The Tooting Labour team are rightly pleased that our council has finally moved forward on consulting residents in Furzedown and Bedford wards on 20mph limits. In Bedford ward, I understand that the Conservative councillors are also supportive, so it's good to see cross-party support for these measures.
However, what I feel is a serious lack of conviction from both parties above is the following. The Labour team talk about their campaign for 20mph in Furzedown in 2007. It is now 2014. If as a party, they had been seriously behind 20mph limits, I do think that 7 years is more than long enough to have campaigned and petitioned borough-wide.
The Conservatives have a similar lack of conviction. Senior party members know that the evidence suggests that most people are supportive of 20mph limits on residential streets when asked. Indeed where their members have 'campaigned' on it, the support has been overwhelmingly positive. Yet the lack of any real desire to make evidence based policy decisions, or indeed ensure that the council adheres to policy guidelines as highlighted in this weeks open letter to the Prime Minister, makes local progress even more challenging.
With the local elections fast approaching, for those looking for real progress, and an evidence based approach to improving the local area, there is a real choice. I'm going to be standing with the Liberal Democrat team as a candidate for councillor in Tooting.
Too many people for too long have had their concerns ignored by both Labour and the Conservatives. We need a strong voice for local people at the council, one which I believe me and my Lib Dem colleagues would be better placed to deliver.
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