From the Editors keyboard. In response to Dr North's piece above I posted the following comment on eu referendum forum:
>
.
In September 2003 three self employed 'bailiffs' contracted to a firm of national 'bailiffs' called TNT - called on me demanding payment of over £500 in respect of three fixed penalty parking fines, which were originally of £30 each.
.
A period in hospital had interrupted my defence of these three local tax impositions and the court insesitive to my predicament issued a warrant. The three tattooed thugs, arrived at my front and back door at 8.15 am threatened to, first clamp my car on my property then remove my Toyota - valued at over £ 8,000 - if I did not pay.
.
My demands to see the warrant issued by the court was met with abuse. The Police when they arrived following my 999 call made matters worse; they threatend to arrest myself if I did not co-operate with the 'bailiffs.
.
My protests that I had not been shown the court warrant was ignored by the two attending Police officers ! I paid the fines and immediately made a formal complaint to the Police, the courts and the national bailiff Association.
.
My complaint was that the three thugs had demaded money from me under duress and with physical and mental violence, additionaly they had used illegal documentation, were not properly licenced to be bailiffs, were not in possesion of any authorisation to demand money from me and that the Durham Police service had failed in their duty.
.
Three months into the complaint I received very reluctantly from the chief executive of the local court service a copy of the warrant which in bold print explicitly prohibited the removal of vehicles. Some twelve months after the incident it was clear that neither the Police, the Court Service nor the Bailiff's regulatory body were prepared to properly handle my complaint nor address the issues I raised.
.
The promised apology that I was offered by the local Police Inspector from the amazingly stupid attending officers that I sought assistance from was never given.
.
However the Booker column featured a half page story on the issue as did the regional newspaper and the local radio station - the responce from the public was amazing, clearly the bailiff thugs 'authorised' by Durham Court service had other 'victims'.
.
The conclusion is clear; official complaints procedures do not work. The press however is the more effective method to seek redress.
.
When the authorities wake up to the fact that speed cameras, parking fines and other tax collecting efforts, masquerading as public safety measures are seriously alienating the otherwise law abiding public perhaps there will be an improvement in co-operation with the Police.
.
In the meantime as Dr North correctly states (occasionally from a Police cell) democracy is indeed not a spectator sport.
.
As many of us are now regrettably aware the 'umpires' and 'referees' in the game of fair play are as much a concern as the misfit players (ie the Police).
.
The only real solution is for the people to engage en mass in the sport of disobedience. British fair play demands support on the 'field' not from the sidelines.
.
Peter Troy - Sedgfield, County Durham
_______________________________________
.
The Sunday Telegraph Booker column, featuring the events refered to above can be read from by clicking below:
No comments:
Post a Comment