Haringey Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee is asking the Council’s Cabinet to hold an independent review of the demolition ballot at the Love Lane estate in August-September last year. The case will be argued out at the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday 18 January. This excellent report by Simon Allin gives more detail:
The ballot outcome was 113 yes and 90 no, but balloting malpractices could invalidate such a narrow margin.
Cllr Khaled Moyeed, Chair of the Scrutiny Committee, is backing the review, and will be presenting the case to Cabinet. He can be contacted on 07454 292 972.
The Council has admitted collecting four sealed ballot papers, despite being asked not to do so by the ballot administration company CES. But we know that they did much more than that. Here are two examples of sound recorded statements (the originals are available on request).
Tower block resident
Journalist: Can you just tell me what happened when the council came here to ask you about voting for demolition?
Tenant: They asked me about the voting, they asked me if I vote already, I tell them no because I didn’t make my mind up. I didn’t sure what I want to do, ‘cos I didn’t understand properly. Anyway they came, they came inside, they talked, they explained it to me, I decided to do it right there and then so, they helped me with the vote, you understand, because I didn’t… I used the phone, they go online, they do the thing, and I go ahead and just vote.
Question: On the officer’s phone, was it?
Tenant: Yes, it was on their phone.
Low rise resident
Tenant: So they came in here and they asked me whether I had voted and I said no, because I wasn’t sure where they were going to take us to, so I didn’t want to vote. I asked if they are going to move us to a house nearby, they said it’s a maisonette, the rooms are going to be big, it’s going to be far, far better than where we are staying here. So I said if that’s the case then I will vote. So she said if I want to vote now, she’s ready to take the paper, so I went in to vote, then my husband has already voted but I have not posted it. So I went in to add my vote to it and gave it to her and she took it away.
Question: Two votes?
Tenant: Yes, I gave her two votes that day.
[The promises to this tenant of moving to a house have since been broken. Such cynical behaviour by the Council].
