Matthew has met with local residents, shopkeepers and business owners in Burnt Oak to see for himself how street cleaning is being dealt with. Accompanied by waste and recycling officials from Barnet Council, Matthew sought enforcement notices for those trading on the pavement, operating without a trade waste agreement, and simply dumping commercial waste from their businesses.

During the inspection Matthew identified a site of regular dumping and persuaded the business manager to sign up for an additional waste collection each week, so that rubbish cannot build up. He spoke to residents who live above the shops in Watling Avenue and heard for himself how they suffer from people urinating in the street, fly tipping, and littering. Matthew also helped a refuse crew clear the rubbish from Back Lane.  

Matthew said: "The environment in Burnt Oak is one of my priorities. Earlier this year I cleaned up the Silkstream with the help of local constituents and then brought the Home Secretary to see the problems that are being experienced by local people in the roads off Watling Avenue as a result of the steps and alleyway. I will continue to monitor these problems and work to get them improved. Rather than talking about the problem I'd rather roll up my sleeves and sort it out."