Figures unearthed by the Liberal Democrats reveals shocking figures that highlight unacceptable levels of poor housing for residents in Haringey and the failure of Haringey Council to address the situation. Statistics in Haringey Council’s own Housing Needs Assessment shows that the accommodation for one in five of all households in Haringey is considered unsuitable and one in three homes with children is unacceptable.

The figures also reveal that 10,606 households’ ill health is caused by bad housing conditions. Lib Dems have expressed their concern for residents, who face overcrowded, unsuitable, unaffordable housing that is detrimental to their and their children’s health coupled with little prospect of respite due to Haringey Council’s inability to address housing shortfalls.

These appalling figures have been highlighted further by reports from a resident who has been waiting eight years to have repair carried out on her home. Haringey Council has been aware of the leaking roof in a Stroud Green housing block since 1999 but has failed to respond to complaints made. Meanwhile the resident’s home has been ravaged by damp that has caused health problems.

Cllr Catherine Harris, Lib Dem Housing Spokesperson, comments:

“I am horrified but not surprised to learn from this assessment that there are thousands of households like Ms Ebai’s where the health of the tenant is suffering because of the terrible condition of Haringey’s housing or because of severe overcrowding.

“With 5,688 households in temporary accommodation, an annual shortfall of 4,865 affordable homes per year and 8,311 households overcrowded, it is clear Haringey Labour’s handling of housing is a dismal sickening failure.”

Lynne Featherstone, MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, adds:

“These figures expose the squalid Dickensian condition of much of Haringey’s run-down and overcrowded housing.The people of Haringey deserve better than they are getting, but after 10 years of this Labour Government’s inaction on the housing crisis, conditions in Haringey are only getting worse.

“The Council knows that over a third of its houses are unsuitable for habitation, however week after week, month after month, year after year; residents visit me to highlight their experience of the Council’s failure. The Council need to address this situation and provide the decent homes they have been promising for so long.”

Labour-run Haringey Council is jeopardising the future Green Flag status of a local park by ignoring its maintenance and funding needs says local Lib Dem councillors.

Stationers Park in Stroud Green is celebrating the honour of a Green Flag award on 26th September 2007 but the future of the park’s pond and children’s play fort has been thrown into doubt by a summer fraught by underinvestment and poor upkeep by Haringey Council. Lib Dems are staging a boycott of the event to highlight the failings of Haringey Council to protect a much loved green space.

They are appalled that two key features of the park are under threat through lack of funding by Haringey Council. The ponds are completely dry due to a broken pump and failure to carry out simple maintenance. The future of the popular large children’s play fort has also been thrown into question as Haringey Council has refused to fund its replacement, in spite of previous assurances to the contrary.

Cllr Ed Butcher (Stroud Green Ward) comments:

“Stationers Park is a treasure at the heart of our community.I would love to be there to celebrate this year’s green flag, but it would be a hollow celebration given the likelihood of it not getting the award in the future because of Haringey Council’s neglect.

“I feel driven to this simple stand on behalf of residents to make sure we can preserve the special character of this fantastic little park.”

Cllr Richard Wilson (Stroud Green Ward) adds:

“It’s outrageous that Haringey is wasting money on PR rather than maintaining Stationers Park. The Council has spent more on advertising its parks than would be necessary to make sure Stationer’s Park gets its Green Flag next year, by fixing the pump and doing simple maintenance.

“We are very proud of its Green Flag status, but this is now under threat because of Haringey Council’s failure to fund maintenance and refusal to fund the forts replacement.”

Residents will ultimately bear the brunt of changes to benefit legislation say local Lib Dems as it forces landlords to stop taking tenants on benefits. Haringey Liberal Democrats present at the Private Landlords Forum on the 17th September 2007 have voiced their concern over changes to the payment of Housing Benefit and have highlighted its unfair bias against private landlords and its inevitable effect on residents as landlords decide not to house tenants on benefits.

Haringey Council announced that from April next year, private landlords will not be paid Housing Benefit for their tenants directly. Instead the new Local Housing Allowance, as it will be renamed, will be paid directly to tenants. Landlords attending the forum were concerned that rents due to them may not be paid by tenants unable to manage their finances, or by those tempted to spend large back payments rather than pay it to the landlord. Lib Dems have criticised the government for not applying an approach that adequately safeguards payments to private landlords and has called on the Council to set out clear plans how they will protect landlords in Haringey and ensure that access to accommodation for benefit claimants is available.

Cllr Catherine Harris, Liberal Democrat Housing Spokesperson, comments:

“I am very concerned that the good will of local private landlords will be eroded by this irresponsible change to the Housing Benefit legislation by the Labour Government. Residents will ultimately bear the brunt of this change as landlords decide not to take tenants on benefits.

“What is also concerning is the lack of continuity in that the changes does not apply to council tenants – Haringey Council will still be paying itself Housing Benefit directly. Landlords are very critical of at this blatant unfairness. These landlords provide decent housing for those in need but they have been let down by a policy that the Council does not have to follow itself. It’s again a classic Labour policy of do what I say and not as I do.”

Highgate Lib Dems have welcomed the start of the actual work to repair Jacksons Lane arts and community centre, but have pointed out that Haringey’s Labour-run council should never have allowed the centre to reach its current state.

Local Lib Dem councillor Bob Hare says that the building, which is listed, was forced to close at the end of last January when high winds caused parts of the stonework to fall through the theatre roof. Since then, the whole centre has been fenced off for safety, and to allow damage and insurance assessments to be made.

The loss of the facility has had a big impact on the Highgate area – and although many of the courses, classes and activities the centre used to run have found temporary homes, many have had to close. One of the most important to Highgate families was the After-School Club – which was especially valuable in helping mums combine work with childcare.

Cllr Bob Hare, who is a member of the Jacksons Lane Board, comments:

“I’m extremely glad to see work starting – it has taken eight months since the damage occurred to get to this stage. Haringey Council should never have let the building deteriorate to the point where it leaked whenever it rained and the structure had become dangerous.

“A stitch in time really would have saved nine. Pushed by local people and local councillors, Haringey was forced to provide some funding to pay for core staff and unavoidable expenses, otherwise Jacksons Lane could have closed for good.

Local MP Lynne Featherstone adds:

“It is very sad that the important local facilities Jacksons Lane provided for so many people in Highgate, will have been lost for more than a year, and the fact that Jacksons Lane will be starting from scratch in terms of building back to its formerly rich range of functions.

“The centre depends on its income for its survival, and that will take hard work to stabilise when it re-opens. However, I do believe that the centre’s excellent team will make this happen, but it will be an uphill struggle they shouldn’t have had to endure.”

Lynne Featherstone MP took great pleasure last Friday in opening the new playground at the Avenue Nursery, Highgate.

Commenting, Lynne Featherstone says:

“Many congratulations to the staff and the nursery.It was clear that the kids were really pleased with the new space and particularly that they now don’t have to worry about getting their shoes muddy!”

“Thank you to the children for the warm reception and I wish them many happy play times ahead.”

Residents in Hornsey are not getting a fair deal when it comes to security improvements, says a local Lib Dem councillor. Robert Gorrie says that the lack of investment in the security in some of Haringey’s housing estates has resulted in a failure to get on top of anti-social behaviour on the Campsbourne estate, while other areas secure generous security spending.

Information uncovered by the Lib Dems shows the striking contrast between the investment in CCTV cameras in different areas. The Campsbourne estate has two CCTV cameras, one of which has been vandalised, compared to Broadwater Farm estate, which has 158 cameras representing an investment of £570,000. Lib Dems have criticised the Haringey Council’s uneven approach to funding and has called for more investment in areas like the Campsbourne, to improve resident safety.

Lib Dems acknowledge that the Campbourne is smaller than Broadwater Farm but over the last two years more anti-social behaviour incidents have been reported there than in Broadwater Farm.

Cllr Robert Gorrie (Hornsey) comments:

“Residents are committed to making the Campsbourne a successful and safer place to live. Unfortunately they have been let down by Haringey Council and Homes for Haringey. It is about time that their shallow enthusiasm for photo opportunities and vague expressions of concern at meetings is replaced by clear action and delivery.

“If the Campsbourne is a third the size of Broadwater Farm then how about the Council spending £200,000 on installing 50 CCTV cameras on the estate? That would be fair, and it might be a sign of real commitment to the residents.”

Cllr Ron Aitken, Lib Dem Crime spokesperson, adds:

“CCTV is not necessarily the solution to all crime or anti social behaviour issues but the stark comparison between the two estates does highlight the dreadful lack of resources the Labour Council has invested in addressing the issues on the Campsbourne.”

Local Liberal Democrats have expressed shock and disgust at comments made by the most senior Conservative London Assembly member, describing Haringey as “ghastly”. Controversial Tory assembly member Brian Coleman, writing in his blog on the New Statesman website, this week portrays Haringey as a place “where decent folk lock their car doors as they drive through”.

Cllr Neil Williams, Leader of Haringey Lib Dems, comments:

“This is exactly why the Tories are so unelectable in our borough. Haringey is a great place and a vibrant and cosmopolitan community – and that is exactly the way we locals like it.

“It’s the same old nasty Tories. They have no idea what Haringey is like and should be ashamed of their comments. It’s appalling to hear a senior Tory insulting the area.”

“The fact that Mr Coleman would also like to see Maggie back is another indication of his lack of faith in Cameron’s Conservatives – not to mention sheer delusion on his part. It all goes to show that a Conservative vote is a wasted vote here in Haringey.”

Liberal Democrats in Haringey have called on the Government to act now to save historic buildings before they are lost forever.

Cllr David Winskill, Lib Dem Culture spokesperson, made the call as the borough opens up its architectural gems for Open London 2007 on 15th-16th September 2007.

English Heritage recently published its ‘At risk register’ which listed the following historic buildings in Haringey as being at serious risk of further decay and damage:

Alexandra Palace
Drinking Fountain, High Street, Hornsey
War Memorial Chapel at Hornsey Central Hospital
7, Bruce Grove, Tottenham
Public Toilets, Bruce Grove, Tottenham
All Hallows Churchyard, Church Lane, Tottenham
810 High Road, Tottenham
Percy House, 793 High Road, Tottenham
Warmington House, 744, High Road, Tottenham
Former Eductaion Offices at Downhills School, 336, Philip Lane
Tottenham Public Baths (former)
Tottenham Town Hall
Former Gaumont Palace Cinema, Broadway, Wood Green
Drinking Fountain and Cattle Trough, High Road, Wood Green
Porters and Walters Almshouses, Nightingale Road, Wood Green

Cllr David Winskill comments:

“Buildings such as Alexandra Palace and Tottenham Town Hall are important to our local heritage. Their loss would be a big blow for future generations and my fear is that with funding so limited to prevent further decay, restoring them in the future will be prohibitively expensive.

“Open House London gives people the opportunity to visit places in Haringey that would otherwise be closed to the public. It helps to increase awareness of Haringey’s historical and interesting buildings – some of which are considered under threat.

“As a result of the Government’s obsession with the Olympic games English Heritage have suffered a big drop in the amount of money they receive to support our heritage. In 1999, the cash available for these buildings was £6.6 million. Last year that plummeted to £4.4 million.

“Building and repair costs are rising exponentially: without government action to stop the rot now, it may become too expensive to save some of our great historic buildings that at the moment are crumbling away.

“One measure the government can take is to lower the VAT charged on renovating or extending homes and buildings. It is unfair that when a building is renovated, VAT has to be paid at the full rate on the building materials.

“Lib Dem proposals will make it cheaper for many people who own older, historic buildings to carry out repairs and renovation. And we would pay for this by charging the same lower rate of VAT on materials used in building new houses built on greenfield sites.

“This will also mean owners of historic buildings rely less on grants from the government to improve and protect their property. We believe buildings here in Haringey would benefit greatly from this. I hope that Haringey Labour will join us in lobbying central government to act.”

Liberal Democrats in Haringey have welcomed plans that will make Britain a zero carbon country by the middle of the century.The plans will be debated by Liberal Democrats at the party’s conference in Brighton on 17th September. Haringey Liberal Democrats will be going to the conference to back these proposals and raise with Chris Huhne MP, Lib Dem Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment, the problems caused by the recent flooding in Tottenham and the impact of climate change on Haringey.

Cllr Bob Hare, Lib Dem environment spokesperson, comments:

“Liberal Democrats have long argued that we have to tackle the problem of pollution and damage to the planet. The proposals put forward by Sir Menzies Campbell that we will debate at conference will mean that by the middle of this century, Britain will be a zero carbon country.

“That will mean that we will be producing overall no extra carbon dioxide, the main polluting gas that is leading to global climate change. Increasing amounts of carbon dioxide we are currently producing are almost certainly the cause of the extreme weather conditions we have suffered over the summer.

“The global climate change has a direct impact on our day to day lives, as the residents of Tottenham know first hand after the overflowing of a canal lock this summer caused by monsoon like rainfall, resulting in significant damage.”

Cllr Neil Williams, Lib Dem group leader adds:

“Liberal Democrats have made the environment the main feature of our conference later this month. Going green means changing for the better many of our activities. And it means the Government changing policies as well. Under Labour for example, Gordon Brown has cut the tax burden on pollution, whilst putting up the tax burden on people.

“That means under Gordon Brown it has become cheaper to pollute. I strongly believe that people in Haringey will benefit from the Lib Dems’ green tax switch. At our conference we will debate plans to switch the tax burden from people to pollution.

“We will cut national income tax and scrap council tax. To pay for this, we will increase green taxes on the most polluting activities. For example, we will increase the taxes on the most gas-guzzling cars and on aircraft.”

Lynne Featherstone MP yesterday embarked on the first day of a three day trip to South Africa with Business Action for Africa.The purpose of the cross party fact finding trip is to see first hand what role business has to play in the developing world in fight against AIDS.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“HIV and AIDS in now one of the greatest stumbling blocks to greater prosperity and real economic growth in huge swathes of the developing world. As a policy former, I very much hope to learn more about the important role businesses have to play in the treatment and prevention of spreading of AIDS.

“Seeing this epidemic only as problems for governments, development agencies and aid workers is to completely underestimate the scale of effort now needed to the halt the tragedy that is ravaging the lives of so many around the world.”