The Belsize Village Streatery

• AS the primary sponsor of the Belsize Village Streatery, I’m proud that Camden Council’s licensing committee agreed my motion to grant a permanent street trading licence to continue the streatery. This was in line with the massive popularity shown in the consultation carried out by the council.

A massive 83 per cent of responses backed the initiative, including 75 per cent support from residents living within 200 metres of the streatery. This is unlike the huge opposition in Covent Garden, where the streateries were not made permanent.

At my request the committee also agreed several sensible conditions to facilitate further engagement with residents, to improve waste collections and to ensure improved pedestrian access.

The decision will ensure the area is used as a streatery and not general street trading. These measures specifically address the concerns of the minority, and I hope past polarisation can change into future co-operation.

After that positive outcome, I went knocking on doors on Buckland Crescent. Imagine my surprise when I was told that Liberal Democrat candidates had just told residents that my fellow Conservatives and I had opposed the streatery, when we had been its primary advocates!

Indeed at the meeting two days before Conservatives were the only party whose councillors clearly voted to make the streatery permanent. The six Labour councillors split three-three, while the LibDems inexplicably abstained without giving any reasons.

The leader of Camden Conservatives, Oliver Cooper, spoke at the meeting in favour of listening to the majority of residents who backed the streatery and a Labour councillor described him as “a very articulate and very powerful representative”.

Rather than sitting forever on the fence, I knew a good thing when I first saw it and worked closely with an enthusiastic community team to deliver that vision.

For the LibDems to claim the opposite while themselves abstaining is an almost perfect mix of opportunism and mendacity. On the streatery, the LibDems will have sadly said anything and done nothing.

CLLR STEVE ADAMS
Conservative, Belsize ward