E-bikes Again, Licensing Chaos and the Injustice of £1,000 Fines
Chiswick Riverside councillor Peter Thompson reports back
Councillor Peter Thompson
February 14, 2026
Who runs Hounslow Matters
In around 80 days, millions of Londoners will walk in the polling stations in schools, church halls and community centres, or will already have returned their postal ballots, to decide who runs their boroughs. By the early hours of the 8 th May, we will know whether months of cold evenings on doorsteps and thousands of conversations with residents have delivered real change for Hounslow.
Local elections can sometimes feel remote yet they shape everyday life: the cleanliness of our streets, the safety of our neighbourhoods, the state of our pavements and the level of council tax. This year’s contest comes amid visible Labour turmoil in Westminster. Sir Keir Starmer has lurched from crisis to crisis, losing senior advisers and presiding over a government that increasingly looks distracted, defensive and divided. What is striking is how familiar this feels in Hounslow. Slow decisions, poor communication and a reluctance to take responsibility have become hallmarks of how Labour runs our borough.
Local elections are often treated as a referendum on national politics. Many residents will understandably want to send Sir Keir Starmer a message about broken promises and drift. But a second truth is just as important: who runs Hounslow determines what happens in Hounslow. Westminster does not clear our leaves, fix our pavements or run local services. Hounslow Council does.
In many wards across Hounslow the choice is stark. But here in Chiswick, residents already know the difference that Conservative representation makes. Elsewhere in the borough, however, Labour still holds power, and a protest vote will usually mean one thing: Labour stays in control.
Fixing the e-bike mess
E-bikes were meant to make every day journeys easier. In Hounslow, under Labour, they have too often done the opposite. For months we had the fiasco of Lime Bikes dumped across the borough. Now across Chiswick, residents are frustrated by a fragmented system that ignores how people actually travel. Hounslow currently has only two rental providers, Forest and Voi, neither of which works consistently across neighbouring boroughs. Meanwhile Lime operates in Richmond, Ealing and Hammersmith & Fulham, but not here.
For a borough that borders all three, this makes little sense. People do not live their lives inside neat council boundaries, yet Hounslow’s e-bike policy behaves as if they do. The flaws are obvious with a simple trip from Mortlake to Chiswick as reported to me by a resident this week. When trains are disrupted, many would naturally use an e-bike, but they can’t. Forest and Voi don’t work in Richmond, and Lime doesn’t work in Hounslow. The result is bikes abandoned either side of Chiswick Bridge and users giving up in frustration.
What makes this worse is that it appears avoidable. Press reports suggest there is no contractual barrier to allowing a third provider, such as Lime, to operate alongside Forest and Voi. If that is true, why hasn’t Labour-run Hounslow acted?
Local Conservatives believe residents deserve a system that actually works. Reintroducing Lime would immediately make cross-borough travel easier, reduce abandoned bikes and make e-bikes a reliable option. More broadly, Hounslow must stop acting in isolation and start coordinating properly with neighbouring boroughs and TfL.
Time to Bring Back Lime?
"A conversation that should trouble us all"
At this week’s advice surgery in Chiswick Library, I met a resident I won’t forget in a hurry.
She is a confident, articulate businesswoman who lives in Chiswick Riverside ward and who is used to dealing with rules and paperwork. Yet even she had been shaken by what the council had done. She explained calmly what happened, but it was clear the experience had left her deeply frustrated, disbelieving and with a strong sense of injustice. She paid the £1,000 fine because she lacked the time and energy to go to court, but told me she now wishes she hadn’t.
Her “offence” was not dumping rubbish. It was placing a flattened cardboard box neatly beside a paper recycling bin in Chiswick, her name visible on the packaging. She lives above shops where the council provides no cardboard recycling facilities. With nowhere official to put it, she did what most reasonable people would do and placed it tidily by a recycling bin.
Labour-run Hounslow responded with a £1,000 penalty notice, warning that non-payment could lead to court and even prison. There was no first warning, no chance to explain, and no reduced early payment option. Just a sudden, punitive penalty that left her terrified and feeling criminalised for trying to do the right thing. This is not about excusing fly-tipping; it is about fairness. How can the council punish residents for “misusing” recycling when it has not provided recycling in the first place? A council that cared about clean streets would have warned her, explained the rules, and fixed the lack of facilities not reached straight for the £1,000 hammer. I am supporting this resident as she continues her fight and for every neighbour who could be treated the same way.
Licensing Chaos Leaves Residents Waiting Into the Night
It was with real disbelief that I heard what had happened at this week’s Licensing Committee meeting. Residents had come prepared to speak on the application by Sipsmith Distillery to vary its licence at Cranbrook Road. The report pack ran to 199 pages and around 30 local people gave up their evening to attend. Yet the hearing did not properly begin until around 9.15pm, almost two hours late, after councillors arrived late and legal support had to be urgently drafted in.
In the midst of the confusion, Cllr Gabriella Giles deserves credit. She was present from the outset and did her best to keep residents informed while officers worked to resolve the situation. At a time when leadership on the committee has clearly been lacking, her professionalism stood out. Cllr John Todd was also there to support residents and saw first-hand the frustration caused by the delays. Proceedings eventually dragged on until 11.40pm, with some residents not getting home until after midnight.
Whatever view people take on the licence application itself, this is not how a semi-judicial panel should operate. When residents engage seriously with a complex process, they deserve a meeting that is organised, punctual and properly led.
From Conference to Chiswick: why local Conservatives matter
I am not usually someone who spends much time at national party events, party conferences almost always clash with school term dates that I simply cannot miss as a teacher. A couple of weekends ago however, I made an exception and joined my ward colleague, Cllr Gabriella Giles and our new candidate in Chiswick Riverside, Jessika Toto- Moukouo, at the London Conservatives conference, where members from across the capital gathered ahead of the local elections on 7 May
The highlight was a clear, confident speech from Kemi Badenoch, setting out why London needs more Conservative councillors to improve services, keep streets safe and protect residents and businesses from ever-rising costs. Her message matched what we hear daily in Chiswick. Our high streets are under real strain from excessive business rates, soaring energy bills, rising crime and mounting paperwork. When local shops struggle, communities weaken. Kemi outlined a practical plan to get business moving again, including:
- Abolishing business rates for thousands of pubs and shops;
- Cutting electricity bills through a Cheap Power Plan;
- Hiring 10,000 extra police officers for safer high streets;
- Cutting red tape for small firms; and
- Defending community assets like post offices, pubs and pharmacies.
These pledges speak directly to Chiswick, where independent businesses are the backbone of our community.
Equally striking was how openly Kemi answered questions, practical, straightforward and refreshing, in contrast to the defensiveness many residents experience from Labour-run councils. As we head towards the 7 th May, the choice is clear. Labour too often delivers high taxes and heavy-handed enforcement. Conservatives are offering a plan to revive high streets, back small businesses and keep communities safe.
Peter, Gabriella and Jessika are somewhere in this London Conservative Conference crowd — can you find them?
Cllr Peter Thompson
peter.thompson@hounslow.gov.uk
07977 395810
DEMOCRACY: DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Anyone can attend public meetings of the council. Most meetings take place on the 6th Floor, Hounslow House, 7 Bath Road, TW3 3EB. Hounslow House is fully accessible. The nearest tube is Hounslow Central which does not have step-free access. Parking in local roads is limited.
Principal meetings are broadcast live on the Council’s YouTube channel
Council Meetings
Next Borough Council Not Till March!
Tuesday 10 March 7:30 pm Budget Setting Meeting for the Annual Budget 2026/27 (moved from 24 February 2026). Including setting the Council Tax for April 2026 onwards
There is public access for this meeting via a direct lift from the ground floor to the Council Meeting Room, so come and see your elected representatives in action. 6th Floor, Hounslow House, 7 Bath Road, Hounslow TW3 3EB
Chiswick Area Forum
Tuesday 17 March
Normally at Hogarth Hall, Chiswick Town Hall, Heathfield Terrace, Turnham, W4 4JN, but moveable around Chiswick (please check the website) 6.30 for 7.30pm
Informal Meeting at 6.30pm Formal Meeting commences at 7.30pm
Both meetings are open from 6.30pm allowing residents to meet officers of Hounslow Council in Adult and Child care Social Welfare, Education, Housing and other Services (Residents are encouraged to stay on for the main agenda)
Emergencies
You can report emergencies outside office hours by ringing the council on: 020 8583 2222.
CONSERVATIVE COUNCILLOR SURGERIES
Chiswick: Every Saturday from 9.30am to 10.30am at Chiswick Library (the seven Conservative councillors take this surgery in turn).
Gunnersbury: First Saturday of the month from 10am to 11am at The Gunnersbury Triangle Club, Triangle Way, off The Ridgeway, W3 8LU (at least one of the Chiswick Gunnersbury ward councillors takes this surgery).
CONSERVATIVE COUNCILLORS and CONTACTS
Chiswick Gunnersbury ward
Cllr Joanna Biddolph joanna.biddolph@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 703446
Cllr Ron Mushiso ron.mushiso@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 702887
Chiswick Homefields ward
Cllr Jack Emsley jack.emsley@hounslow.gov.uk 07977 396017
Cllr Gerald McGregor gerald.mcgregor@hounslow.gov.uk 07866 784821
Cllr John Todd john.todd@hounslow.gov.uk 07866 784651
Chiswick Riverside ward
Cllr Gabriella Giles gabriella.giles@hounslow.gov.uk 07966 270823
Cllr Peter Thompson peter.thompson@hounslow.gov.uk 07977 395810
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