BARNET must keep a close eye on the effects of the result of the EU referendum on the borough, the council has agreed.

Various issues surrounding Brexit and how they might affect the borough were debated by councillors at a policy and resources committee meeting on Tuesday night.

Last Thursday’s vote saw 62 per cent of voters in the borough say they wanted to stay in the EU.

However, the Leave campaign won the battle nationally with 52 per cent of voters opting to exit the union.

Alon Or-bach, councillor for East Finchley, proposed a post-referendum discussion at an earlier meeting to discuss Barnet’s future whatever the result.

He said: “It is vital we talk about how to go forward and we stay aware of how well or how poorly we are doing.

“Over 10 per cent of Barnet residents are EU immigrants and they are feeling uncomfortable in this borough. We need to reassure them and we need to reassure the rest of our residents in this uncertain time.”

Cllr Or-bach proposed that the council issues a statement to reassure all residents and condemn hate crime in the area, makes sure London and local government have a seat at negotiation tables with the EU and regular reports are put together to see how Barnet is doing under Brexit.

Richard Cornelius, leader of the council, stressed the importance of keeping discussions focussed on Barnet’s future.

He said: “We are not Parliament, we are not the London Assembly. We need to look at the things that affect Barnet – the loss of the European Procurement Directive and EU school funding – and figure out how to replace these things to keep serving our residents.”

Barnet’s voice in the coming negotiations was agreed to be of importance and came up several times during discussions.

Underhill ward councillor Paul Edwards said: “Parliament still has to debate this issue – the result is not yet legally binding.

“We want to be lobbying Parliament for Barnet’s views. Every promise the Leave campaign made was a lie and we need to make sure the wishes of the people in Barnet are heard. We want to live in peace and harmony.”

Ross Houston, councillor for West Finchley, was worried about the financial hit the borough would take and how unprepared they were for the shifts due to come.

He said: “Our pensions have been affected already. There’s no doubt London will be expected to pay for this and suffer more than many other parts of the country. We have no precedent for something of this scale. It affects everyone.”

Many of the issues brought up were concerns shared nationally, such as how over 100 instances of racial hate crime have been reported in the UK since last Thursday’s result.

Cllr Daniel Thomas, deputy leader of the council, said: “We cannot repeat the debate which has been had nationally over the past month tonight. We need to focus on Barnet issues.”

While it was agreed council officers should put together regular reports on Barnet’s financial and social shape in the coming months, Cllr Cornelius did not agree to issue a cross-party statement from the full council.

Cllr Barry Rawlings, leader of the opposition, said: “I am disappointed he would not agree to a joint statement from both sides. I thought it was an easy thing to put in place to make clear we as a council do not want to legitimise racism and will condemn it.

“It would have been an effective way to reassure residents we will be there for them in this uncertain time.”

In response, Cllr Cornelius said: “I don’t disagree with the sentiment of a joint statement and do believe that the council as a whole agrees we must not tolerate racism and discrimination following the result.

“What I didn’t appreciate was having the idea sprung on me suddenly at the meeting. These things take time and consideration. Perhaps a statement will be put together but for now councillors should be working to promote our message of unity individually in their wards to spread it to residents.”