[9] The previous month Coleman was the only objector to the erection of a wind turbine at Frith Manor Primary School (opposite Partingdale Lane), as he believed it was "out of character in the green belt".
[10] In 2002, Coleman announced his intention to seek the Conservative Party nomination to be candidate for Mayor of London, but he was rejected at a very early stage.
In April 2007, Coleman gained some publicity when he claimed that the former prime minister Edward Heath was homosexual and that it was "common knowledge" in the Conservative party that he had been told to keep it secret for the sake of his career.
[12] Writing on the website of the New Statesman on the issue of outing, he said: "The late Ted Heath managed to obtain the highest office of state after he was supposedly advised to cease his cottaging activities in the 1950s when he became a privy councillor.
"[13] An article by Coleman, "Politics and alcohol" for the New Statesman in August 2007 alleged that Sir Ian Blair the Metropolitan Police Commissioner was "somewhat the worse for wear at a number of official functions" and "needed assistance from his protection officers to manage the stairs".
[16] He wrote that the British athletes were "tainted with the blood of Tibetans", and that London mayor Boris Johnson was "forced to go to Beijing to collect the Olympic flag".
A governor at two local Secondary Schools, he is also active in the Rotary Club and is a vocal supporter of the rights of Falun Gong practitioners[21] and the Greek Cypriot community.
[31] The Standards Sub-Committee of Barnet Council met on 5 March 2012 to consider the investigator's report and found that Coleman had indeed breached the code of conduct in respect of two of the four allegations; he was ordered he write letters of apology within 14 days.
[32] A demonstration of support for Coleman's views, claiming that the campaign against him was anti-Zionist and anti-Semitic, took place outside the hearing at the Hendon Town Hall.
[40] Martin Buhagiar, group editor of the North London Times and Independent series newspapers, opined that "Manners maketh man" and that "Coleman seems to enjoy giving taxpayers the impression he does not have any".
[41] In July 2010 Brian Coleman participated in and defended as "sensible" a decision by Barnet's Tory Councillors to award large increases in allowances to council cabinet members.
[46][47] In August 2007 Coleman received an apology from the BBC after he had complained that the appearance of Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq at the media launch of a London cycling event was political.
Speaking at the launch, the then Mayor of London and a Green party assembly member had accused Conservatives of pursuing a pro-car policy.
[51] Coleman takes great pride in his campaign to reopen Partingdale Lane, a narrow winding country road with no footway, between Mill Hill and Woodside Park in north London.
The lane had been closed to through traffic by Barnet's previous Labour council for safety reasons, not least that residents of nearby Woodside Park had been using the road as a high-speed rat-run.
[54] Following a £250,000 safety improvement project (including a pavement, traffic islands, 20 mph flashing speed-limit signs and width restrictions) the road was reopened in September 2007.
This has led some critics to label Coleman as "pompous" and "self-important",[62] not least because of the high number of honorary and civic positions he has held in the past and continues to hold at present.
On his re-election to the Assembly in May 2008, Coleman made an angry acceptance speech at the count in which he announced that "the king of bling is back" before storming out, accompanied by his mother.
[60] In July 2007 he was criticised by Livingstone for spending £10,000 on taxi fares from 1 April 2006 to 30 March 2007, compared to the average figure for a London Assembly member of around £845.
[70] A further GLA audit panel report in March 2008 revealed that Coleman had run up taxi expenses of £4157 in the period 1 April 2007 to 31 December 2007.
Livingstone said "Brian Coleman must explain to Londoners how he can possibly justify spending more on taxis in four weeks than the average Assembly member does in nine months.
"[72] When questioned about his cab fares by the Metro Newspaper, Coleman claimed not to use taxis but thought he was being ferried about in 'an official GLA car'.
They reported that in December 2007 he ran up a £412.50 cab fare on a round-trip from his home in Finchley to a nearby meeting where the driver kept the meter running before taking him to City Hall.
An Audit Commission report published in February 2009 noted that "The Chairman is robust and challenging but staff and some external stakeholders find his style too confrontational.
"[77] In August 2008 Coleman claimed that he had been passed over for the post of chair of the Local Government Association fire services management committee due to homophobia by fellow Tories.
[101] On 5 June 2013 he was expelled from the Conservative Party[102] but he remained a member of Barnet Council and announced he would seek re-election as an Independent candidate in the 2014 election.
On 10 September 2013 Coleman was described as having 'stormed out' of a Barnet Council meeting after losing an appeal against a ruling that he had broken the members' code of conduct by failing to treat others with respect.
According to a report in the Edgware and Mill Hill Times on 13 September he had referred to a psychiatric nurse as "a twat" at a Cabinet meeting and had sent abusive e-mails to the chair of the local branch of Age UK.
Coleman, whilst not denying the allegations, claimed that the procedure was unlawful as the code of conduct had been superseded and that he "couldn't give a toss" about the council's decision.