New Westminster council leader urged to tackle '800 families in B&Bs'

Published by Jon Land for 24dash.com in Housing and also in Local Government

The future leader of Westminster City Council has been urged to cut the number of families languishing in temporary accommondation - often in B&Bs - and reinstate a scheme that gave children of council tenants some priority for local authority housing.

Labour councillors have compiled a list of questions for the new council leader - yet to be elected - after Westminster's council chief Colin Barrow announced plans to resign last month.

Mr Barrow will be leaving his post next month.

It's understood that Westminster's current head of housing Jonathan Glanz is in the frame, alongside Philippa Roe, Ed Argar and Glenys Roberts.

Westminster’s Labour councillors have posed 12 questions which they are asking all the candidates to answer, after they branded it 'appalling' that "none of the candidates have bothered to issue a public manifesto", or subject themselves to resident scrutiny over the direction they want to take the council. 

In particular, opposition councillors want to know candidates' plans for reducing the 800 Westminster families in temporary accommodation (often in B&B hotels) and 1,000 families living in overcrowded accommodation.

In addition, they want to know what their plans are to reduce the 400 empty council homes in Westminster and whether they'll reinstate the popular 'Family Quota Scheme' which gave the children of council tenants and leaseholders some priority for council housing.

Councillor Paul Dimoldenberg, leader of the Labour group, said: “Westminster Conservatives continue to treat residents with utter contempt by failing to give everyone a say in the election of a new council leader."