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Haringey councillors re-approve £2bn vehicle
Haringey Council will press on with the establishment of its £2bn development vehicle in spite of concerns from various quarters.
The council’s cabinet again voted in favour of the Haringey Development Vehicle (HDV) on Thursday after its overview and scrutiny committee forced a second vote on the issue.
Liberal Democrat and Labour councillors from the committee spoke against the HDV, saying it was too risky a proposition for the council, and asked again for clarification on the wind-up transfer price – the amount of money the council could have to pay if the HDV were to wind up.
It was revealed at the last meeting that in certain circumstances the council could have to pay a premium of 10% extra on any assets it wanted to buy back from the HDV.
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This information was previously redacted but revealed by director for housing Dan Hawthorn in a public meeting last week. It is unclear what the circumstances are that would mean this premium had to be paid, but one possibility is that it is a potential penalty if the wind-up is the fault of the council.
In response to the question, Alan Strickland, cabinet member for housing, regeneration and planning, remarked: “I wouldn’t propose now to go through exit arrangements as this was discussed at length on Monday.”
Liberal Democrat councillor Bob Hare told the meeting he was worried that this could present a severe financial penalty if “a new administration” wanted to wind up the HDV.
The future of the vehicle is still not completely certain, as residents are currently seeking permission from the High Court to launch a judicial review into the decision-making process.
