Incumbent Mayor of Hackney’s ‘pie in sky’ attack on Lib Dem housing claim

At our hustings event: L-R: Incumbent Mayor of Hackney Jules Pipe, Liberal Democrat panellist Tony Harms, Conservative panellist Amy Gray, Independent candidate Mustafa Korel and Green Party candidate Mischa Borris. Photograph: Hackney Citizen

Mayoral hopefuls are busy making pitches to the electorate as the campaign enters its final stages ahead of local elections later this month.

At the Hackney Citizen’s Question Time-style Great Mayoral Debate – attended by around 160 voters – rivals clashed on a wide range of issues including housing policy.

At the event at the Arcola Theatre, chaired by the venue’s Executive Director Dr Ben Todd, Incumbent Mayor of Hackney Jules Pipe (Labour) lambasted a Liberal Democrat pledge to build 12,000 new socially rented homes over the next 25 years.

Mayor Pipe told Lib Dem panellist Tony Harms: “I’m interested in dealing with realities and actually getting homes built, not dealing with empty promises. You would have to build 1,100 homes per year. That’s £150millon a year you would have to borrow every year.”

Mayor Pipe called the pledge “pie in the sky,” saying it would mean Hackney absorbing Britain’s entire borrowing headroom.

But Mr Harms said he stood by it and hit back by slamming Hackney Council’s decision to grant permission for the Stoke Newington Sainsbury’s development, set to result in a net loss of affordable housing at Wilmer Place.

Green Party mayoral candidate Mischa Borris pledged energetic lobbying of the government to change the definition of affordable housing and called for an end to Margaret Thatcher’s Right to Buy policy.

“We all know the affordable criteria isn’t affordable at all,” she said. “Affordable rent is defined as 80 per cent of the market rent. That’s way out of the reach of many Hackney people.”

Independent candidate Mustafa Korel defended Right to Buy as “an incredible thing.” But he said lost council housing stock should be replenished. “We know there are about 2000 empty homes in Hackney,” he added.

Conservative panelist Amy Gray said there was consensus around the need for more affordable homes but stressed the Town Hall should work more closely with Mayor of London Boris Johnson to get its fair share of money earmarked for new building schemes.

At the Citizen’s hustings event last weekend: (from left) Chair Dr Ben Todd, incumbent Mayor of Hackney Jules Pipe, Liberal Democrat panellist Tony Harms, Conservative panellist Amy Gray, Independent candidate Mustafa Korel and Green Party candidate Mischa Borris

Car clash

Another Liberal Democrat pledge – this time a proposal to give away free parking permits – sparked an angry clash.

Mayor Pipe said he was “shocked” by the proposal, which he said would mean poorer residents “subsidising the rich”.

Mischa Borris – a self-styled “militant pedestrian” – vowed to reduce car ownership.

For his part Mustafa Korel concisely put in: “Short answer: I absolutely agree with Mischa.”

However, Amy Gray said she had sympathy with the Lib Dems’ free permit plan and accused the council of implementing policies that made it harder for poor people to run a car.

Tony Harms defended his party’s pledge, saying data showed the council made a £5.6 million surplus from its controlled parking zones income stream.

Great debate: Parties went head-to-head at last Sunday’s event at the Arcola Theatre in Dalston to argue over issues including housing and transport policy. Photograph: Hackney Citizen

Recycling rate rated poor

Hackney’s recycling rate – which has been static for five years – also sparked a lively debate.

Mustafa Korel said experiments at monetising recycling deserved examination. He said: “In Berlin or Canada the incentive is monetary, so with a used bottle, for example, you get 10 cents back when you give it back to somebody.”

Both Tony Harms and Mayor Pipe said greater engagement with residents was the only way to boost recycling, while Amy Gray said boroughs working together to share back office functions – as some Conservative councils in west London have done – was the way forward.

Mischa Borris said: “The way to go is on the estates. We used to have door-to-door recycling on estates. It was stopped because of perceived fire hazards. Get the recycling levels up on the estates and that will help a lot.”

Hackney will go to the polls on 22 May to elect the borough’s Mayor and councillors. Elections for the European Parliament, which are held in a London-wide constituency, will also be taking place on 22 May.

Related: 

Live Blog – Hackney Citizen Great Mayoral Debate

Hackney Today under fire from Eric Pickles and rivals for Mayor of Hackney post