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Cllr John Thane |
Election fight ‘gets personal’
SENIOR Labour councillor John Thane last night (Wednesday)
claimed his election fight in Highgate had turned “personal”
after a parking fine protester delivered hundreds of leaflets
urging voters to dump him at the polls.
Alex Henney, the man behind the leaflet drop, has intervened
in the campaign despite not being one of the candidates or being
publicly affiliated to a political party in his handout.
He wants residents to vote out Cllr Thane (pictured) in protest
at his stewardship of the environment department and in particular
unpopular parking policies. Mr Henney has been incorrectly visited
at his home by council bailiffs chasing a fine. The two men
are near neighbours – Cllr Thane lives in Highgate West
Hill, while Mr Henney lives in Swain’s Lane – and
they have been communicating with notes passed through each
other’s letterboxes. On Saturday, Cllr Thane posted a message
in which he threatened to call police and the electoral commission.
Yesterday (Wednesday), Cllr Thane said that he was likely to
drop the case after taking further legal advice. He said: “The
leaflet is clearly trying to influence the election but I have
taken legal advice and it does not appear to be unlawful. Tony
Blair and national issues are a bigger problem on the doorstep
at the moment than Alex Henney.”
Mr Henney says he has done nothing wrong and argued this week
that Cllr Thane was using scare tactics including the threat
of police action to “suppress free speech”.
He said: “I suggest that before Mr Thane threatens to call
police he make sure he knows what he is talking about.”
Meanwhile the Green Party have accused the Lib Dems of dirty
tricks in the must-win target ward of Kentish Town.
Green party candidate Elizabeth Wilson, standing in Cantelowes
but helping canvass in Kentish Town, was door-knocking for the
party in Montpelier Grove – when she was told by a supporter
that Lib Dem canvassers had been spreading unfounded rumours
of a pact between the two parties.
She said that while canvassing, a Green supporter had been told
by Lib Dem canvassers that the Greens were ‘lending’
the Lib Dem votes, “because they can get in but the Greens
can’t”.
Lib Dem leader Keith Moffitt strongly refuted the allegations
and said he believed the comments on the doorstep must have
been misconstrued.
He said: “There is no way they spoke of a pact. Canvassers
have found the term tactical voting is a turn off so we have
used the term ‘lend’ instead.”
But Kentish Town Green candidate Sian Berry said she would gather
evidence and report the matter if it was found to be true.
She said: “Even if the canvasser got their wording wrong,
they should be more careful.”
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