Media exposes Labour MP's claims on council houses as "spurious" (Greg Stone)

Media exposes Labour MP's claims on council houses as "spurious"

October 1, 2009 2:00 PM

Lib Dem parliamentary spokesman for Newcastle East Greg Stone has welcomed today's endorsement of the Lib Dem administration on Newcastle City Council's approach to delivering new council houses in the city, rejecting misleading claims by the Labour MP for Newcastle East as "spurious".

Greg said "I am pleased that the media have seen through the bluster of Nick Brown on this issue and have praised the approach being taken by the Lib Dems to deliver much needed new homes in the city. Now that they have been found out, I call upon Nick Brown and John Healey to stop these dishonest attacks".

Evening Chronicle editorial, 1/10/09

No home comforts

The political row being stoked up over council housing in Newcastle is spurious.

There are detailed plans in place to revitalise areas which for decades have been left to ruin.

Working with Your Homes Newcastle, the city council under the Liberal Democrat leadership are trying to fix a problem started by the policies of a Thatcher government in the 1980s.

For Labour to criticise is a bit rich given the fact that under their leadership, plans for regeneration proved so unpopular it was a contributory factor in them being ousted from the Civic Centre.

Creating a charitable subsidiary to Your Homes Newcastle will mean there are always affordable homes for rent in the city.

Social housing is more important than ever with a waiting list of 9000 and an uncertain economic climate. There are over 5000 empty properties, many in need of serious repair.

The council is committed to building 500 new homes but equally as important, it is working with private developers to restore estates and build new units. Rather than sniping, opposition politicians would do well to work together and build on the plans in place.

Otherwise we will be left with more years of waste where the only people who suffer are those in need of affordable decent quality housing.