A RANGE of shops on Pinner Road provide essential and specialist services to their customers.

Shops like Harrow Glass have been around for yonks and giving service that no DIY store would ever provide. This I say from my personal experience as a resident who has frequently used their services for well over 33 years.

Similarly, there is a good mix of other large and small shops that cater for a variety of needs.

But their service/business is dependent upon two key facilities - facilities for shoppers to park on Pinner Road outside the shops so that they can carry bulk goods like bags of flour or cooking oil to their cars, and also provision outside the shops for the supply vehicles to unload deliveries.

It must be election time. Lib Dems have come out of the woodwork and discovered there is a problem on Pinner Road and are now supposedly 'supporting' the traders. Where were they all this time?

During the entire long period of controversy I have met the shoppers individually on many occasions, and together with Labour's Headstone ward councillors I have met the traders at a meeting to listen to them.

Over many months we have continued to work with traders, look for potential solutions and

lobbied the council to listen to the reasoned voice of traders. As the local London Assembly member I continue to pursue Transport for London (TfL) for intervention in this matter. Unlike the Lib Dems this is not for me or my Labour colleagues' election propaganda.

We will continue, well beyond the election, to pursue TfL and Harrow Council for a more acceptable solution for the traders and their customers.

NAVIN SHAH AM Assembly member for Brent and Harrow via email