HOUSING is the number one issue at my advice surgeries. We need more rented housing and better quality housing stock. We also need a better housing service so that tenants are treated with the respect they deserve. Harlow Labour Group launched its new strategy for housing, "Investing in homes, improving services", having taken the last nine months to listen to residents, look afresh at services and develop new thinking.

Under Labour, the housing service was not perfect but things have certainly got worse over the last nine months. I'm particularly concerned at the time it's taking to turn round empty properties.

When we have thousands of families on the waiting list it's simply unacceptable that homes are left empty for months before they are re-let.

The Government has increased housing investment in Harlow from £1m in 1997 to £7.9m this year. But the joint Tory-Liberal run council is claiming it will need an extra £10m to meet the Government's 2010 Decent Homes Standard.

Labour thinks the target can be met by spending housing capital receipts on housing projects. The council plans, over the next seven years, to spend more than £25m of housing income on non-housing matters. This is no longer tenable.

The Government is already taking steps to pool capital receipts generated from the sale of council houses and redistribute the money to councils according to their level of housing need.

The council will find it difficult to make the argument that Harlow has significant housing needs if it is planning to spend so much housing money on non-housing projects. The Labour Group and I are pressing them to change.

January 29, 2003 09:00