Council wants to axe us, warn West End stallholders

LONDON'S 500-year-old street stall tradition could be wiped out by town hall plans to "clean up" the West End, traders warned today.

Family businesses that have lasted generations face eviction as a result of a Bill which could ban stalls that have a "deleterious" effect.

Under the City of Westminster Bill, currently going through Parliament, stallholders could be prevented from passing pitches on to their children - a centuries-old tradition.

A source at Westminster council, which is behind the Bill, said it would give officials the power to oust "old timers selling bits of nothing". He added: "The aim is to get rid of tacky trinket stalls, scruffy-looking pitches and kiss-me-quick tat. We want to scrap grandfather rights. Just because a stall was successful 60 years ago does not mean it works now."

Stallholders reacted angrily. John McKenna, 53, who runs Oxford Street Bags and Accessories, said the Bill would be "the final nail in the coffin". Mr McKenna, who inherited the pitch when he was 16 and wants to hand it on to his son John, 33, said: "The council has had a long-running campaign to try to take us down.

"Two years ago they trebled our rent, then slapped on business rates. It's like the Gestapo. Now they want to take away our rights, our livelihood, everything we have ever known."

His brother Peter, 61, who runs a fruit stall near Marble Arch, said the council wanted to limit street trading to the designated markets in Berwick Street, Church Street, Rupert Street, Strutton Ground, Tachbrook Street and a site in Harrow Road due to open in May.

Records show stalls have been in the West End since the 16th century, with Shakespeare referring to "costermongers". Wally Watson, chairman of West End Street Traders, said the stalls in Oxford Street had been there for at least 200 years. The City of Westminister Bill would give new powers for council officers to refuse a street trading licence, and give them greater control over location of stalls. It would also end the right of appeal to Crown Court in cases of disputes.

Conservative peer Lord Lucas of Crudwell and Dingwall, who opposes the Bill, said he believed it was part of a drive to streamline Oxford Street before the 2012 Olympics. "There are times when Westminster seems intent on prettifying London, rather than leaving it messy in corners, rumbustious, and alive," he said. There is also concern Westminster's move could set a precedent for other boroughs.

But Daniel Astaire, a member of the council's Cabinet, denied the intention was to kill off stalls.

He said: "Our aim is about ensuring quality. It is clear they will struggle to survive unless they are updated and some rather outdated practices are ended. This includes passing stalls on through the generations, which stops new talent coming in."

Peter McKenna, 61.

Plot: A fruit stall outside Marks and Spencer, Marble Arch

Peter has run this pitch since 1975. His father owned another pitch in Oxford Street which is now run by his brother. His niece also runs a pitch on North Audley Street.

"Street trading is all I have ever known - it's my whole life. Recently the council has been making life very difficult for us all. My rent has doubled to £1,250 a month and I think that was a move to try and drive me out. These days I barely make enough to pay that rent and my one employee. It's a disgrace. Westminster Council should be supporting us, part of the character of the West End and certainly part of its history.

"I'm sure this is all to do with the Olympics. The council has some stupid idea that Oxford Street will look a whole lot better without us."

Plot: Gourmet Wonder Waffle outside John Lewis.

Owner: Mark Impleton, 44.

History: Mark has run his stall since he was 17 years old.

Comments: "All the huts we operate from are shabby and rotting but the council will not give us planning permission to update them or change them. Meanwhile they complain that we look shabby. What do they expect us to do? It's a vicious circle.

"What would happen to a 44-year-old man with a mortgage to pay and a family to feed if the council just shut him down? I have stuck to their rules, kept my plot tidy and paid my rent on time but my hands are being tied. Its bureaucracy gone mad."

Plot: Handbag and pashminas on the junction of New Bond Street outside Next.

Owner: Victoria Munro, 54

History: the pitch was owned by her grandfather who sold fruit. It was then passed down to her father, then to her. She wants it to go to her grown-up children to continue the family tradition.

Comments: "Passing on this pitch to my children was going to be part of their inheritance. It's a lucrative spot on Oxford Street and would be a way for them to stay in the family business and make some money. If the council take that right away, everything I have ever worked hard for will be for nothing.

"It would be heartbreaking to have it snatched away. I would be utterly devastated."