Last night I attended the first full meeting of Haringey Council since the Baby P court case concluded. Like so many Stroud Green residents, and people across the country, I have been appalled and deeply disturbed by the horrific death of this little boy.
I am absolutely convinced that the political leaders of Haringey should stand up and take responsibility for council’s failure to protect this 17 month old baby. Therefore, at the council meeting I supported the Lib Dem motion calling on the leader of Haringey Council, Cllr George Meehan to resign, along with the cabinet member for children, Cllr Liz Santry.
However, our motion was amended by the Labour group to remove any mention of resignations, and nobody has taken responsibility. The story is reported on the BBC news website here.
Obviously this issue is currently my and my colleagues’ top focus. We will continue to put pressure on Haringey until trust in the Children’s Services has been restored. I’m glad that the Government has instituted an urgent investigation into the council’s failings – this is a welcome first step. But I do not believe that a two week desk based review is sufficient. Therefore, I will continue to back calls for a full independent public enquiry.
Our local MP Lynne Featherstone has been doing all she can to raise this issue too, and if you want more news on what is happening I would urge you to look at the blog and news section of Lynne’s website.