Lib Dem councillors for Alexandra ward have condemned the decision by Haringey Council to defer much-needed upgrade work on the Alexandra Triangle. Funding for the project had been secured following a Lib Dem bid for Assembly Budget funding in consultation with local residents, who are now angry that their project has once again been sidelined.

The Triangle, sited at the junction of Palace Gates Road and Crescent Road in Alexandra ward, is a small open space which has been badly neglected by the council over the years. Ward councillors have been working hard with residents and traders to press the Council to fund much needed restoration work. The decision to defer the project to the following financial year runs the risk of the funding for the project being lost altogether.

Lib Dem councillor Wayne Hoban comments:

“I am extremely concerned about the decision to delay this project. Assembly budget rules state that the money must be spent by the end of the financial year or run the risk of being lost. Indeed, the Labour lead member for Community Engagement decided last year to reallocate, without consultation, all Assembly Budget monies that had not been spent in the run-up to the end of the financial year to her own projects. There is every reason to suspect that the same decision will be taken this year, resulting in the loss of funding for this valuable community led project. This is a slap in the face for community residents and traders who have worked so hard with their ward councillors to achieve support and funding for this important project.”

Featherstone calls on police to investigate bribe allegations

Lynne Featherstone has called on the police to urgently investigate allegations that a Haringey Council officer accepted £3,000 in exchange for allocating Council Housing in a record 3 weeks.

The allegation was made on Friday, 7th April on the LBC Nick Ferrari’s phone-in programme by a member of the public.

Ms. Featherstone says, “Any allegation of public property being abused for personal gain must be taken extremely seriously.”

The MP has contact Chief Superintendent Simon O’Brien with detail of the allegation and asked for a full investigation as well as the Chief Executive of Haringey Council.

Ms Featherstone adds, “I hear heart-breaking stories week in week in my surgeries about of families desperate to be re-housed and having to wait years.It is for these people that we need to get to the bottom of this.”

New figures show the true extent of Haringey Labour’s incompetence

Figures recently obtained by the Haringey Liberal Democrats show that the cost of upgrading one Haringey Council PC as part of the now infamous Tech Refresh project was a staggering £5,200. The figures came as part of a response to Liberal Democrat Councillors’ ongoing efforts to elicit some accountability from Haringey Council.

One of the most costly mistakes made by Haringey Council in years, the Tech Refresh project was supposed to cost roughly £9 million, but these costs spiralled out of control due to a lack of competent project management until the final costs were a staggering £24.6 million.

During the project, some 4,759 computers were ‘Tech Refreshed’ – an equivalent cost of just under £5,200 per computer.

Councillor Neil Williams, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Opposition, said:

“£5,200 is an incredible cost for upgrading a single computer – hardly a bargain. This project beggars belief – the lack of competent project management from Haringey’s Labour councillors is shocking. Local people are rightly furious about the way Labour have wasted their Council Taxes whilst in power. No member of the Council has admitted any responsibility at all for the mistakes, and we find this simply unacceptable.”

Haringey Liberal Democrats have made the shock discovery that Haringey Council does not keep a central record of complaints over the quality of work carried out by the Council’s building contractors.

The discovery came following an enquiry by Councillor Wayne Hoban into the procedure by which the Council tracks the performance of contractors on major projects.

Projects are awarded only to those contractors who have been ‘pre-approved’ by Haringey Council. This means that following initial checks on companies, there is no scrutiny over the long-term performance of contractors. The response to Councillor Hoban’s enquiry explained that his question had prompted Haringey Council to consider the possibility of introducing a central record of complaints.

Councillor Hoban comments:

“I am absolutely shocked and stunned to have made this discovery. I had made the enquiry in order to obtain specific information about a particular contractor’s performance – it had never occurred to me that Haringey Council would have no records at all! I cannot believe that the Council has operated in this cavalier way for so long.”

Councillor Neil Williams, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Opposition, adds:

“On the back of the Tech Refresh disaster, it has become all too clear how little regard for quality the Labour-led Haringey Council really has. Residents will be furious to learn this news – it is just one more example of how Labour have wasted taxpayers’ money through sheer laziness.”

Haringey Labour have totally failed to take control of Haringey Council’s finances, according to the Liberal Democrat Opposition. Figures released by Haringey Council show that the total uncollected Council Tax arrears owed to the London Borough of Haringey has risen by £7.9 million in the last three years to just under £25 million.

In comparison, neighbouring borough Islington has seen their total arrears drop from £23.9 million in 2003/04 to £20 million in 2004/05 under a Liberal Democrat council.

Councillor Neil Williams, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Opposition, comments:

“While the high total amount owed is obviously very worrying, what is even more concerning is the speed at which the deficit is rising – between 2002/03 and 2003/04 the figure rose 26%, and between 2003/04 and 2004/05, it rose a further 16%. The Council has indicated that it may be some months before figures for 2005/06 are available.

“This kind of fiscal freefall is totally irresponsible, and is indicative of how Haringey Labour have spectacularly failed to manage the Council’s financial affairs. What with these figures and the shocking overspend of £10.6 million on the Council’s Tech Refresh project, the people of Haringey must be extremely worried about the ability of Haringey Labour to manage their borough.”

Notes:

2002/03: Council Tax Arrears: £16.972 million
2003/04: Council Tax Arrears: £21.368 million
2004/05: Council Tax Arrears: £24.859 million

Liberal Democrat councillors urge Muswell Hill Odeon to overturn decision to abolish Senior Screen showings

Liberal Democrat councillors in Muswell Hill ward have written to the regional head of Odeon Cinemas to request that the cinema continue to show Senior Screen showings at the cinema. The Odeon cinema in Muswell Hill had, until recently, held a showing for pensioners every Tuesday night, but this has recently been cancelled.

Councillor Jonathan Bloch, Liberal Democrat for Muswell Hill Ward, wrote to the regional manager of Odeon cinemas to urge him to reconsider the decision. He explained that while “I understand that the showing was not profitable… I do not believe that much was done to remarket it in the neighbourhood to attract a larger audience.”

He continued: “The cinema is an integral part of the Muswell Hill Community and has enjoyed a large amount of goodwill – this has been undermined by this short-sighted decision.”

Councillor Bloch adds: “It is a real shame that this is the state that we have got to in society – where monetary concerns trump all others. This was a well-attended and popular morning at the cinema, and it is desperately sad that it has been cancelled. I very much hope that the Liberal Democrats and I are able to apply pressure and appeal to the cinema’s management to have the decision overturned.”

The Haringey Liberal Democrats have warmly welcomed the introduction of the new Safer Neighbourhood Team in Highgate ward, following a long campaign by Lynne Featherstone MP and Haringey Liberal Democrat Group Leader Councillor Neil Williams for the extra police presence.

Highgate sits at the boundary of three boroughs – Haringey, Islington and Camden – and has at times been neglected as a result, with no single borough assuming overall responsibility or control.

The two had earlier taken the issue to the Metropolitan Police Authority arguing that the borough border areas like Highgate had not been getting the priority they deserved from the Safer Neighbourhoods rollout.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“I am delighted to see the introduction, at long last, of the Highgate Safer Neighbourhood Team. The Liberal Democrats and I believe passionately that more localism in policing produces a higher quality of police force and will allow local people to work with the police to make their community a safer place.”

Councillor Neil Williams, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Opposition, comments:

“Highgate has in the past suffered from a lack of joined-up policing, a matter which we took to the Chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority. I am very pleased that the Safer Neighbourhood Team has finally been introduced. A great day for Highgate!”