David Taylor’s debut as chair proved he’s affable and courteous. The principal items on the agenda concerned trees and Havering’s fleet of vehicles. Both items had officers presenting reports with skill and panache. It was refreshing to hear experts nimbly answering questions.
Trees are very complex. A ‘canopy’ cover in Havering was a surprise. What wasn’t a surprise was a discussion of fruit trees. Brian Eagling (39 mins)1 and Gerry O’Sullivan (46 mins) spoke passionately about the damage, danger and mess they cause. They are an unintended consequence of the 1987 Great Storm, when there was no choice of replacement trees. The lack of maintenance was emphasised by Brian Vincent (34mins). Nonetheless the political consequences of stripping trees from streets was remembered by Osman Dervish (35 mins). Trees have passionate supporters.
The principal officers for Havering’s fleet of vehicles were a masterful double-act. The ULEZ programme has many ramifications. ULEZ fines were a burning topic and no-one believed the implementation August 29th date will be postponed.2 It seems Havering will pay about £88,000 in fines. This has incentivised the procurement of compliant vehicles. Air pollution was emphasied as a driving force in addition to efficiency though Climate Change wasn’t mentioned.
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Havering Daily: a comment
The e-newspaper did a survey of councillors about ULEZ.3 Not a single councillor mentioned Public Health, which was depressing. Even the Labour Party is trapped by a desire to have it both ways.
The Havering Daily should be congratulated for their efforts. And councillors who replied are sensitive to the democratic necessity of transparent dialogue – so they too should be congratulated. A surprising non-responder was Keith Prince – a ULEZ ultra.
Notes
1 Annotator Player (sonicfoundry.com) All times refer to this webcast
2 And they were quite correct as the High Court ratified ULEZ on the 28th July
Politics in Havering 