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Camden New Journal - by DAN CARRIER
Published: 29 November 2007

Robert Sutherland-Smith: 'lamentable'

Protest as Heath car park ticket jumps 50%

A LEAP in the cost of parking on Hampstead Heath has angered swimmers.
The City of London, which manages the Heath, has announced a 50 per cent rise in parking fees, which now go up to £1.50.
Charges for the use of Heath sports facilities are also to go up, in line with fees at playing fields elsewhere according to the City.
The increases come as the City advertises for a new director of open spaces, who will oversee the management of the Heath’s 800 acres. The £90,000-a-year post has accommodation thrown in, with a pay rise pending. National Insurance and pension contributions could take the final cost to about £130,000.
The rises have brought criticism of the way the Heath is managed. Robert Sutherland-Smith, chairman of the United Swimmers Association pressure group, said: “I don’t see how such large salaries can be justified. It brings into question whether the Heath is being run as efficiently as it could be.”
He added that introducing parking charges earlier this year at what had always been considered to be common land undermined the Heath ethos.
Mr Sutherland-Smith said: “Charging for facilities on the Heath is lamentable. This was never intended when it was brought into public ownership.”
Two years ago swimmers opposed the introduction of charges at Heath ponds. The City hoped to bolster its coffers by £80,000 a year, but got just a tenth of that this summer.
Mr Sutherland-Smith has questioned the pay rates of the Heath’s own police team, who earn more than community support officers but have similar powers.
He said of the Heath management: “They have never shown us the books. The figures are not subject to normal auditing checks.
“It is wonderful to have the Heath well maintained but there is a worrying lack of transparency. They claim to be a local authority but when you ask for information they say it is a charity and not subject to the same checks and balances.”
He said the City had missed a golden opportunity to tap a steady cash flow when it spent money renovating the Parliament Hill Lido three years ago, but ignored calls that the open air pool should be heated.
Mr Sutherland-Smith added: “If they had heated the lido it would be open all year round and bring in a much steadier income. It seems we understand economics better than they do.”
A Heath spokesman defended the increases, saying: “Charges for car parking on the Heath were found to be still lower than comparative facilities in the surrounding area. Thus a modest increase would still ensure they are in line with the standard, while also continuing to discourage non-Heath users from parking in Heath car parks.

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