Toy seller Kenny Irish was left fuming at being unable to get into his lock-up

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A MARKET trader has faced a six-month wait to be able to get to valuable stock because of a dumped car the Town Hall refused to move.

Kenny Irish sells educational toys in markets and uses a lock-up in Kentish Town he has rented for more than 30 years from the council.

But six months ago he turned up to load his van and discovered a car had been dumped right outside his garage, making it impossible for him to access it. Cue furious calls to the Camden Council – but no joy.

And in a bizarre twist, this week, after contacting the New Journal, the car was finally removed – only to be replaced with a van in exactly the same spot, causing exactly the same issue.

Mr Irish said: “I’ve had it since I was 17, I grew up here. I run a market stall, and so its pretty vital for my living.

“I have worked for Camden Council for many years before I went self-employed, so I know people to contact and am no stranger as to how the council works. But this has driven me mad for six months.”

He explained that after reporting the dumped vehicle – a fairly arduous process, he said – the response was not to help him but to try and fine the driver.

He said: “It looked like quite a new Audi, which was strange to be dumped. They started putting tickets on it and the council say they can’t do anything until the legal owners are traced.”

With the owner ignoring the tickets and the car remaining in place, Mr Irish went back to the Town Hall.

He said: “I went to parking control who then told me to go to estate parking. They said they could not do anything, so I went to the rent department to explain the predicament. Nothing. I have been to the council countless times and still nothing was done. They said all they can do is put tickets in it and can’t move it out of the way.”

Mr Irish with Sir Keir Starmer and the late Frank Dobson, the present and past MPs for Holborn and St Pancras

And after the Audi disappeared the week Mr Irish contacted the New Journal, his 24-hours of relief quickly disappeared.

He said: “I could not believe it. I thought it was a practical joke. This has really hit my trade, and I’ve been paying rent all this time, too.

“I want the council to pay me back, to move the van and make sure people who park illegally on their land have proper action taken against them.”

A Town Hall spokesperson said they were unable to move the vehicle as it was not on a public highway – but the loophole was set to be fixed by introducing new bye laws that will solve any similar issues in the future.

They added they would be refunding Mr Irish for rent paid.
They said: “We would like to apologise to Mr Irish for the issues that he has previously experienced accessing his garage. Parking Charge Notices are issued when we see a vehicle that is parked dangerously, inconsiderately or displaying no or an incorrect permit. We also write to owners of the vehicles, once identified, to highlight this.”