At the first full council meeting since the local elections, Haringey's Liberal Democrats accused Labour of "marking its homework" when the party re-appointed a Labour councillor to chair the council's overview and scrutiny committee.
During Haringey Council's annual general meeting on Monday (May 23), the Lib Dems objected to Labour's nomination of John Bevan (Labour, Northumberland Park) to chair the committee.
The committee is in charge of holding the administration to account and scrutinising the effectiveness of policies before they are enacted.
The Lib Dem opposition put forward a nomination of Cllr Pippa Connor (Muswell Hill) to chair, which was vetoed by Labour councillors.
Cllr Dawn Barnes (Fortis Green), who put forward Cllr Connor’s nomination, said: “We are currently in a totally ridiculous situation where the Labour Party is in charge of marking its own homework. It is high time that the scrutiny is chaired by the opposition.
Labour's chief whip, Cllr Elin Weston (Hornsey), said: "The leadership of this council shows we welcome transparency. We are able to hold the executive to account. The opposition has plenty of opportunity to scrutinise."
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