50 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

If that matter is urgent, much better to phone the office and ask who is the best person to address your query to. Sometimes, even a quick chat on the phone can aid a solution.

The probability of getting through to the right person, who is competent and qualified to deal with the problem at hand, before the universe ends in a big crunch, is exactly 0.

 

 

58 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

It always bemuses me the expectations that some folk have of writing to a local authority. I have worked for 2 in my career. (population of town served around 40,000). The mail received on a weekly basis is usually quite large. Then, 'your' letter has to be placed on the right desk. Then, there's a chance that person is on leave, or off sick. Then, once a response is drafted, it usually has to be fact checked internally by someone senior as a 'council' letter has all sorts of legal connotations. 2 weeks is a very short amount of time.

If that matter is urgent, much better to phone the office and ask who is the best person to address your query to. Sometimes, even a quick chat on the phone can aid a solution.

I'm no fan of local bureaucracy, but you should give them a chance...

Thanks Stephen, Yes ! Mind you, I used to work for the civil service ( job centre) and if we did not respond within a certain time period, 10 days or so was it? we were marked down. Mind you I retired from there 9 years ago. Thank God.

24 minutes ago, weesam said:

the right person, who is competent and qualified to deal with the problem at hand

 

3 minutes ago, unofix said:

 

I was really sad when that documentary series ended...

Just now, StephenFord said:

I was really sad when that documentary series ended...

So was Prime Minister Thatcher, she was reportedly a big fan of the programme, reckoned it was very accurate.

3 minutes ago, unofix said:

So was Prime Minister Thatcher, she was reportedly a big fan of the programme, reckoned it was very accurate.

Do you remember the 'spitting image' sketch where she was out to dinner with her full cabinet. On taking her order, the waiter when asking her about, 'vegetables', she responded, 'oh, they'll have what I'm having'... You don't get that anymore 🤣

On 6/19/2025 at 1:16 PM, TomsFocus said:

The Clean Air Zone isn't about the specific emissions that your car produces in this case.

It's about keeping non-residents out of that area.

If you don't live there, and don't have a visitor permit, then I'm afraid you were in the wrong here and were fined correctly.

Sorry for tagging this on to this thread but I didn't want to open yet another new one. Beside what you are taking about sounds much like a Low Traffic Neighbourhood type issue !

The Times (18 Sept 25)

TfL suppressed report showing LTNs don’t cut car use
Sir Sadiq Khan’s officials suppressed taxpayer-funded research that showed low traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) do not reduce car use.
Transport for London, which is under the mayor’s control, chose not to publish the Travel and Places study after it found the traffic relocation schemes helped to increase cycling but failed to encourage people to drive less or walk more.
Over the past five years, Khan has repeatedly claimed that LTNs help to reduce traffic and are therefore good for the planet. The University of Westminster’s research, obtained by The Times, found otherwise.
Emails between Transport for London (TfL) and the university show that officials were concerned about the report’s results coming out.

Interesting.......

What is also interesting, and worrying, is that a Google search for this story failed to bring up either the BBC or The Guardian reporting it, thus proving that they only run stories which reflect their agendas. That may be (just about) forgivable with the Guardian but not the Beeb.