LABOUR has pledged to do “everything possible” to battle Oxford’s housing crisis as it defends its commanding majority on the city council next month.

The party controls 33 of 48 seats on the local authority, dwarfing the Liberal Democrats and Green Party – who hold eight and six seats respectively.

It has had a majority since 2010 and increased it in every election since. Elections on Thursday, May 5, will see voters in 24 city wards go to the polls. Labour will be fielding candidates in all of them, with party officials hoping to keep the 16 seats they already hold and make gains in other areas.

Launching the party’s manifesto earlier this month, leader Bob Price said: “Our promise to the people of Oxford is that we will do everything possible to beat the city’s desperate housing crisis and get good affordable homes for everyone who wants to live here.

“We will make our contribution to tackling climate change by reducing carbon use and increased recycling. And we will provide excellent community and leisure facilities for young and old alike.

“We will continue the sound financial management that has retained all our services and avoided redundancies and privatisations in the face of multi-million pound cuts in government grants.”

Labour has pledged to carry forward a number of regeneration schemes across the city that it has started since gaining control of the council, in Blackbird Leys, Barton, the city centre’s West End including Oxpens and Oxford Station and support others such as the redevelopment of the Templars Square Shopping Centre.

A key plank of its housing plans, which include completing the construction of the 885-home Barton Park Estate, will also involve creating a new housing company for the city, which could act like a developer, and maintaining tough licensing rules for private landlords who let houses in multiple occupation (HMOs).

It is also undertaking the £20m refurbishment of the city’s tower blocks, a move that has been welcomed by council tenants but has proved controversial among leaseholders who may have to fork out thousands of pounds to pay for it.

Election agent Mary Clarkson, a sitting Labour councillor in Marston whose seat is not up for election, said: “The economic climate is desperate at the moment in Oxford and we are picking that up every day from people on the doorstep.

“We need to do more to help people in this crisis, but for the city to grow we need more housing. That also means people have to spend less time in cars commuting from outside the city, which can mean a better quality of life for workers.

“If people live somewhere like Barton Park, or the proposed development at Grenoble Road, then they could catch a bus or cycle instead. It is a much healthier balance.”

David Henwood is seeking re-election in the Cowley ward for the first time, after winning a by-election in 2014.

The father-of-two says key issues in his area include parking and the spread of HMOs.

He added: “With more and more houses being converted to HMOs in Cowley and more flats being built, one of Labour’s flagship policies is to make sure the city has quality accommodation for people to live in.

“But we want that to involve an accessible process for landlords. “Since I first got elected people have also had concerns about parking – the area is becoming a big park-and-ride – and so if local people want to explore the option of a controlled parking zone again we can do that.”

Mr Henwood, a design and technology teacher who has a black belt in karate, said he would also continue to champion “the simple things” such as regular visits with council officers to people’s streets to talk with residents about what issues need to be fixed.

“Local people can come out and meet us and have a chat,” he said.

“We usually pick up about 30 pieces of work to follow up just from each of those.”

“We will also keep fighting to keep open children’s centres like the one in Florence Park.

“What I have found so far in my role as councillor is you have got to be accessible to people, willing to meet and serve the public.

“It is a real privilege and you cannot forget that.”

Oxford Mail:

KEY LABOUR POLICIES:

In its manifesto, Oxford Labour sets out its vision for the city and ideas on how to make it a fairer place to live:

This manifesto is positive, deliverable, and draws upon the excellent ideas brought forward by local Labour party members, councillors and those in the communities we are proud to service. Oxford Labour is passionate about ourcity, and wants to make a difference. The city council has suffered significant reductions in government funding in recent years, but is working as hard as it can to address the problems of inequality and our housing crisis, reduce the city’s carbon footprint, make our city healthier, and extend jobs and opportunity to all.

The city council, under Labour’s leadership, has won numerous awards, including the Council of the Year award in 2014. It has a committed, professional and innovative workforce, and under Oxford Labour, the trust put in that workforce, by investing in services rather than looking to privatise them, has been repaid many times over. Yet what matters most is the trust and support of local people, who need a public authority to be on their side, working hard to address the issues that matter.

Over the next four years, Oxford Labour will:

  • Promote the ‘Oxford Living Wage’ (£8.93 an hour) as the minimum rate of pay for all city workers and ensure that it is paid to our own staff, contractors and suppliers
  • Resist the privatisation of council services and instead seek to sell Oxford’s servicesto other private and public sector organisations.
  • Support new housing, with a local housing company and a robust campaign for high-quality urban extensions
  • Work to make Oxford a great city for cyclists by integrating cycling infrastructure into new developments and improving the quality of cycle lanes and parking
  • Support grassroots sport, with backing for local clubs, improvements to pavilions, an outstanding new facility at Horspath Road, and affordable access to our leisure centres
  • Reduce Oxford’s carbon footprint, extend access to recycling, and clamp down on environmental crimes.

Oxford Mail:

LABOUR CANDIDATES IN OXFORD CITY COUNCIL ELECTIONS

  • Barton and Sandhills – Mike Rowley
  • Blackbird Leys – Linda Kay Smith
  • Carfax – Alex Hollingsworth
  • Churchill –Mark Lygo
  • Cowley – David Henwood
  • Cowley Marsh – Sajjad Malik
  • Headington – Marco Pontecorvi
  • Headington Hill and Northway – Nigel Chapman
  • Hinksey Park –Marie Tidball
  • Holywell – Dan Iley-Williamson
  • Iffley Fields – Stephen John Curran
  • Jericho and Osney – Colin Cook
  • Littlemore – John Tanner
  • Lye Valley – Pat Kennedy
  • Marston – Nick Walker
  • North – James Fry
  • Northfield Brook – Sian Taylor
  • Quarry and Risinghurst – Chewe Edgar Munkonge
  • Rose Hill and Iffley – Ed Turner
  • St Clement’s – Jamila Begum Azad
  • St Margaret’s – Catrin Roberts
  • St Mary’s –Mohammed Azad
  • Summertown – Jane Marilyn Stockton
  • Wolvercote – Hugh Michael Tappin