Brent chiefs survive move to oust them

Councillors who made budget cuts in children’s services at the time
of the Victoria Climbie case have held on to their positions
despite attempts to oust them.

Ann John, leader of Brent Council, and Mary Cribbin, lead member
for health and social care, gave evidence to the Laming inquiry and
were criticised for the part they played in reducing spending on
services between 1997 and 1999.

Last week a Conservative motion to remove them from their posts was
defeated.

In 1998-9, just £14.5m of the £28m standard spending
assessment was spent on children’s services.

By mid-1999, when the council came into contact with Victoria, the
department was, according to Lord Laming, in a “parlous
state”.

In the Victoria Climbie Report, Laming criticised senior managers
and councillors who had claimed not to know the effect that
starving the department of cash was having on services.

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