Labour slams council

HARLOW Council's ruling Tory-Liberal Democrat coalition has been condemned by Labour councillors over the latest performance reports that show council services have deteriorated over the last year.

Since the coalition took over last May only a third of council services have improved, while 57 per cent have worsened and ten per cent have not changed at all, the figures show.

Labour leader Kevin Brooks said: "These shock performance reports prove what Harlow residents have long suspected that council services have got worse since the Tory-Liberal Democrat coalition took control.

"These figures make a mockery of their promise last year that they would improve services within 100 days. Instead all they have delivered is broken promises and worse services."

However both coalition parties have said it would take more than a year to improve the poor services they have inherited from the previous Labour administration.

Conservative group deputy chairman Mark Gough said: "If we had taken overall control of the council last May, we would have hit the 100-day target without a doubt. As it turned out we spent a lot of time in the beginning setting up the coalition instead of getting on with the job wewanted to do.

"But the reality is the Labour group had 47 years to turn service round we've had a year. We can't do everything in 12 months but we know where we want to go and are already taking steps to achieve those targets."

Liberal Democrat leader Lorna Spenceley said: "My party never promised to improve services within 100 days because we recognise that making improvements following decades of mis-management by Labour will take a lot longer.

"This is Labour playing the same old broken record. Our conversations with residents across the town over the last weeks and months have told us they recognise improvements are being made, and we hope they give us time to continue the job we have started."

01:41 Sunday 27th April 2003

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