One Oxford Street pedestrianisation vision

THE city council’s Conservative administration is under fire for abandoning a “legal challenge” against the Mayor of London’s Oxford Street takeover, one of its key pre-election pledges.

Labour says the council has disclosed that just £4,000 was spent on “external legal advice” about the potential for blocking Sir Sadiq Khan’s pedestrianisation project.

The advice was that a judicial review in the High Court was a waste of public money as it would likely fail.

Before the May 7 election, the Tories had been calling for a fund of £250,000 to £500,000 to launch a major campaign against the plans.

Councillor Geoff Barraclough, Labour spokesperson on Oxford Street, said: “It’s clear that the Conservatives were never serious about launching a judicial review.

‘Car-free test day’ last autumn

“They talked tough in opposition but the reality is that a legal challenge was never likely to succeed.

“The fact that they commissioned what appears to be only a few hours of external legal advice tells its own story. The much-vaunted fighting fund was political theatre not a serious legal strategy.”

Labour had faced a barrage of criticism before the May election for failing to “stand up” to Sir Sadiq, after he employed rarely-used powers to seize control of Oxford Street from the jurisdiction of Westminster City Council.

The Tories delivered a petition to a full council meeting in October with more than 500 signatures calling on the Labour group to “put local people first”. A response to the petition at the time said “the council is not aware of any current basis to enable a judicial review challenge to be made which would have any chance of success”.

Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan

The Conservatives had gone into the election saying it was “a referendum on Oxford Street” and that voters had a choice between a party that “continues to ignore your concerns and a Conservative council that will listen, fight for you and stand up to Sadiq Khan”.

Leaflets had said the Tories were committed to “establish a legal fighting fund to stand up to Sadiq Khan” and that Oxford Street should be shaped by local people.

While in power the then council leader, Labour’s Adam Hug argued it would be a futile battle in the courts.

Cllr Swaddle told Extra: “Labour spent years handing Oxford Street to Sadiq Khan and blocking local scrutiny. They had the time, they had the resources, and they chose to do nothing.

“Now they want to attack us for doing the due diligence they never bothered with. We have established the facts, and we have a clear plan to fight back through every lever available to this council.

“That is responsible leadership. What Labour did, surrendering control and calling it a minor decision so no one could scrutinise it, was a betrayal of local people.

“This is the start of the fight, not the end of it, and we will not be taking lectures from the party that gave Oxford Street away.”

Cllr Swaddle is now sitting on the board of the The Oxford Street Development Corporation that is steering the pedestrianisation plan for the Mayor of London.