Town Hall accused of using fly-posting co.

THE Town Hall’s high profile campaign against fly-posting has found itself in the dock follwoing an accusation that the leisure department used a fly-posting firm which it is now seeking a court order against.
The accusation came during a court hearing against Tim Horrox, managing director of Diabolical Liberties, a self-styled firm of “guerrilla” advertisers.
In a national first, Camden Council is seeking to obtain an Anti-Social Behaviour Order (Asbo) against Mr Horrox.
Action against two former company employees and one existing member of staff was dropped on Tuesday morning after all three agreed to sign written undertakings not to authorise future fly-posting campaigns.
But proceedings are continuing against Mr Horrox, whose firm is based in Bayham Street, Camden Town, with a trial expected to last several days. The banning orders are usually used to expel drug addicts or prostitutes from Camden’s streets or curb the behaviour of rowdy teenagers.
Camden insists the powers can also be used against executives who spark fly-posting campaigns which Town Hall officials say make the borough’s streets ugly and threatening. During Tuesday’s evidence at Highbury Magistrates’ Court it emerged that senior Town Hall staff drew up a legal masterplan to cut fly-posting in Camden during a meeting staged in a public train carriage
The court was also told a private investigations firm hired by the Town Hall to probe the inner workings of Diabolical Liberties had gleaned much of its information by going to the company’s glitzy website.
Peter Wayne, a retired detective turned security consultant at LBA International, told the court: “We did Companies House checks and various bits and pieces. Mr Horrox was on the website as the main man.
“He was obviously quite proud of what he has built up and what he has achieved.”
The council set its sights on Diabolical Liberties staff after successfully gaining written undertakings from music giants Sony and BMG last year that they would halt their poster campaigns. Executives had been threatened with Asbos, which if breached can land offenders in jail.
In a bizarre courtroom exchange on Tuesday, Ian Walker, the council’s anti-social behaviour team co-ordinator, said the approval to push ahead with legal action against Mr Horrox was made during a train journey from London to government offices in Slough.
He said that those taking part in the key discussion were Richard Gruet, one of the council’s senior lawyers, and police officers. The court heard that no minutes of the meeting were taken.
Peter Dovey, representing Mr Horrox, told Mr Walker: “All we have to go on is what you can recall from what was said on the train to Slough.”
Mr Walker told the court: “Ideally, the environment department would have been on the train to Slough but Richard Gruet was working closely with the environment department and reported back to me.
“Richard Gruet was very excited about this, being the main player. It’s not everyday that you Asbo someone from a company called Diabolical Liberties.”
Earlier Mr Dovey claimed there was evidence that the leisure department used the firm to embark on poster campaigns in the late 1990s for the music festival Camden Mix.
Mr Horrox is due to give evidence today (Thursday).