Widespread backlash to Labour’s ‘lying leaflets’ reveals monumental housing failure in Lambeth

Opposition candidates standing in the May 7th local elections have united in condemnation of Lambeth Labour’s election leaflets, releasing detailed research that lays bare what they describe as a ‘truly …

Apr 11, 2026 - 15:48

Widespread backlash to Labour’s ‘lying leaflets’ reveals monumental housing failure in Lambeth

Opposition candidates standing in the May 7th local elections have united in condemnation of Lambeth Labour’s election leaflets, releasing detailed research that lays bare what they describe as a ‘truly appalling’ housing record built up over twenty years in power.

Independent candidate Laura Graham, endorsed by Your Party for St Martin’s ward, led the charge, describing an abandoned Tulse Hill development site as “a monument to Labour’s abysmal building record”. Meanwhile, Cllr Scott Ainslie for the Greens and Liberal Democrat Chris Nicholson have supplied Brixton Buzz with forensic rebuttals of the leaflets’ claims and substantial evidence of the record Labour does not want voters to see.

*[Zack Polanski joins Lambeth Greens to welcome Martin Abrams to the party, Ainslie far right]*

Ainslie, Leader of Lambeth Greens, said he had personally checked Planning Application Committee meetings going back to 2022 and found no basis for Labour’s headline claim that the Greens had blocked 857 new affordable homes.

“This 857 figure is completely made up, Lambeth hasn’t even approved 857 affordable homes since 2022 for anyone to try and block.

They are desperately trying to avert attention from the fact that they’ve built no council housing whatsoever in six of the last eight years, and only 72 in all that time.” – Cllr Scott Ainslie, Lambeth Green Party leader.

Government figures cited by the Greens show Lambeth has delivered around 2% of its social housing target over the last eight years. Neighbouring Southwark built 1,742 social rent homes over the same period.

*[Live Table 1006C supplied by Michael Ball, Lambeth Green Party]*

Ainslie pointed out that with four Green seats on a council where Labour holds 54, and just one vote on a six-member Planning Committee, the Greens are structurally unable to block anything Labour wants to pass, and in effect every housing decision in Lambeth over the past twenty years has been a Labour decision.

*[Cllr Adilypour, Cabinet Member for Housing silent]*

Last week Cllr Danny Adilypour, Lambeth’s Cabinet Member for Housing, was silent when asked by Brixton Buzz how the 857 figure had been reached.

However this week, an unnamed Labour spokesperson responded to our article Labour’s election leaflets condemned as ‘pure fabrication’, doubling down on the claim. When BB asked them to verify the figure with a breakdown, council minutes or other public documentation, they too went silent.

Lambeth Labour’s ‘roll of shame’

The Liberal Democrats have compiled a fully-sourced “roll of shame” setting out Lambeth’s record against other councils across the country. According to official data cited by the party:

Lambeth is the most complained-about council to the Housing Ombudsman, with the highest rate of maladministration upheld
It is the third worst council in the country for tenant satisfaction, scoring 47% against a national median of 72%, placing it fifth
from bottom of more than 350 councils and housing associations with over 1,000 homes
It has the longest housing waiting list in the country, joint with Newham, at 38,131 households in 2024/25
It is the only council in the country to receive an emergency loan from the government to shore up its council housing finances
It has paid out more on housing disrepair claims than any other council in the country
It sits in the bottom third of London boroughs for council housebuilding, and is not in the top 50 nationally

In 2024/25, Lambeth completed 41 new council homes, Southwark completed 689, while Lewisham completed 533.

Figures obtained through a members’ enquiry by Cllr Ben Curtis show that between 2021 and 2025, Lambeth lost 253 council homes through Right to Buy sales and demolished a further 18, while building 194 new social rent homes through Homes for Lambeth and Section 106 agreements. The council’s own direct build figure over those four years was zero.

Chris Nicholson, Liberal Democrat candidate for Clapham Common & Abbeville, said:

“Lambeth Labour’s housing record is truly appalling. They are now making wild accusations against opposition parties to try to divert attention from their failings.

But Lambeth tenants suffering from repairs not done or badly done, and homeless families languishing in overcrowded bed and breakfast accommodation because not enough houses are being built, will not be fooled.

Lambeth Labour’s day of reckoning will come on May 7th.” – Chris Nicholson, Liberal Democrat candidate.

“A monument to Labour’s abysmal building record”

*[Your Party supported candidate Laura Graham by the long abandoned Tulse Hill Gyratory development]*

Laura Graham, standing in St Martin’s ward, said the abandoned Tulse Hill development (pictured above) was a symbol of the wider picture. “This abandoned site in Tulse Hill is a monument to Labour’s abysmal building record,” she said “The developers went bust, the council did nothing, and now a housing association is planning yet more shared ownership instead of the council homes Lambeth actually needs.”

“As locals, we’ve discussed how this site could be regenerated into much-needed, truly affordable council housing, but as ever, visionless Lambeth Labour has ignored it for years.

Both of the incumbent Labour councillors live locally but have simply ignored this eyesore while the two new Labour candidates don’t even live in the area.

“After twenty years, the figures show what Labour has delivered. No wonder they resort to lying leaflets.” – Laura Graham, Your Party supported independent candidate for St Martin’s.

With four weeks to go until polling day on 7th May, Lambeth Labour is defending its twenty-year majority against the Greens, the Liberal Democrats, a growing field of independents, as well as Conservative and far-right Reform UK candidates who are standing across most wards.

Brixton Buzz will be setting out the full slate of candidates across each ward and following election developments as they occur.

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UK election law, specifically Section 106 of the Representation of the People Act 1983, bans false statements of fact about a candidate’s personal character or conduct, but does not cover misleading claims about policies, records or statistics.

So Lambeth Labour could literally say that Green Party policy caused the Great Depression of 1929 and are in secret talks with Donald Trump to invade Greenland, and there’s no recourse under election law.

It’s farcical, and slightly insulting, but of course some people can be fooled by any old rubbish that lands in their letterbox, and of course that’s why Labour is silent on where the 857 figure comes from, and not providing any public records to back up the claim.

Sure, perhaps the proof will materialise, but it’s surreal to say the least that the council with some of the worst records on housing in the UK and complete control over all policy in the borough is attempting to pin the blame on the tiny handful of opposition councillors.

It’s also not lost on me that the front page of the new Lambeth Labour manifesto proudly boasts ‘Borough of the Year 2025’ and pictures the West Norwood and Carnegie libraries.

Hang on, doesn’t Lambeth continually cut library budgets and have a long history of trying to shut them down? I’m baffled, just baffled, how can they print this stuff with a straight face?

Of course millions of people still believe that the Labour Party represents the best interests of working people. And some people think the party can move back to the left. Personally I think it’s time to rip it up and start again.