I arrived at the second Kurdish Womens’ Festival where I had been invited to speak. Kurdish women have had an interesting trajectory and in their struggles have put top of their agenda equality among men and women – as well as the issue of rights in the lands where they live – Iran, Syria, Armenia, Turkey, etc.

Interesting – because the role of women in the Middle East (as elsewhere) is traditionally about home and family, but where there is a struggle, where there is displacement, where women have taken up arms – then the position of women is changed. It was a bit the same (though not truly comparable) after the Second World War here. Women who had taken over vital jobs on the home front were not so content to go back to the solely homemaking role thereafter.

Anyway – it isn’t only the women. The men are proud and celebrate it too. The festival was pretty lively and at first we listened to a great band – beautiful, beautiful singer. And then there was dancing. I did my best. Ibrahim Dogus extended his hand as the line of dancing went past my chair – and up I got. No choice. It’s what I never was able to do at family weddings – join in. So what my mother couldn’t make me do – the Kurdish Womens’ Festival succeeded in.

Then I gave a little speech – which was translated as I went – and did a TV interview for Kurdish TV in Belgium. And that was that. So interesting – how a diaspora moves from flight, to establishing the necessary food and roof over head and work, to education and careers. And my message to them was to take part in the political governance of the land – be that at council, parliamentary or any institutional level.

Surgery all day Friday and half of Saturday. So many people want to come to my surgery that I am just trying – by doing emergency levels of surgeries – to get through the surge that all new MPs experience. I suspect that the normal demand level will be clearer by the summer break – and I can then work out a schedule to accommodate that level.

Launched the London Assembly’s Parking Enforcement Report.

Having sweated blood over this one – I have been waiting to launch the report safely before leaving the Assembly. I do media from 6.30am to around 2pm – and off it goes.

I am really pleased with this piece of work. Whilst it won’t change overnight some of the unfair practises that go on in parking enforcement in London it has already begun to reign in some of the worst practises.

The main findings and recommendations are to do with stopping confusion – such as poor signs or simply stupid and confusing parking regulations – and we ask for common sense to be applied in parking regs – i.e. not four different rules on one street and stuff like that. The problem isn’t just between boroughs – but within boroughs – and sometimes in one street. We recognised that you cannot have a one size fits all across London. There are just too many different local situations – but it can be soooooooo much better than it is.

Also – the whole system rests on the public doing the work to rectify the situation if they are issued with a ‘wrong’ ticket. Rather than have simple rules that well-trained parking attendants can apply fairly – they don’t seem to really mind about wrongly issued tickets. One fifth of representations by motorists to councils are granted and two thirds that go onto appeals process are found in favour of motorist. I think it is this that drives the public mad.

The Transport Committee is also recommending a variation in penalty charge to reflect the seriousness or otherwise of the ‘offence’.

I suppose (and I don’t want to go into the whole report here – it is worth a read) the most controversial bit of the parking issue is the public’s belief that tickets are a way of raking in revenue rather than the stated purpose of parking regulation and enforcement – which is to improve road safety and traffic flow.

We (the Transport Committee) were threatened with legal action by the Association of London Government in the middle of one of the evidence sessions if we were to come out with findings in our report which stated or inferred that revenue raising was the purpose of regulation and enforcement. Such practise would be illegal.

We didn’t receive explicit evidence of this. The nearest we could get was the witnesses to the first session (including the CEO of NCP) stating that councils put the expected revenue into their budget projections. Whilst entirely natural – and the ALG said based on experience – the witnesses clearly thought this dictated a degree of expectation about revenue which if reduced in any way might jeopardise a council’s budget – well that was my interpretation.

But no explicit evidence that would stand up in court. However, I do believe that under the new Freedom of Information Act there will be revealed a whole raft of things that various individuals or groups – incensed by perceived ‘unfairness’ – are currently pursuing.

One thing we did receive late on was a scanned version of what looked like a contract between a company operating the parking enforcement for a borough and their parking attendants which clearly states that for increased revenue they will be given Argos vouchers and states targets for tickets.

Just announcing this investigation brought in its wake changes by councils – my hope is that this continues and that parking enforcement becomes something that people feel happy complying with because it is administered fairly and openly.

In the afternoon, I had a meeting with the Chief Executive of Haringey Council. I go to the CE’s new office in their new building – River Park House. It is my first visit and looks a good working environment. This is important – and I think giving staff decent conditions to work in produces better services, so I don’t begrudge them their new building.

We go through my ‘issues’ which include: Red Gables, school places, the replacement of the childrens’ play equipment at Campsbourne and Hornsey Town Hall.

Shock horror – went away for the weekend – absolutely fantastic (and much needed)! Then Bank Holiday Monday: spent clearing my emails at home and still writing thank yous to all the congratulations that came in and took youngest to Star Wars.

Another all day surgery at Wood Green library. The library staff are pleased that I am operating an appointments system as it is orderly and well-managed. I am giving everyone 15 or 20 minutes – depending on the issue as discussed on the phone previously. Open surgeries are great – but in the end people could wait all day and still not get seen or have their time squashed. We will see how it goes.

My sister is helping me at present as it is not wise to be on your own for surgery and she’s also taking notes – just fantastic! And we a good natter over lunch.

I then rush from surgery to Muswell Hill to chair a meeting between parents near Tetherdown School and Vodafone, who are about to turn on their mobile phone mast.

It is a pretty depressing meeting because the last hope is really that Vodafone would have supplied the mapping the parents had requested at the last meeting – which would show the beam of greatest intensity and where it fell – and whether it was within the education authority’s guidelines. They haven’t done this.

It is clear as the meeting progresses that Vodafone are going to turn on the mast regardless and have come to the meeting simply because they promised they would at the last meeting – not with any real intention of changing their position.

They agree, under excellent and expert pressure from the parents, to supply the mapping information (although now after the event) and refuse point blank to wait for another week whilst the parents receive and analyse the mapping. They do agree to take readings and measurements before and after switching it on.

So – an unhappy end thus far. The parents will continue to campaign and I will support them. I think there really is a lack of willingness on behalf of mobile phone companies to avoid vulnerable residents and children voluntarily – and I will be pursuing in Parliament legislation to give local authorities the power to refuse such applications on the ‘precautionary principle’ where sited near vulnerable residents.