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5.9.06
Haringey Lib Dem Leader Neil Williams has demanded urgent action to tackle critical failings in the homelessness policies of Haringey Council's housing service uncovered as a result of a recent Scrutiny Committee inquiry.
Evidence submitted to a panel of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee has revealed that Haringey Council has for years been using an unlawful policy to allocate housing in the borough. The Lib Dem Leader says that Labour councillors are rushing to push through a new policy to cover their tracks as a picture emerges of a service in total chaos.
As councillors looked further and further into the service, it has become clear just what a shambles the service is in. The Lib Dems are demanding to know why the service has continued to perform so poorly in recent years, as well as calling for answers as to why the Labour-run council has taken so long to replace a policy identified as out of date and not complying with legislation by the Audit Commission.
For the thousands of residents who are currently on the waiting list for housing, the findings will come as a shock. The Lib Dems are wondering how many applicants have failed to secure housing as a result of the shambolic situation and systematic failings over a long period of time.
Neil Williams comments:
"Many residents will rightly be furious. These systematic failings mean that people will be entitled to ask whether they should have been re-housed years ago.
"Labour's chaos, inaction, and lack of direction on this issue are a real scandal. The fact that senior managers and Labour councillors must surely have known about these terrible problems for years without doing anything is beyond belief.
"It is very clear that Labour has failed in its responsibility to its tenants. I have written to the Council to demand that the matter be looked into immediately, and assurances given that systems be put into place to ensure that this cannot happen again in the future."
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