The BBC’s Local Democracy Reporter for Barking and Dagenham, Nick Clark, sent multiple requests to the Labour Party but was unable to speak to the incumbent council leader ahead of polling day
The Labour Party in Barking and Dagenham has not granted an interview to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) ahead of the council election tomorrow (Thursday 7th).
The LDRS aimed to interview candidates from as many parties as possible before the elections for Barking and Dagenham Council.
Leading members of the Green Party and Reform UK – Labour’s biggest challengers in the borough – both gave interviews to the LDRS.
But the Labour Party did not grant an interview after repeated requests to speak to current council leader Dominic Twomey.
All 51 council seats are up for election tomorrow – with Labour having won all of them in every election since 2010.
However, this time the party is predicted to lose seats to the Greens and Reform UK – with some polls suggesting Reform UK may take control.
The LDRS had hoped to ask Labour Cllr Twomey about challenges facing the council, such as finance, housing, social care and special educational needs.
It would also have asked him about Labour’s plan for the borough should the party retain control, and given him an opportunity to respond to criticisms by Reform and the Greens.
In interviews with the LDRS, Green candidate Curtis Cooper and Reform UK candidate Ben Suter both criticised the Labour-run council over issues such as fly-tipping, antisocial behaviour, housing and finance.
Cooper said the council isn’t “taking care” of the borough’s parks “properly”, and said that residents feel unsafe on its streets.
He also accused it of running a “failed housing strategy” that had amassed over £1billion in debt to build homes that are not “really affordable” and affected by damp and mould.
Likewise, Suter said that under Labour’s council leadership: “Our roads are crumbling, our streets are dirty, there’s fly-tipping everywhere. We’ve got council flats riddled with damp and black mould.”
Suter also said the council had made “risky financial decisions to borrow over £1bn to build flats in Barking,” adding that these homes were “not good quality” or genuinely affordable.
The LDRS would have given Twomey the opportunity to respond to these criticisms.
However, after multiple attempts to contact Barking and Dagenham Labour Party, Dominic Twomey himself, and London Labour’s press team via various channels since the end of March, the LDRS was unable to secure an interview.
The LDRS also contacted the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties but received no responses.
Polls open from 7am tomorrow and close at 10pm. The LDRS will be providing live updates from the election count, which takes place on Friday (8th).
