| |
Robust action necessary on council homes sell-off
• THE apparent lack of interest by local councillors at the anger surrounding the horrendous selling off of council properties may concern many of the protesters but comes as no surprise to me.
In the past few years it has become clear to me that the civil service runs the country at a national and local level and councillors and MPs are little more than “rubber-stampers” for their ideas and orders.
Don’t believe me?
Then let me ask some win/win questions.
Can we have the name of the elected official who came up with this idea so we can make sure he/she is never elected again?
Alternatively can we have an admission that council/ government staff dreamed this one up bypassing democracy entirely.
I rarely get straight answers from councillors or council staff or even a reply from my local MP but it’d be interesting to get a response from one of them to this letter.
Most likely it’ll be a case of “It’s all gone quiet over there,” though, which is why I, and over two thirds of the borough, will continue not to bother to vote at local level, a trend I wouldn’t be surprised to see repeated at the next general election.
I would urge people, with the excellent support of the New Journal, to continue their protest at this action which is little better than theft (taxpayers paid for those properties to be used by the needy, not as assets for private individuals).
But I suspect more robust action may be needed.
Even in this increasingly authoritarian country there are still ways to do this and keep within the law.
The New Journal showed this (see front page, left) when they ambushed the Prime Minister over this issue in June.
So don’t lose heart.
JOHN LAWSON
Adelaide Road, NW3
|
 |
|
|
|
| |
| |
