Former housing minister to chair ALMO
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Lambeth Living has appointed a former Labour housing minister as its chair.
The arm’s-length management organisation has angered opposition councillors by choosing Keith Hill MP to lead its board.
Mr Hill will stand down as a Labour MP at the next general election, but local politicians are concerned he will be unable to remain impartial as a chair working with a Labour council.
Councillor Jeremy Clyne, Liberal Democrat housing spokesperson, said: ‘This puts paid to any pretence of Lambeth Living being resident-led. It is now clearly Labour-led.’
Steve Reed, leader of Lambeth Council, said: ‘I am delighted Keith Hill has accepted his appointment as chair of Lambeth Living. Keith is a former housing minister as well as a highly popular MP here in Lambeth.
‘He knows the patch, he knows the people, he knows housing policy and he has the energy and enthusiasm to make things happen.’
Mr Hill replaces acting chair Lynn Holman, who has led the board since the start of 2009.
He worked as minister of state for housing and planning from 2003 to 2005.
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Readers' comments (3)
Norman Adams | 22/09/2009 10:12 am
Any one remember Mr Hill, most of us who support ‘council housing’ will recall his, there is no 4th option, there will be no 4th option – just one of the nine we have seen come and go -
Fourth option: a history
June 2004
‘I don’t know how many more times and in how may many more ways I can say that there is no fourth way.’ Keith Hill
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Peter | 23/09/2009 11:01 am
This is not a good appointment for Lambeth Living or the residents of Lambeth. A politician must not be appointed as a Chair to any business organisation as their impartiality will always be compromised. What is needed is a competent business leader.
Keith Hill is good constituent MP but his credentials as a Housing Minister was somewhat moot. He also loves the sound of his own voice and this will rather interesting in Board meetings especially when you have Board members of the Lib dem and conservative. From the frying pan into the fire!
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LambethRes | 23/09/2009 11:23 pm
It is not so much Keith Hills labour leanings that concern me as the fact that he has had no experience of running anything in the business world. He started in politics at the tender age of 15, and has, as far as can be determined, never worked outside of politics.
Lambeth Living desperately needs someone with good business experience. The sort of old pals act in the decision to put Hill into this position just makes the probability of Lambeth Living surviving, never mind thriving, into even more doubt.
If they had found someone with at least a little decent business experience, that might have been a recognition of the desperate straits Lambeth living are in. This decision just confirms to the hapless residents of Lambeth that Lambeth Living is a catastrophy, walking blindly into disaster, with the costs and failures of social housing management in Lambeth once again falling on the heads of residents.
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