ALERT SHOPPER STOPS SALE OF COUNTERFEIT FRAGRANCES – ‘No 5 Chamele’ for £10 /
BROMLEY RESIDENTS FACE 1.2 PER CENT INCREASE ON THEIR TAX BILLS
ALERT SHOPPER STOPS SALE OF COUNTERFEIT FRAGRANCES – ‘No 5 Chamele’ for £10
A shopper smelt something fishy when a youth offered to sell her what appeared to be a quality perfume.
Croydon council say the second such incident in Surrey Street market in recent weeks has prompted the council’s trading standards team to warn shoppers to beware buying from unlicensed sellers what appear to be boxes of high-end perfumes at knock-down prices but which turn out to be very poor-quality counterfeits.
“Closer inspection of the package offered to the market shopper revealed that, while the box indicated it contained Chanel, the bottle inside was actually no more than a poorly presented fake” said a council spokesman.
“The shopper complained to the market inspector, who immediately stepped in and confiscated the goods, which were subsequently handed to trading standards officers.
“Police were called but the youth, who was selling the goods from a plastic carrier bag, ran off before they arrived.
“The confiscated items, all 100ml bottles, were being palmed off as Chanel No 5 eau de parfum, and D&G Hidden Code eau de toilette. “They had price tags of £96 stuck to them but were being offered for sale at less than £10.
“The ‘Chanel’ boxes bore a logo similar to that of Chanel’s trademarked symbol – two intertwined circles, as opposed to the legitimate back-to-back capital Cs. “The bottle inside the box was labelled No5 Chamele.
Croydon council leader Cllr Tony Newman said: “It’s a shame this rogue chose to target Surrey Street for his criminal activities.
“Our historic market is the workplace of many good, decent traders, making an honest living, and they certainly don’t want this sort of thing happening in their midst.
“It’s a sad fact of life that there are people who are prepared to rip off others by producing vastly inferior goods and selling them as trusted brands at what appear to be bargain prices.
“In truth, the goods are anything but a bargain. “The fact they were being sold from a plastic carrier bag should have rung alarm bells.
“The old saying that ‘if it looks too good to be true, it very probably is’ should always be borne in mind. “The sensible thing to do is to not buy the goods, and report the matter to the police at the earliest opportunity.
“Early reporting increases the chance of the crook being caught, and stops him hoodwinking other shoppers who might not be quite as alert.” (Source: Croydon council press release.)
BROMLEY RESIDENTS FACE 1.2 PER CENT INCREASE ON THEIR TAX BILLS
Bromley residents will see a net increase of 1.2 per cent in their council tax bills.
A Bromley council statement said: “This is made up of an increase of 1.99 per cent on the Bromley element of the council tax and a 1.3 pc reduction in the GLA element.
“The combined effect of both will equate to a £16 increase a year on a band D property, with other bands calculated pro rata.
“The council has to save more than £60 million over four years, so nearly £9 million savings and a small increase in the Bromley element of the council tax were necessary to balance the 2015-16 budget.”
Bromley council leader Cllr Stephen Carr said: “It is regrettable that we have had to make a small increase in council tax this year, but this decision was not taken lightly.
“During our budget consultations over the past couple of years, many residents told us they would be prepared to accept a small rise to help protect essential services. “The truth is we have to do things differently as we continue to look for more efficiencies.
“Residents can be assured that we are doing everything in our power to ensure the long-term stability of the Council’s finances and to spend taxpayers’ money wisely.
“These are challenging times – as budgets contract we will all have to take more responsibility and accountability within our families and communities so we can ensure those who need our services most can get the help they require.
“Following discussions with Bromley Youth Music Trust I am pleased we have been able to reach a joint solution.
“Bromley council has agreed to make £153,000 of funding available to the trust in 2015-16, as well as maintaining support, until 2017, through the provision of premises.
“We want to continue to support BYMT but in the current financial climate, it no longer seems appropriate to do so through the council’s revenue budget. “We will continue working with BYMT to explore other sources of funding such as the Arts Council, schools and commercial sponsors.
“Despite the bleak financial outlook, we are determined to continue Building a Better Bromley. “A number of achievements are in progress including the development of a multi-million pound complex at Bromley South and improvements to Bromley North Village, working with TfL to provide improvements in Beckenham, while Orpington will see a new cinema opened this year.
“We have maintained our track record in recycling half our waste to save landfill costs, saved more than £70,000 in electricity costs by installing modern street lighting and encouraged more than 8,000 Friends Group Members.
“We support carers in the borough and older people and disabled residents are helped to be as independent as possible, while our young people are encouraged to achieve their full potential.
“Together with support from our residents, we are doing everything we can to keep Bromley a good place in which to live, work and enjoy their leisure time .” (Source: Bromley council press release.)
