol misuse it has been revealed by the Liberal Democrats. Despite annual alcohol-related admissions to local hospitals doubling in five years, Haringey Council’s forward plan shows that a decision to examine the Council’s Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy, which expired in April 2008, has been further delayed to 18 November 2008. This leaves Haringey Council without an up-to-date approach to tackling the effects of alcohol misuse.

The alcohol strategy is one of the forty-eight decisions currently on Haringey Council’s forward plan with delays that total 4,813 days (more than 13 years).

Latest government figures show that twice as many people from Haringey were admitted to hospital for alcohol related crime as in 2002, the number of crimes attributed to alcohol in Haringey was 3,403, the number of hospital admissions due to alcohol was 2,616 and the number of young people under 18 admitted to hospital due to alcohol was 34.

Cllr Ron Aitken, Liberal Democrat Crime and Community Safety Spokesperson, commented:

“Haringey Council’s lack of actions seems to suggest they have turned a blind eye to the misuse of alcohol and the effects this has on the residents of Haringey.

“Alcohol is a known reason for many incidents of crime and anti-social behaviour in every borough. A clear plan to help vulnerable people, including children and young people, must be on Haringey Council’s agenda but again this decision has been delayed.”

Lynne Featherstone MP added:

“It is extremely concerning the low priority this Labour-led council is giving to such an urgent problem. All the figures point to alcohol abuse being a growing problem locally and yet Haringey Council’s leaders have dithered and procrastinated over implementing a new strategy for action.

“What is even more worrying is that whilst they were supposed to be bring forward plans to help those negatively affected by alcohol misuse, they still found time to rush through plans for a new Civic Centre. You have to question where their priorities lie.”