• I WAS delighted to read Tory London Assembly candidate Cllr Roberto Weeden-Sanz’s letter where he recognises that politicians of today are responsible for the decisions we take, (We must not let our young people down, August 15).

I absolutely agree. We must not risk our children’s future which is very much in our hands. After months of signing off tweets with “#khandontcare”, it’s time for Cllr Weeden-Sanz to reflect on his first year of being a Barnet councillor.

This year he voted to increase council tax on the poorest in the borough, raising them by over 200 per cent. He’s also voted against declaring a real climate emergency, instead favouring one that only celebrates the Conservative party’s record on the environment.

Remarkably Cllr Weeden-Sanz left the council chamber during the vote on the hugely unpopular “gagging” rule which drastically reduces resident participation in Barnet committee meetings. He could have shown real leadership and voted against his party’s whip on this.

On Brexit, the issue of our day, Cllr Weeden-Sanz has not offered an opinion. One assumes he agrees with the new leader of Barnet Council that no-deal Brexit will be OK and we are unlikely to see any impact in Barnet.

The Conservatives in government have been a disaster for our young people. They’ve cut police by 21,000 and crime is rising across the country.

Schools in Barnet and Camden alone have lost £52.1million between 2015 and 2019. Council budgets have been slashed and over 1,000 SureStart centres have shut under this wretched government.

The Conservative budget for London was not supported by anyone but the Tories. It called for more police but at the expense of other key London staff. What is needed is more police across the country, an end to austerity and a real future for our children.

CLLR ANNE CLARKE
Labour, Childs Hill ward