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A spectre is haunting the Town Hall. Last May, Hackney people
voted for an elected Mayor with extensive powers. The election will take place on 17
October. Until then, the present system will continue but with councillors and staff aware
that it an energetic and committed person gets the job, many things could change. The
decisions of Max Caller, Hackney Managing Director, have not been challenged. His
dedicated pursuit of closing down facilities and selling Council property was criticised
by the District Auditor but supported by the Council, although individual councillors
would say privately that they opposed the policy. A strong, elected Mayor could clip Mr
Caller's wings.
In the meantime, other changes have taken place. The face of the Council has been
transformed. The elections gave Labour a huge majority - and it shows. At the recent
Council meeting over 30 Labour members, 8 Tory and 5 Lib Dems (huddled together for
warmth) were present. Many old friends were missing. Where are you now, rumbustious Hettie
Peters? We couldn't understand what you were saying but you were good fun. Andrew
Bridgewater, Lib Dem leader, bouncing around like the Amazing Dancing Bear - rejected. Joe
Lobenstein, spokesman for 'Mr and Mrs Hackney' - retired. Adrian GeeTurner, libertarian
thinker on pornography and drugs - given the bum's rush by Hackney Wick. A wick too far,
perhaps. They, and many others, will be sorely missed, not least because Council meetings
are now very b-o-r-i-n-g. Even the public gallery is deserted. The meetings hardly matter.
Decisions are stitched up by the Leader and his Cabinet behind closed doors on the day
before the full Council.
No wonder Eric Ollerenshaw, Tory leader, kept disappearing from his seat, nipping outside
and letting his mobile ring. He did manage to ask one pertinent question, however. Was it
true that the Council leadership was determined to ignore the wishes of the residents of
Stamford Hill and most of Stoke Newington and introduce parking meters in the streets?
They had rejected this in a previous consultation exercise. He was answered by the aptly
named Councillor Vincent Stops, Cabinet Member for Transport, who went into a ramble about
traffic planning, getting cars off the streets, the London Mayor's strategy and
'protecting Hackney's borders' against boroughs such Westminster. Someone said that
Westminster was 5 miles from the borders of Hackney. This small fact did not deter him.
Stops had hardly started. He ran through the list of those who would be consulted again,
including the disabled, residents, businesses etc. After his reassurances, we were able to
draw a clear conclusion. Yes, the Council did intend to enforce the introduction of meters
into the areas where residents oppose them.
But what was that about border protection? Is Hackney becoming a haven for persecuted
motorists from elsewhere? A soft touch? Could our streets soon be swamped by undesirable
vehicles? Are hordes of drivers in old bangers gathering in a Red Cross camp somewhere or
Essex Road, ready to risk their lives smuggling themselves into this over-generous
borough? Has the Council asked Islington to close it down? Perhaps our local leaders
should set up a processing centre in Clissold Park to root out bogus parking seekers.
Those allowed to remain could get the full Blunkett treatment by being forced to learn our
language and pay Church Street prices.
Trash was back on the agenda. Or, waste management, as it is called in councilspeak. Who
remembers the heady days of two years ago when the bin collection was handed over to
ServiceTeam? The streets would sparkle, the pavements gleam and rotting black bags would
be a thing of the past. Well, the private bin collectors are going to be dumped. The
service is to be deprivatised and taken back in-house The Council will be responsible, as
they were previously. Apparently the contractors wanted an extra two million quid to
continue. Amazingly,  central government, which seems to be trying to privatise
just about everything, told Hackney to reject the two competing bids. This enraged Tory
Councillor Maureen Middleton and she threatened that 2,500 tenants from Woodberry Down
estate would chain themselves to the railings of the Town Hall if their Sunday bin
collection was stopped. She was denounced by Jules Pipe, the Council Leader, who is
seeking voluntary redundancy from that job to run for the post of Mayor with its much
better pay and prospects. He said she was repeating Tory dogma of 'private good, public
bad.' Eric Ollerenshaw was back in his seat and wished the project well with all the
fervour of a Scotsman praying for success for England in the World Cup. lan Sharer, new
leader of the Lib Dems, sighed and hoped for the best but feared the worst.
At that point, your correspondent was informed by a Council attendant that a parking
warden was hovering near his car (fees, £2.00 per hour 8.30am to 11pm) and decided to
leave. This drama of everyday city folk will continue, but under the regime of the new
Mayor. Who will it be?
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