Labour caught out by deceit on police teams

9.16.12am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 5th Apr 2006

Claims on Labour election leaflets about Lib Dems moving police teams from one part of Lambeth to another make interesting but confusing reading. In each area, Labour is claiming something different - and totally untrue.

Labour's 'South Streatham Rose' says "Lib Dems are diverting extra police and safety wardens away from South Streatham to areas further north". Strange then, that 'Labour for Stockwell' says that when Liberal Democrats got the chance to decide where extra police should go "they decided to not to send them to Stockwell but to Streatham and Norwood"!

Confused? It gets worse: the 'West Norwood Rose' says "the Liberal Democrats voted against extra police for West Norwood and instead sent them to leafy Clapham".

The good residents of Clapham might at least be pleased to know they are getting more police, but apparently not: Labour are now leafletting with the 'Clapham Rose', saying "Lib Dems block extra police for Clapham".

Of course, it's all utterly absurd and totally untrue, as councillors do not even have the power to decide on police deployment.

To cap it all a 'Rose' leaflet from Labour in Vauxhall, says that they are "demanding a Safer Neighbourhood Police Team in Oval" as soon as possible, and inviting residents to support their campaign. Obviously they don't watch what is happening locally or read the papers. Oval got its Safer Neighbourhood police team a year ago and it has been working closely with the community on a variety of community safety issues. They are based at Frank O'Neill House on Clapham Road (phone number is 020 8721 2761).

Labour play political games with people's crime fears, and yet are completely out of touch with what is actually happening at grass-roots level around Lambeth.It all goes to show (again) that claims and promises on Labour election leaflets can't be trusted.