• AS the Liberal Democrat Group on Camden Council, we are outraged by the Labour administration’s political decision to cancel the meeting of the whole council this month.

At a recent meeting representatives of each party were told there were various ways the meeting could go ahead, none of them ideal, no thanks to the Tory government outlawing virtual meetings.

But other councils across London and the rest of the country have managed. Haringey, Southwark and Merton, all Labour-run councils, have successfully held recent full council meetings.

Brent, also run by Labour, will meet on the 12th – as we were supposed to. If Camden Labour wanted to hold a meeting, they could.

What efforts were made to approach the many fantastic, spacious, venues across Camden to ask them to accommodate us?

The Irish Centre was briefly mentioned, but the council could have approached several others. What about the Roundhouse, the British Library, synagogues, churches, schools, mosques, or the Hampstead Theatre?

Many of these venues would have been delighted to host us. The truth is this Labour administration does not want to be held to account.

There will now be no full council meeting until October 11, over five months since the last one. If ever proof were needed that the last thing Camden needs is yet more Labour councillors, this is it.

If you want more voices holding this administration to account and happen to live in Fortune Green, vote for Nancy Jirira in the by-election. You can count on the Liberal Democrats to be a strong opposition voice.

CLLR LUISA PORRITT
Leader
CLLR TOM SIMON
Deputy Leader & Chief Whip
Liberal Democrat Group