| Cllr Brian Coleman AM FRSA | |
|---|---|
| Member of the London Assembly for Barnet and Camden |
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 4 May 2000 |
|
| Preceded by | New constituency |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 25 June 1961 |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Religion | Methodist |
Brian Coleman FRSA (born 25 June 1961) is a Conservative Party politician and member of the London Assembly for Barnet and Camden, England. He is a Councillor in the London Borough of Barnet, and was Mayor for 2009-2010.
He is a former Chairman of the Finchley Friends of Israel and remains a member of Conservative Friends of Israel. Governor at two local Secondary Schools, he is also involved with the Scouts and the Rotary Club, and is a vocal supporter of the rights of Falun Gong practitioners[1] and the Greek Cypriot community.
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Coleman has tended to take strong and often controversial lines on many topics including the development of Barnet Football Club, the London 2012 Olympic Bid and the expansion of Tesco into small shopping parades. Following the 7 July 2005 bombings in London, Coleman questioned on radio how safe it was for Londoners to travel by public transport. In June 2006 he criticised the planned refurbishment of Potters Fields Park (between City Hall and Tower Bridge), saying that it should be replaced by a multi-storey car park[2]
In April 2004 Coleman was against Middlesex University's plans to expand its Trent Park campus because it was "a crap university" that could "only attract foreign" students.[3] It was announced in June 2008 that he was to receive an honorary doctorate from Middlesex University for his "outstanding commitment to the community".[4]
In August 2006 Coleman criticised people legally protesting against a provision of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 as "sad, mad and bad". On the restrictions on the right to demonstrate, he stated "It's not a matter of free speech - it's a matter of a proper way of running a world city".[5]
In August 2007, residents of New Barnet campaigning on the environmental and transport details connected with the redevelopment of the East Barnet School site (metropolitan open land adjoining the Metropolitan Green Belt), were criticised by Coleman as "idiots" and "the usual Nimby brigade".[6] The previous month Coleman was the only objector to the erection of a wind turbine at Frith Manor Primary School (opposite Partingdale Lane), as he believed it was "out of character in the green belt".[7]
In 2002, Coleman announced his intention to seek the Conservative Party nomination to be candidate for Mayor of London but he was rejected at a very early stage.[8] During the 2005 Conservative Party Leadership Election, Coleman publicly supported David Davis.
In April 2007, Coleman caused a small media storm when he claimed that the former Prime Minister Edward Heath was gay and that it was "common knowledge" in the Conservative party that he had been told to keep it secret for the sake of his career.[9] Writing on the website of the New Statesman on the issue of outing, he said: "The late Ted Heath managed to obtain the highest office of state after he was supposedly advised to cease his cottaging activities in the 1950s when he became a privy councillor."[10]
An article by Coleman entitled "Politics and alcohol" for the New Statesman in August 2007 made allegations that Sir Ian Blair the Metropolitan Police Commissioner was "somewhat the worse for wear at a number of official functions" and "needed assistance from his protection officers to manage the stairs".[11] Mayor Ken Livingstone was reported to have responded that "The London Assembly should stop giving a platform to a person who in addition to putting out all sorts of smears and gossip is also a dyed-in-the-wool Thatcherite who in no way represents the views of most Londoners".[12]
In late August 2008, an article by Coleman in the Barnet Press caused another minor media storm.[13] He wrote that the British athletes were "tainted with the blood of Tibetans", and that London Mayor Boris Johnson was "forced to go to Beijing to collect the Olympic flag". Coleman's comments received cross-party criticism and the Mayor distanced himself from the remarks made by his fellow Conservative.[14][15]
Coleman was elected as councillor for Totteridge ward in 1998.[16]
Immediately following the local government election in May 2006, Coleman successfully proposed a vote of no confidence in the Leader of the London Borough of Barnet, Councillor Brian Salinger, causing his replacement as Leader by Councillor Mike Freer.[17]
He was the Mayor of Barnet from May 2009 to May 2010.[18][19][20]
In September 2009 Coleman was found to have broken Barnet Council's code of conduct. The standards sub-committee upheld an independent report that he had failed to treat others with respect. The complaint was made by a local blogger who had received an email from Coleman calling him an "obsessive, poisonous individual".[21][22]
Council leader Mike Freer granted Coleman £10,000 of taxpayer's money to pay for legal representation during the standards committee investigation as he had rejected the solicitors provided by the councils insurance scheme.[23] When the local paper approached Coleman before they published this information he told them that "This has absolutely nothing to do with me, nothing whatsoever, and if you say otherwise you will be hearing from my solicitor." [24]
Despite being found in breach, the standards sub-committee decided not impose a sanction.[25] Coleman will be liable to reimburse the council for the legal bill.[26]
During his time as a councillor in the London Borough of Barnet, Coleman has built up a reputation as an outspoken supporter of car driving, leading Richard Littlejohn to label him a "hero" for introducing a policy of removing road humps when the roads of Barnet are resurfaced.[27] Coleman quotes the Metropolitan Police and the London Ambulance Service as being supporters of this policy while road safety critics argue that the policy is reckless and driven by populism and self promotion.
Coleman was caught by a speed camera exceeding a 30 mph speed limit in Borehamwood in January 2006. He already had 9 points on his driving licence. On 9 August 2006 at St Albans Magistrates' Court, Coleman was given three points on his licence, banned from driving for six months and fined £300.[28][29]
In August 2007 Coleman received an apology from the BBC after he complained that the appearance of Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq at the media launch of a London cycling event was political. Speaking at the launch, the Mayor of London and a Green party assembly member had accused Conservatives of pursuing a pro-car policy.[30][31]
In February 2009 Coleman gave his comments on a proposed off-road light-rail line that would join (again) the two branches of the Northern Line in Barnet, as well as linking to Ealing Broadway, Wembley, Brent Cross and West Hampstead. He described the scheme as "bonkers" and insulted those in favour of it.[32]
In May 2010 Coleman returned to Barnet's Cabinet (after his year as Mayor) taking the Environment and Transport portfolio. He stated that his priority would be "roads, roads, roads and roads".[33]
Coleman takes great pride in his campaign to re-open Partingdale Lane, a narrow country road with no pavement, between Mill Hill and Woodside Park in London. The lane was closed by Barnet's previous Labour council for safety reasons, not least that residents of nearby Woodside Park had been using the road as a high speed rat-run.[34]
The road was reopened in December 2002,[35] before being closed again two months later following a High Court judgement.[36]
Following a £250,000 safety improvement project (including a pavement, traffic islands, 20 mph flashing speed-limit signs and width restrictions) the road was reopened in September 2007.[37] Coleman accused residents of staging one of the two car accidents reported in the weeks following the reopening of Partingdale Lane.[38]
A third collision in Partingdale Lane in May 2008 brought further criticism of Coleman. A Lib Dem councillor commented that "Brian Coleman is like a child with a favourite toy. He just wouldn't let this go and his colleagues let him do it to make up for the fact that they'll never make him leader of the council". Coleman, cabinet member for community safety, said he was too busy to comment.[39]
November 2008 saw a fourth crash in Partingdale Lane when a speeding car forced a parked vehicle into a ditch.[40] A sixth accident requiring attendance of emergency services was reported in April 2009.[41]
He was elected to the Assembly at the 2000 election, and retained the seat in both 2004 and 2008. He served as the first Conservative Chairman of the London Assembly in 2004/05 and again in 2006/07, and was Deputy Chair(man) in 2005/06 and for the 2007/08 session.
As Chairman of the London Assembly, Coleman introduced the old Greater London Council Chairman's badge [42] and has made the role considerably more civic-based than previous holders of the post. This has led some critics to label Coleman as "pompous" and "self important",[43] not least because of the high number of honorary and civic positions he has held in the past and continues to hold at present.
Coleman's politics and style led him to be one of Mayor of London Ken Livingstone's principal critics, publicly falling out with the Mayor over the London Borough of Barnet's resurfacing policy, congestion charging and Livingstone's comments in 2005 likening a Jewish reporter to a concentration camp guard.
On his re-election to the Assembly in May 2008, Coleman made an angry acceptance speech at the count in which he announced that "the king of bling is back" before storming out, accompanied by his mother.[44][45]
In July 2007 he was criticised by Livingstone for spending £10,000 on taxi fares from 1 April 2006 to 30 March 2007, compared to the average figure for a London Assembly member of around £845.[46][47][48] This period coincided with the six months that Coleman was banned from driving.
A GLA audit panel report in October 2007 showed that Coleman had run up taxi expenses of £1740 in the period 1 April 2007 to 31 August 2007.[49] This accounted for one third of all cab expenses for the Mayor and 25 GLA members. He was criticised by Livingstone for "creating a chauffeur service for himself" and by the leader of the Barnet Council Labour group for his "breathtaking arrogance".[50]
A further GLA audit panel report in March 2008 revealed that Coleman had run up taxi expenses of £4157 in the period 1 April 2007 to 31 December 2007.[51] This accounted for half of all cab expenses for the Mayor and 25 GLA members. Livingstone said "Brian Coleman must explain to Londoners how he can possibly justify spending more on taxis in four weeks than the average Assembly member does in nine months."[52]
When questioned about his cab fares by the Metro Newspaper, Coleman claimed not to use taxis but thought he was being ferried about in 'an official GLA car'. They reported that in December 2007 he ran up a £412.50 cab fare on a round-trip from his home in Finchley to a nearby meeting where the driver kept the meter running before taking him to City Hall.[53]
Another GLA audit panel report in July 2008 revealed that Coleman had run up taxi expenses of £8231 in the period 1 April 2007 to 31 March 2008.[54] This accounted for nearly half of all the cab expenses of the Mayor and 25 assembly members. On one day alone Coleman ran up a cab bill of £656.[55] Speaking to the Metro Newspaper, assembly member Jenny Jones said that he justifies the expense because he has taken to wearing gold chains from another era - "He doesn't need to wear these chains but his ego's out of its cage".[56]
Coleman was vice chair of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority from 2004 to 2008. Following the election of Boris Johnson as Mayor in May 2008, Coleman was appointed Chairman. An Audit Commission report published in February 2009 noted that "The Chairman is robust and challenging but staff and some external stakeholders find his style too confrontational."[57]
In August 2008 Coleman claimed that he had been passed over for the post of chair of the Local Government Association fire services management committee due to homophobia by fellow Tories.[58]
Outlining areas of potential cutbacks to a London Assembly committee in September 2008, Coleman suggested that the London Fire Brigade Museum should be closed. He said that "having recently visited the fire brigade museum – we shook the cobwebs off the door as we opened it – I have to say that it is not a museum that is fit for purpose or that in my view contributes anything", adding "when you've seen one brass helmet you have seen them all".[59] Coleman's outburst prompted a campaign to save the museum.[60] Val Shawcross, former chair of the LFEPA, stated that "Brian Coleman has an almost hysterical approach to the issues".[61]
In 2007 in a blog in the New Statesman Coleman wrote "The late Ted Heath managed to obtain the highest office of state after he was supposedly advised to cease his cottaging activities in the 1950s when he became a privy councillor" implying that Heath used to have casual gay sex in public lavatories.[62] The blog was written about in both the tabloid and mainstream press, but there was no confirmation of cottaging or of Heath having been warned[63] The claims were denied by MP Sir Peter Tapsell and Heath's friend and MP Derek Conway stated that "if there was some secret, I'm sure it would be out by now".[64][65]
In April 2009 Coleman blamed a protester, Nicky Fisher, attending a vigil following the Death of Ian Tomlinson, who was killed during the G20 protests, as being to blame after being backhanded twice by a police officer and then struck on the legs with a baton.[66] "Nicky Fisher turned up to this protest, which everyone said could be violent. She put herself in this situation – and lo, she was hit. It's like going gambling and then complaining that you've lost money".[67] The officer involved had been suspended pending an investigation into their actions.
He subsequently setup a group on Facebook called "Commend a Copper", however this group has become more anti-police than anything else.
In July 2009 Coleman was the only London Assembly member to refuse to voluntarily publish details of their expense claims in a move towards greater transparency following the Parliamentary expenses scandal. He stated "I won't do it voluntarily. It's none of the public's business", and that "Politicians with lower expenses tend to be the politicians who do least work. Those with higher expenses are the ones who do most work."[68] Coleman complied following pressure from Mayor Boris Johnson.[69][70]
A meeting of the London Assembly's Business Management and Administration Committee on 22 October 2009 had to be suspended for ten minutes following an outburst from Coleman. He interrupted another speaker by shouting "oh shut up you odious toad" and "you are the nastiest most odious little man who is unfortunate enough to serve in public life".[71] The Committee chairman Jennette Arnold described the outburst as "totally outrageous" and "appalling".[72] Coleman's remarks were directed to assembly member John Biggs who stated that they were not acceptable in a public meeting and that "He is desperate to be quoted and he seems to think that being as controversial as possible he will raise his profile"[73]
The meeting was being webcast and gained a wider audience when the footage appeared on YouTube. A complaint was lodged with the Assembly Standards Committee who considered that Coleman had overstepped the mark with his comments, but in the context of the meeting his conduct had not breached the Code.[74]
October 2011: Brian Coleman, one of the country's highest paid councillors, has reportedly told a single mother facing a rent rise to "live in the real world". The Standard reports that when Sharada Osman contacted the Barnet councillor and chairman of the London fire and emergency planning authority about her landlord's plans to raise her rent from £950 to £1,100, he told her "residents will have to deal with their own issues rather than expecting 'the system' to sort their lives out". Following an exchange of emails, Coleman replied to Osman: "Lack of empathy?????? Councillors simply cannot conjure housing out of thin air and the private sector is your only option. That is a fact. I am afraid you have to live in the real world where the country has no money and residents will have to deal with their own issues rather than expecting 'the system' to sort their lives out. This correspondence is now closed."
On his blog,[75] David Hencke writes that Coleman's "latest outburst takes more than the biscuit". He explains:
What Mr Coleman did not tell her was that he was living in a subsidised housing association flat, courtesy of the Finchley Methodist Church, where he doesn't even have the responsibility of painting his windows. His rent is £546 a month – half that of Ms Osman. In the real world – the rest of the road-people are paying £1100 a month, according to local estate agents.
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