“Dear Editor,

AROUND the time of the May 2024 Harlow Council elections, the leader of the council stood on Broad Walk in the town centre and promised work would begin in the area if the Tories were returned to power.

Adjacent to Broad Walk is the East Gate development and six months on the shop fronts have been vandalised and used as a meeting point, and possible residence, for many people. I myself have been waved at from upstairs windows while walking past early one morning.

Whatever happened to this administration’s promise to “get tough” on the developers? If anything things have got even worse and with the afternoons and evenings drawing in you can understand my concern about those working in the area.

Problems like this don’t happen in a vacuum and the lack of adequate social housing in Harlow needs to be urgently addressed, but what do we see instead? Most of the Burnt Mills flats, when they finally open, will be available as affordable and market rents only, which will do doubt come as a comfort to those on the housing waiting list, a great many of whom are on the list precisely because they can’t afford “affordable” rents.

Add to this the Tory administration’s ludicrously low estimation of homelessness in the town and undeveloped sites left to rot and it’s difficult to escape the feeling that they have lost control.

The leader may have a clock counting down to the next Council elections but his problems are rising even faster than his bank balance after the recent hefty pay rise that he voted for himself to have.

Jodi Dunne, Bush Fair Labour and Co Operative Councillor and Shadow Portfolio Holder for Housing.”