• SEVERAL hundred Highgate residents have signed a petition calling for new parking charges to be abandoned. I am surprised that monetary policies are still being justified in terms of environmental concerns.

In a recent interview, Ségolène Royal, the former minister of the environment in François Hollande’s government, explained that she never considered introducing new taxes under the pretext of protecting the environment.

However this is exactly what Camden has done for years. The Hampstead example clearly proves Camden’s argument that the new charges will help to protect the environment wrong. There the charges were introduced well over a decade ago but the air has certainly not become cleaner.

Along with exorbitant business rates, the policy has succeeded in forcing all small businesses out of the area. Unlike Highgate, which has so far maintained its village character, the centre of Hampstead now looks like an extension of New Bond Street.

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NW3