OPPOSITION politicians have slammed the council in the wake of yesterday's High Court judgement that its decision to cut wardens services was not legal.

Liberal Democrat leader, Cllr Jack Cohen said the decision was “a fatal blow” to Cllr Lynne Hillan, who was elected leader of the council last night.

“This is a complete and utter fiasco all of it of their own making,” he said, adding that Cllr Hillan should “take full responsibility and do the decent thing and resign”.

He added that he was not surprised at the decision.

“We warned them from the outset that they were not doing things properly but the Conservative run Council ignored us.

Leader of the opposition Labour group, Cllr Alison Moore said Labour councillors were delighted with the decision.

“It completely vindicates our concern, and that of hundreds of residents throughout the borough, that the needs of elderly, vulnerable and disabled residents were not properly considered by Barnet when they decided to scrap the wardens.

She said the decision showed “a callous indifference to those who had specifically chosen to live in sheltered housing because a warden would be present onsite.

“To top it all, the Tories in Barnet have now elected Cllr Lynne Hillan, the architect of this disastrous policy, as leader of the council.”

Andrew Dismore, Labour MP for Hendon, said: “I am delighted that the High Court has seen sense, and cancelled Barnet’s appalling decision.

“The judge has clearly looked at the case in detail, and accepted many of the arguments that I put forward to the council before the decision was taken, including the impact on people with disabilities and those with contractual rights to a warden service in their tenancy agreements.”

Mr Dismore also thought Cllr Hillan should take some of the blame.

“Cllr Hillan, who was responsible for this fiasco in the first place, ought to eat humble pie and accept that she got it wrong,” he said.

“Sheltered housing residents in Barnet badly need this service, and the council must now think again, accept the judge’s ruling and withdraw this savage cut.”

New council leader, Cllr Lynne Hillan hit back by saying the opposition councillors had not read the ruling properly.

She said: "The judge has not ruled on contractual agreements as Andrew Dismore has stated, an error on his part which is surprising given his legal background.

"Nor has Barnet’s consultation been criticised. In fact, virtually all of the arguments put forward against the reforms were either withdrawn or rejected.

"The reason the decision was overturned is that, in the judge’s opinion, the entire cabinet must have fully read and understood all the legislation that effects the decision.

"This has not previously been understood to be necessary and sets a precedent for local government that could have huge ramifications, so the ruling must be examined closely before the next step is decided.”