It’s time for answers on Empty Homes scandal
IT’S taken FIVE years for police to conclude there is insufficient evidence to prosecute anyone over the Empty Homes Scandal.
For readers not familiar with the fiasco, it’s the project which was supposed to see millions of pounds of government money spent on improving some of East Lancashire’s worst homes.
It was administered by Rossendale Council on behalf of East Lancashire councils.
It all went wrong when the contractor running the scheme went bust, leaving Rossendale Council carrying the can - and local taxpayers contributing an as yet unknown amount of money to deliver the scheme.
At time of writing, the council says it has spent £7m on the project.
How much of that has been paid for by us is not clear.
In fact, not much of what went on at the time - back in 2015 - is clear, nor is what is going on now clear.
Indeed, pretty much all we know is that the scheme has become a complete money drain for the council, with each full council meeting or cabinet meeting being told that yet more cash is going towards the project - but little else.
When challenged about what’s going on, or what went on, the Labour leadership has sought to say it can’t say too much as police investigations are ongoing.
As of last week, that changed - and it’s time for answers.
Two investigations have been conducted for the council, and we have been promised that lessons have been learnt. But what lessons?
And how can we be sure that this couldn’t happen again?
Much was made at the time of the investigations that both cleared local councillors of any wrongdoing.
The allegation was that they had been kept in the dark.
How can we be sure this wouldn’t happen again? What steps have councillors, especially the leaders, taken to ensure they don’t find themselves in such a position again?
The volumes of money that are involved here are huge - they are in danger of dwarfing the annual amount of money that the council raises in council tax here in Rossendale.
There is an argument, put forward by some in local Labour, that we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact hundreds of unfit homes have been brought back into use as a result of the Empty Homes project.
This is true - but at what cost?
Would it have just been cheaper for the council to get a public works loan and do the same work itself?
And what of the future? There’s another three-and-a-half years to run on the scheme, and the costs continue to mount. How much more can we expect - especially now as legal claims are being submitted to the council by some of those involved in the scheme?
This is a big moment for the Labour leadership of Rossendale Council - a time to show with actions that they back last week’s statement that it supported the need for transparency into the collapse of AAAW - the company commissioned by the council to run the scheme.
It’s also a big moment for the new Tory opposition leadership too.
They need to hold
Labour’s leadership accountable for what happened - and ensure that a full, open investigation via the council’s scrutiny committee is forthcoming at the earliest opportunity.
In the meantime, publishing the two investigations the council has already received, online, for the public to inspect would be a very good start.