• NIGEL Rumble, Conservative candidate for Gospel Oak, bemoans Camden’s record on social housing, (Camden must do much better on housing, April 21).

I would like to remind him of his party’s record.

When councils first started to build decent housing for poorer residents your party (in government) bitterly opposed it on the grounds “hardworking” slum landlords would lose money.

Since the mid 1980s his party has sold off as much of the social housing stock as they could nationally.

Locally, when they briefly held the reins in the 1960s, their housing policy led to riots on Euston Road, and they were widely condemned even by the Daily Mail.

The next time Camden residents were foolish enough to trust them was in the 2000s; this time they sold any property that needed more than £10k spent to bring it up to scratch; £10k is about the cost of a cheap kitchen and bathroom refurbishment.

And, of course, since being elected in 2010 street homelessness has gone though the roof.

If there is a time for all Tories to keep their gobs shut, it is when the subject moves to social housing (or NHS). Your record is not just appalling it is criminal.

Unfortunately, owing to Labour’s stampede to the right and the socially aware Greens not standing in my area, I will have to spoil my ballot paper.

Be lucky!

GEORGE CURLEY
Iverson Road, NW6