Last week, the Labour Party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) voted to stop Haringey Council signing off a £2 billion public-private housing plan in north London.
This move by the NEC, and its effective ordering of a Labour-controlled council to change policy, is unprecedented, and has been described by council leaders, from Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle and many London boroughs, as “dangerous and alarming”, “uncomradely and disrespectful” and “an affront to the basic principles of democracy”.
In the interests of Telford voters, I have asked Cllr Shaun Davies, the Leader of Telford and Wrekin Council, to clarify his position on this intervention; to confirm whether he is a signatory to the joint letter; and, if not, to explain why he and his colleagues are prepared to overlook the wishes of their electorate and outsource decision-making to a London-based Committee.
You can read my letter, in full, below: