Dear Editor,

CUTS have consequences.Here’s a definition of shameless. Somebody posing for a picture looking at a roof support system, installed some years ago, to stop crumbling school roofs from collapsing. That person praising the support method for allowing the school to be open, but that person omitting to mention that the political party he belongs to scrapped that programme of installing this support.

That person is Mr Robert Halfon. Readers of Your Harlow will have seen a photo of him posing at a Harlow primary, looking towards the ceiling. The RAAC there was supported by a beam system called Metsec. This system was a money saving measure that was cheaper than replacing the roof. Crucially it made RAAC safe, allowing the pupils of that school to return this September with minimal disruption.

Other schools in Harlow and Essex were not so lucky, their roofs had not been supported with Metsec, their roofs were dangerous. So why hadn’t they had Metsec installed? Answer, because Mr Halfon’s Conservative pals in Essex County Council had scrapped the program to save money. A false economy that will cost more in the long run, and which led to disruption in schools as the DfE panicked to make schools safe.

Of course we’ve seen Mr Halfon wring his hands and say how awful the chaos at the start of the term has been. What we haven’t seen is Mr Halfon being open and honest about the mistakes the Conservatives made that led to this chaos. And we haven’t seen Mr Halfon apologise for his part in the decision making process that led to this chaos, after all he claims to work closely with Essex County Council. 

Denying a problem exists, finger pointing at others to shift responsibility and, when all else fails, promising an enquiry to kick the issue down the road have become the stock response of the modern Conservative party. Mr Halfon enthusiastically adopts these methods, Harlow deserves better.

Yours sincerely

Mark Ingall