Hackney Council 'Fraud And Corruption'

I was shocked to read today's article in the "Hackney Groveller" revealing the extent to which fraud and corruption has allegedly become endemic amongst Hackney Councillors. The revelations came as a special shock to me because, although as Chief Whip of the Labour Group I am responsible for party discipline, I am generally far too busy with matters of great national import to pay attention to the petty goings-on amongst the timeserving vegetables of Hackney Council.

According to "The Groveller", as many as 56 members of Hackney Council "are currently being probed". I have always been squeaky clean myself, and after payment of a small fee for consultancy services I have been assured that I am not personally under investigation.

Fiddles allegedly include falsifying expenses claims, skipping committee meetings in order to moonlight, supplying fake political qualifications when seeking election nomination and misappropriation of Council Tax.

Areas being repainted in exterior matt white by Syd Barratt and his team of auditors reportedly include:

• property issues, including selling-off of public buildings, demolition of heritage properties and misuse of land;
• abuse of grants to develop controlled parking zones and other parking restrictions;
• waste of publicly-funded computer equipment;
• bribery, corruption and election fraud;
• cashing of cheques from footware companies for use of the Council logo and subsequent denial that any such deal was struck;
• unauthorised disposal of public assets;
• use of manipulated CVs disguising nationality, age, previous criminal records and undesirable employments;
• acting as political advisors elsewhere, while off sick;
• financial abuse of the Borough's residents;
• abusing their positions to benefit family and friends;
• contract iregularities and breaches of standing orders associated with new tower block developments;
• financial regulations breaches in grant funding the Criminal Assistance Bank (CAB) and other local organisations;
• falsely claiming to benefit the electors of Hackney.

"The Groveller" goes on to reveal that Hackney Council has a long history of corruption scandals lasting back over two decades. This includes the period of "no overall control", so clearly all of these problems are a direct result of the treacherous desertion of the Labour Group by those whose slanderously accused us of protecting paedophiles in the Labour Party and Social Services.

I am sure that when Syd publishes his report we will all be exonerated and the blame put firmly on former Council Leader Menzies Campbell.