This is a fine example of the unthinking jobsworth attitude that contaminates local councils (and indeed central government).Penny Batkin was driving Freddie, her four year old disabled son, to a children's hospice in Richmond. On the way there he began to gasp for breath so, not unreasonably, Mrs Batkin pulled over onto the pavement to help resuscitate him.
Can you guess what happened during this incident (FYI Freddie recovered)?
Yes, that's right, her car and her actions were recorded on camera by traffic wardens.
Can you guess what happened after that?
Yes, that's right, she received a £100 fine for parking on the pavement!
Now not unreasonably, given that she explained to the council what had happened, Mrs Batkin assumed that Richmond Council would waive the fine.
Can you guess what the council did, dear readers?
Yes, that's right, Richmond council refused to back down despite receiving her letter of explanation which had the support of her GP.
The appeals officer quoted a section of the Highway Code, and insisted it had been unnecessary to park on the pavement.
Needless to say, once the story hit the media, Richmond council were forced to eat crow and backed down. They have now cancelled the parking ticket.
I won't use the words in public that I am thinking of wrt the council officers who tried to fine Mrs Batkin. However, I will say this, unless people really stand up to these jobsworth braindead bullies, the councils and their lackeys will walk all over us.
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You know how some very politically-correct councils have little strap-lines at the ene of their job adverts saying something like "we welcome applications from ethnic minorites and disabled people"? Well I think Richmond council's says "we welcome applications from petty-minded, vindictive, misanthropic little jobsworths who hate motorists".
ReplyDeleteThis shows that the councils are just on the make...Kerching!!
ReplyDeleteThey are only interested in raising funds and again, this is a Conservative council I would guess.
The elected councillors need to instruct the "Common Purpose" officers of the council to exercise commonsense and compassion when dealing with such incidents. These officers, whom often tend to be left wing jobsworths, love to make the council look daft if it is run by a Conservative group; We see many examples of it.
It is sad that the woman had to go to the media before the council backed down. We must all expose and fight against the bullies in local government.
Time for ZERO TOLERANCE where Nanny and her minions are concerned. Stop their little games, dispute their every action, object to their every decision and demand humanity at the point of a wagging finger.
ReplyDeleteIf that doesn't work we can always twat 'em with a cricket bat until they see sense.
This is nuts and not in a good way, it's got to be stopped.
Badfellowe is spot on. Fight the jobsworth cretins every chance you get. I do, I love making their miserable little exsistences even more miserable. FXXXX em they work for us not the other way around.
ReplyDeleteRichmond is in fact a LibDem council (35) with a Conservative opposition (18 + 1 Independent Conservative).
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't seem to make any difference these days which party is "in power" locally or nationally - they all swaddle themselves in Nanny's bureaucratic nonsense, and do nothing to release us from her stranglehold.
The employee of the council who decided that the position of the parked car was of more significance than the life of an innocent child should be sacked, and the council should pay Penny the cost of the fine as compensation.
ReplyDelete" ...they all swaddle themselves in Nanny's bureaucratic nonsense, and do nothing to release us from her stranglehold."
ReplyDeleteSo why don't we form a party. We don't need to nick many votes from Labour, The Conservatives or the LibDems - we just need those who presently won't turn out to vote for those bastards to vote for us.
Senior said...
ReplyDelete"The employee of the council who decided that the position of the parked car was of more significance than the life of an innocent child should be sacked, and the council should pay Penny the cost of the fine as compensation"
Quite agree with you, Senior, although don't forget his defence would be, "I was only obeying orders!" In my days in power we had an easy way of dealing with b******s like this traffic warden AND the tossers on the council
whom he works for: we would have put them top of the bill at the Colliseum!
We are witnessing the death of common sense.. Actually, the final nail went in that coffin some time ago.
ReplyDeleteJulius,
ReplyDeleteZat is not ein excuse it is zer fact. I vos only obeying orders ven putting zer juden in zer ovens. It is more zan mein job is vort mate I vould say as the door closed. Sure they understood.
Ah, speaking of jumped up little pricks in hi vis vests. My missus just got a 'speeding ticket' this morning 4.30 am for overtaking plain clothes plod doing 20mph in front of her as she was rushing to get the first train to work.
ReplyDeleteNo traffic anywhere, apart from their two cars but Nanny plod gave her a nice lecture about this is a 30 mph zone that is why we have cameras and now you are going to be more late aren't you.
She pointed out that she was going to work and part of her taxes paid his wages. Plod was less than impressed by all accounts. She also pointed out that when we had called them for some errant yoof actually in our front garden - we got a nice call centre and "no cars available in the area" spiel.
Still, another box checked at the station,eh another 'speeder' dealt with all for the elf n saferty of other road users and probably reducing Co2 and ensuring a sensible 5 portions of fruit and ver are eaten every day as well.
We are going to contest the ticket as he did not produce any evidence other than we were doing 40 and you were ahead of us when you overtook.
Should be interesting to say the least.
PS, my missus used to give me the 'look' when I ranted on about plod being nothing more than Nanny's tax collecting jobsworths. Suspect that will changes now.
Aah, speedin' tickettes.
ReplyDeleteReminds me of my last encounter with Mr Hero Plod in his cape and y-fronts.
Stopped on blue lights and sirens in the middle of town on a sunny day - after I'd used the windy screen washers. Apparently they were misaligned according to Hero and I '... might have wet pedestrians with them ...' A twenty minute lecture at the roadside (in a bus lane) and a 'well, I'll take no action this time but see that you get them adjusted by the dealer ...'.
I'm still bowled over wiv respek and, to this day, I always keep a full bladder in case I see a policeman on fire. They all seem to be cut from the same high quality cloth these days.
Yes, it is true that one can stand up to the councils, which I did once, but OMG it takes a lot of work. Briefly, I was doing some work in a shop and parked on a small piece of land at the side of the shop which was theirs. There was a no parking sign on this piece of land (only car sized land) which referred to the road itself. I got a parking ticket with the name of the road it led off (the cul de sac had no name).
ReplyDeleteNow it is true that I could have said 'fair cop guv' and got the ticket paid pronto to save the full fine. BUT NO (sorry to shout), I disputed it, but OMG, I had to draw a map, contact the regional manager of the shop who fortunately backed me up, and talk about a solicitor - but it worked.
welwyn hatfield council have the logo:-
ReplyDelete"putting people first" on all their mail.
It's not true of course. On replying people put "putting the council first"