Ambushed! Newham councillor finds himself the target of parking anger

The Town Hall has responded to YouTube footage which shows Newham councillor Ian Corbett being ambushed on his way to having his hair cut.

Business owners demanded Cllr Corbett, who represents East Ham Central and is executive member for Environment and Infrastructure, join a meeting about parking penalties.

They were meeting outside Discount Warehouse in Romford Road and spotted him walking by. Some pursued Cllr Corbett, asking him to attend the meeting, following him to the door of the barbers on February 18.

It shows Cllr Corbett telling Saroja De Silva March, owner of the Discount Warehouse, to leave the hairdressers he was inside.

A Newham Council spokesman said: “Cllr Corbett was pursued whilst out shopping by a group of protesters, some of whom were clearly aggressive towards him. A number of these protesters were evidently from outside of Newham and have recently been involved in confronting our enforcement officers.

“Cllr Corbett did not confront the protesters and went to have a haircut where they continued to pursue him.

“He is always happy to listen to the views of local residents as he has done in his 22 years as a councillor, as long as they are put to him in a reasonable fashion.”