The New Deal Board and Sell-Offs

October’s New Deal magazine carries an article by the Board’s Vice Chair, Clayeon McKenzie. Clayeon is on record as a leading opponent of stock transfer, but his article is written on behalf of the New Deal, giving their response to a recent consultation survey. Below are extracts from the article:

“An overwhelming 93% of you want to remain council tenants, and not sold-off to any stock transfer landlords, including those that are ‘Community’ based. We all know how useless Hackney has been over the years, but practically everyone felt that they should be made responsible (at least in part) for putting things right, by bringing the long overdue improvements to our homes. Nevertheless, transfer is still under serious consideration by the Trust.

“While insisting that there should be no change of landlord, nearly two thirds of people wanted Shoreditch to have more control of its own resources and destiny. This can be achieved with the Council as our landlord.”

“More than four out of five Council tenants in Shoreditch just want their existing homes to be refurbished to a standard that they feel is acceptable. The huge majority (93%) don’t want to be pushed out of the area.”

“It will be the New Deal’s task to respect (not second guess) your undeniable views, which you have so clearly stated. We must ensure that the Shoreditch people’s expectations are truly reflected in any bid put to central Government for our homes. We will not forget you.”

We want to hear what people have to say about this article. Can the New Deal deliver what Clayeon says they can deliver? E-mail your views to 2002@hackneyiwca.fsnet.co.uk and look out for this debate on our website.