Chewing It Over

Several people have raised paan spitting with me. Paan is a mixture of things often including tobacco and flavourings as well as betel leaf that is popularly used for chewing in South India and Sri Lanka. Around Wembley and Alperton, however, it is mainly noticeable for the way it has been spat all over the streets.

Brent Council has attempted a "Don't spit paan" campaign, but I am not sure it is especially effective. As paan has been linked to mouth cancer, it may be possible to get NHS Brent to combine with the Council to do some publicity. However, I suspect that communicating with the Sri Lankan and South Indian community is most effectively reached through community networks rather than poster campaigns.

The second major issue is the problem of cleaning the stuff off. The Wembley councillors have been keen to improve the cleaning of shopfronts in Wembley, but doing so involves negotiating a minefield of different ownership with freeholders, leaseholders and tenants. Sorting out payments is therefore harder than it sounds.

It would also be interesting to find out more about better surfaces. For instance, you can get special anti-graffiti paint, and possibly it may be possible to improve the surfaces in Ealing Road and Wembley High Road to make the surfaces easier to clean.

Finally, better enforcement would obviously be a good idea. I am sure that many people in Alperton and Wembley are deeply irritated by paan spitting and would support the Police in taking tougher enforcement action against it.