Dr Brian Potter said it was disgraceful that the council won’t take bookings from the ILA

A FAMILIAR face is looking to upset a council by-election contest with the message that leaseholders are being treated as the “magic cash cows”.

Dr Brian Potter, the chair of the Islington Leaseholders Association (ILA), revealed this week he will be among the candidates on the Junction ward ballot.

It is the third council by-election in six months and comes in a year when voters have already taken part in the London and general elections.

Dr Potter is furious that the council has told the ILA that it can no longer book the Town Hall in Upper Street for its meetings.

It has held one there every month for the past 10 years.

“It’s disgraceful,” said Dr Potter who says the organisation, which represents a third of those living in the borough, no longer has a place to meet.

The action came after the ILA said it was un-invited to a council-run “home owners’ event”. Dr Potter decided to hand out leaflets for an ILA meeting outside this event, and at this point was approached by a council officer telling him that the association would not be allowed to use the space.

Dr Potter said: “We’re the best-attended meeting in the borough and now they won’t let us have a room. It’s crazy.

“If they were to do that to anyone else, it would go viral.” He added that he would be “getting on the internet” to spread awareness of the injustice.

The Town Hall say, however, that Dr Potter was not barred from the event last week and claim that the ILA can no longer use the council chamber because it does not represent the council.

The ILA advocates for the rights of leaseholders in the borough and says they are often hit by repairs bills totalling thousands of pounds that they cannot afford.

Dr Potter said: “We get extremely bad works, and the cost given by the council to leaseholders is astronomical and unjustifiable.

“The council are letting the contractors run riot. The billing is absolutely crazy.”

He added that his campaign in the Junction ward would raise aware­ness of the ILA and encourage “any leaseholders with problems” to contact the association.

“They just see us as the magic cash cow, we just keep producing money but it doesn’t matter what you do, you can’t justify these bills,” he said.

An Islington Council spokesperson said: “Here in Islington we’re determined to ensure that everyone has a safe and decent place to call home.

“As part of that we work closely with leaseholders to provide the best quality service, to keep them updated on any works that are being carried out and to ensure that these works offer value for money.

“We know that local people, including leaseholders, know their borough better than anyone and we’re committed to listening to their views.

“That’s why we’re in the process of setting up an independent Leaseholder Forum, which will give leaseholders the opportunity to share their views with the council, hold us to account, and be properly governed.”

The known candidates declared so far for the Junction by-election are James Potts from Labour, Rebecca Jones for the Liberal Democrats, Devon Osborne for the Greens, Jackson Caines from the Islington independents and now Dr Brian Potter.

Any other candidates need to have applied to stand by today’s (Friday’s) deadline.

Voting will take place on Thursday November 28.

New leader decision

Kaya Comer-Schwartz has moved to City Hall to work with Sadiq Khan

THE wait for a new Islington Council leader is almost over with Labour set to decide who will replace Kaya Comer-Schwartz at a meeting on Monday.

The candidate chosen by the Labour group will then be confirmed in the Town Hall at a full council meeting next month.

Diarmaid Ward, Sheila Chapman, Una O’Halloran, and John Woolf have all been making their bid for the top job, with rumours swirling about the level of support each has.

It might be difficult for Labour councillors to gauge who is the front runner, as the Tribune understands they have been instructed not to speak to each other about who they might vote for in an effort to curb “slates” – where support gathers around a “left” or “right” leaning candidate.

Cllr Diarmaid Ward has been appointed “acting leader” as the contest goes on.