Lynne Featherstone

First stop major protest against the planning decision made earlier this week where Labour ignored due process and steamrollered through the granting of permission for luxury houses crammed into a backlands site in Crouch End.

I turn up at the site to find over fifty residents there to protest. The local papers are there too. I talk to the residents and following a meeting on Thursday night there has been a slight change in what they want now. Instead of the decision being looked at again in Haringey, they want to finesse the procedure and have it go to a planning appeal with one of Her Majesty's Inspectors.

On the Cranford Way concrete factory, the Inspector over-ruled local concerns, so this isn’t a guaranteed solution – but the residents believe there’s more chance of a fair hearing on this issue with someone from outside than with Haringey Council. (The difference from the concrete factory is that the political pressure on the Council made them come out against the plans in the end). The residents are absolutely determined to take this to judicial review if necessary.