White elephants

Hardwick's Square was among the first of the recent massive housing developments the Conservatives approved for our area - it's the site just behind Wandsworth High Street, and it's far from complete.

Today the Wandsworth Guardian is reporting the folly of the Conservatives' housing strategy: the stack-em-up, pile-em-high mentality that is not only blighting our area with high rise blocks but is creating hundreds of empty private homes when the area is in desperate need of affordable housing to rent.

And it's not just the Guardian realising this problem. Some of the most senior council officers are admitting how wrong the Conservatives have got it. In an email to my campaign on Monday, one of them - who to spare embarrassment I won't name - wrote:

"Because of the housing/mortgage situation and recession, these are not filling as rapidly as predicted...I suspect this will now plateau out somewhat."

That being the case, why on earth are the Conservatives ramming through hundreds and hundreds more homes: 500 on the brewery in Wandsworth town; 150 in the new "Argento Tower" block beside the Arndale shopping centre; another 500 in Clapham Junction; 100+ at Tileman House and goodness knows how many more they want to cram into the remainder of the Riverside Quarter site behind Wandsworth Park.

The Conservatives are completely out of control. I can only stop them with your votes.