As the major "tent city" encampment is finally cleared from the top of Park Lane, we spoke with Cllr Paul Swaddle and Cllr Tim Barnes.
Cllr Swaddle, Conservative Group Leader at Westminster City Council, explained
"I am pleased that Westminster City Council has finally removed the tent encampment from Park Lane. This follows months of effort from our community. I wanted to thank over one thousand local people who supported our petition calling for this, and joined me in calling for action from the Council.
"It's unfortunate that the Council did not act with greater urgency. But we persevered! This outcome proves it.
"Clearing Park Lane is one step in addressing a larger issue. Westminster must act to tackle tent encampments. They are making parts of our city no-go areas due to anti-social behaviour. We welcome the Council's commitment to end rough sleeping in Westminster, but more needs to be done.
"We will keep pressing for more actions to make the environment safer and more pleasant for all."
The West End's local councillor Tim Barnes shared his thoughts:
"Seeing the tents cleared this week will be a real relief to many local people. But it should never have taken over eight months to clear.
"Westminster Council and TfL need to be more proactive in the future and make the changes needed to ensure this does not happen again. They should now turn their attention to the other tent encampments across the city."
