An ambitious regeneration programme to “build a better Harrow” has been put in motion by the council despite divisions between its two main political alliances.

Voted through at a meeting of the full council on September 22 amid fierce opposition from Conservative councillors, £356 million of funding for the ten-year blueprint to “transform the borough” has now been unlocked and the project given the go-ahead.

The regeneration programme forms part of the Heart of Harrow Action Plan and Opportunity Area – a £1.75 billion investment project in Harrow and Wealdstone town centres taking place over next decade.

The council is aiming to deliver 5,500 new homes, two new schools, a new library, 3,000 new jobs and a new civic centre in that time. 

However the programme was criticised by Conservative group leader Susan Hall, who said it was hastily passed by her Labour counterparts without sufficient discussion or debate.

She also accused senior Labour councillors of deliberately filibustering their own meeting by criticising national Conservative Party policy at length in an attempt to lessen the amount of time available to scrutinise the programme proposal.   

“The Labour Group did not want to allow any discussion of their own policies, despite the Conservatives pushing to stay however long it took to discuss these important issues,” she said.

“£356 million is a colossal sum of money, and for Labour to prevent any discussion demonstrates a reckless disregard for tax payers.

“Any Harrow resident who has ever hired a builder will understand that unforeseen problems and costs occur. Time and budgets can soon spiral on the small of projects. The stakes here are huge.

“If we had been allowed to discuss, colleagues in my group and I had important questions to ask on the eye-watering £356 million.

“This project will double the council’s debt, burdening Harrow’s taxpayers for generations to come. It is vital that the council takes these decisions carefully, not in the reckless way we saw last night.”

Just before 10.30pm – the cut-off point for council meetings – Cllr Paul Osborn moved that the guillotine be extended until after the completion of discussion on the regeneration programme item. However the motion failed when put a vote, with Labour councillors voting unanimously against it.

Council leader Sachin Shah said there were plenty of opportunities for residents and other members of the council to comment, and that all of the opposition’s questions would be answered at a meeting of the cabinet on Thursday.

“We’re really proud of our plans to build a better Harrow.  The investment may seem like a lot of money – but the council will get every penny back, and more, once our ambitions are realised. Every million we spend will unlock millions more in economic benefits for Harrow,” he said.

“Harrow is already getting better - and we are only just beginning our work, with the first new council homes built in 30 years.”

Ten main sites have been earmarked for development as part of the programme, with the first scheduled for completion being Haslam House on Honeypot Lane - a pilot project for Harrow’s Private Rented Sector (PRS) programme - which will provide nine flats for rent in 2017.

Other redevelopment hotspots include the former Kodak site – which Persimmon Homes has recently submitted a 464-house application for – College Road, Vaughan Road, and the Civic Centre itself.