Haringey’s Lib Dem Opposition has expressed its outrage that a special full council meeting is to be held next Monday to vote through the retirement package of the Chief Executive, David Warwik.

The Lib Dems were not even informed that Labour had scheduled the special meeting until the papers for it arrived through their letterboxes over the weekend. Lib Dem Leader Neil Williams is raising his concerns with the District Auditor and has suspended all cross-party agreements between the Lib Dems and Labour.

Cllr Williams asks why Haringey Council could not consider the issue at its normal full council meeting just a few days later on 25 July. Further, the papers for the meeting reveal that the Chief Executive remains in the employ of the council until September – despite the council publishing misleading statements that he is leaving in July.

Cllr Williams has asked the District Auditor for a ruling on this issue as the cost, through the appointment of an ‘interim’ Chief Executive, is likely to run into tens of thousands of pounds for Haringey’s hard pressed taxpayers.

In a further development Labour has thrown another veil of secrecy over a special a meeting of the Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee to consider a £380,000 grant to the Haringey Business Development Agency, despite Labour members briefing that this matter and the departure of the Chief Executive are related. All the papers for this meeting have been issued as ‘exempt’ items.

Cllr Neil Williams comments:

“Haringey Labour are in utter disarray, but they must not be allowed to play fast and loose like this with council taxpayer’s money and abuse secrecy rules.This whole affair has become an utter shambles, and Labour are desperate to keep the public in the dark.”