It is not only Temple Fortune traders who are losing business because of the draconian parking measures imposed by Barnet Council (‘The last straw’, Times Series, November 10).

Recently, my husband and I were taking a friend out for lunch to our favourite local Thai restaurant in East Finchley.

We parked and found a meter, but it was covered with a black bin bag.

We sought another meter, but that too was covered by a bin bag and we therefore assumed all the meters were out of order. We began to look for a parking warden, but to no avail.

As there was no information on the covered metres, we thought of putting a note on the windscreen.

Then we saw a man further along the High Road looking at a sign on a post. He was using a mobile phone to pay for parking.

We drove away and went to eat at a restaurant out of the area where we could park without needing a mobile phone. We are all pensioners and none of us felt competent to go through the procedures. required.

Sadly, we will now probably not return to that parade to shop or eat.

Susan Bennett
St Regis Close, Muswell Hill