Enfield Council’s new leader speaks to Dispatch editor James Cracknell

Ergin Erbil gets digging at Meridian Water, the council's flagship housing development — Ergin Erbil gets digging at Meridian Water, the council’s flagship housing development (credit Enfield Council)

Last September, Ergin Erbil was confirmed as the new leader of Enfield Council following the resignation of his predecessor, Nesil Caliskan, who had become Labour MP for Barking.

After some gentle persuasion through this newspaper, Cllr Erbil agreed to sit down for an interview with me last month, tackling questions on a range of topics including council finances, homelessness, library closures and the Green Belt.

Before going into detail, the Edmonton Green councillor discussed getting into politics in 2018 – aged just 23 – and why he put himself forward for the top job at Enfield Civic Centre last summer.

“Representing Edmonton Green has really shown me the disparities that we have got across the borough,” said Cllr Erbil. “Whether that’s health inequalities or children in poverty in my ward, compared to elsewhere.

“When the opportunity arose to become deputy leader [in 2022] I took it and I’m glad I did. I’ve always been passionate about a fairer, cleaner, greener, safer Enfield which is what we always aspire to deliver as Enfield Labour.

“When my predecessor became an MP I put my hat in the ring and thankfully I got the support of my fellow councillors.”

Cllr Erbil is a father of two young children and while he admits he hesitated on putting himself forward, he doesn’t regret it. “I am so proud and glad I went for it and I think I am doing it justice, but there is still a lot of work to do.”

Caliskan’s confrontational leadership style led to a split within Enfield Labour, with several councillors quitting during her six-year tenure, although Cllr Erbil praises her as the “the first female and ethnic minority leader” in Enfield and for “the amazing things” she achieved.

But will he do things differently? “I want to make sure we get the comms right – that’s not throwing shade at my predecessor, we do some excellent things and I want to make sure we get the message across.”

Cllr Erbil’s family background influences his politics. Like many in Enfield Labour he follows Alevism, a minority faith group that has faced persecution in Turkey over centuries – including massacres. “That’s one of the reasons my family had to migrate [to the UK]. They didn’t come here for the weather, they came here to a liberal country where you can be whoever you want to be, and for a better and fairer future for themselves and their children.

“Enfield is home to the largest concentration of Alevis in Europe and there is a large Kurdish population also, so it is natural that people of Kurdish and Alevi background want to stand as councillors.

“All in all, I am young man born at Chase Farm Hospital, raised in Edmonton […] and I want to work hard to make sure that I leave Enfield better than I found it.”

Ergin Erbil was first elected to Enfield Council in 2018 and became leader last September (credit Enfield Council)

Council finances

No Enfield Council leader has faced a tougher financial situation upon their appointment, but Cllr Erbil claims Sir Keir Starmer’s government has been a big help. “The new government has been so important for Enfield. I don’t say that as someone who is biased to Labour but as someone who has suffered under 14 years of cuts, a crashed economy, skyrocketing inflation, the housing crisis, energy crisis and so much more the Tories mishandled.

“The funding boost from government has been so welcome in Enfield – for example with £17m to tackle homelessness, much more than under the Tories.”

Cllr Erbil also highlights the disproportionate funding the borough has received historically, based on outdated assumptions that inner London has greater need than the outer boroughs. “The Institute for Fiscal Studies recently reported that Enfield is the seventh most underfunded in the country comparably and fairer funding is something I have been lobbying hard on with my friends in government.”

He claims local government minister Jim McMahon has “assured” him that places like Enfield will get fairer funding in future and “make sure that we don’t go bust as a council”.

At the time of this interview being conducted, the council had yet to apply to the government’s exceptional financial support (EFS) scheme, which happened in late January. When I asked him in early January if such a move would be necessary, since both Haringey and Barnet had applied for EFS, Cllr Erbil said: “I can’t comment on Haringey and Barnet but we are not there because we have taken difficult decisions.”

However, just a fortnight later this assertion was proved wrong.

Asked about Enfield’s £1.28billion debt, which is costing the council £28m per year to service, the council leader responds: “Debt is an investment – when you look at our borrowing, most of it is long-term. We have got this money to invest in our roads, our homes and our schools. Roughly 8% [of the budget] is spent on servicing that debt which is actually really good when compared with like-for-like councils.”

Library closures

The poor state of the council’s finances has led to tough spending decisions, including the proposed closure of eight libraries.

This was initially proposed prior to Cllr Erbil’s appointment as leader, however, so might he reconsider? “This issue is very close to my heart and I have asked for a review of the draft proposals,” he says, later naming Oakwood as one that could be saved. But the leader warns: “We do have more libraries than other boroughs, so it is something we have had to review, but we will also improve services at our larger libraries that are more frequently used.”

Neighbouring Haringey Council also consulted on library cuts last year, with a higher level of revenue savings agreed than Enfield, but achieved through reduced opening hours rather than closures. Haringey has nine libraries, while Enfield will be left with eight if all closures go ahead. “It is not just about revenue savings,” Cllr Erbil explains. “Even if volunteers ran them, they still don’t make sense because of energy and maintenance costs, which are unsustainable.

“No final decision has been made and we are actively listening to feedback from the consultation but, with Oakwood for example, it may make sense to keep it open.”

Edmonton Leisure Centre

Edmonton Leisure Centre has remained closed since December 2023, following severe maintenance issues discovered when new operator Greenwich Leisure Ltd (GLL) took over from Fusion Lifestyle. Major investment should reopen it this year, but the GLL deal will see the council lease transferred. “The reopening is a key priority for me and we are on track to do that […] We have invested £2.5m alongside much more from GLL.

“I know there are concerns but I can assure you the swimming pool will reopen, alongside new facilities such as bowling, the largest soft play in the borough, a strike zone, trampoline park and much more. There will be a soft reopening this spring followed by additional facilities in years to come.”

How might the GLL transfer affect operations? “I would rather they have the lease and are in charge than what it was like before. There are strings attached that mean they must deliver a good facility for the people of Enfield at discounted rates and everything else you would expect. We haven’t given them full control, we still have oversight.”

Regarding Fusion, and whether the council might seek redress for the condition Edmonton Leisure Centre was left in, Cllr Erbil adds: “We are exploring all the options but for legal reasons I can’t get into details.”

Ergin Erbil on patrol in Edmonton with police officers (credit Enfield Council)

Road safety

Road safety, particularly on the A10 where speeding is a major issue, is another priority for Cllr Erbil. In December the council secured a court injunction against illegal ‘car meets’, while the leader continues to lobby Transport for London for average speed cameras along the A10 in Edmonton, where 28-year-old Laura Sone-Demetrious was killed last year. “The death of Laura and other incidents have really hurt me personally and I feel the family’s pain,” says Cllr Erbil.

“Since becoming leader I have written to the mayor and TfL and pushed to secure those speed cameras – I have directly asked for them, twice, and have had promising responses. They’ve reassured us they are listening and looking at a business case on it, I am hoping for good news but I will continue to push.”

The housing crisis

Homelessness remains one of Enfield’s biggest issues, despite a recent fall in the number of families housed in hotels. The improvement has largely been down to the introduction of a controversial policy of moving families hundreds of miles away to the cheapest parts of the country, while threatening to withdraw support if families refuse.

Could the policy now be reviewed? “Absolutely, we always review this. No-one should face homelessness and everyone should have a place to call home. It was the previous government’s inaction which caused this crisis to spiral out of control […] now numbers have reduced, I can assure you if the funding circumstances improve we can review that policy.”

The housing crisis has also been used as justification for de-designating parts of the Green Belt, with the new Enfield Local Plan allocating 9,651 homes to various sites. Some of the de-designated areas are council-owned, with a report suggesting it could make £800m from selling sites including Crews Hill Golf Course once they’re removed from Green Belt protection. “We can’t constantly build homes and increase density in the same corners of the borough,” argues Cllr Erbil. “The government and council are aligned that the ‘grey belt’ can provide much-needed housing. We’re talking about car parks and garden centres which, for whatever reason, were designated Green Belt.

“There are some farms and some inaccessible open fields that are included but I want to break the perception it is lush ancient woodland, that’s not the case. Our plan will build more and better homes, making Enfield the green lungs of London. We will deliver new green spaces that are more biodiverse, for example at Edmonton Marshes. More importantly, we will grow the local economy and make Enfield the workshop of London.”

So it’s not about selling land to fix a financial hole? “There is no sinister plan here, this is for the benefit of Enfield, and equity across the borough and not just having high density in Edmonton.”

Cllr Erbil meets a new resident of Meridian Water (credit Enfield Council)

Speaking of Edmonton, Meridian Water is the council’s flagship housing site, where 10,000 homes have long been promised but only 200 have so far been built. “I want to break the perception there are significant delays,” argues Cllr Erbil. “A lot of the delays haven’t been about lack of willpower but on infrastructure works which take a long time; there have been delays on adding two staircases [in response to Grenfell] which came from the mayor and we agree with, but I am happy to report Meridian Water is on track to deliver 10,000 homes.”

The housing crisis is exacerbated by the need to decommission three existing council blocks deemed unsafe. Two years on, some residents continue to live in them, which Cllr Erbil attributes to “legal bureaucratic hurdles” around the purchase of leasehold flats, with all tenants having moved out. “It is a key priority, no-one should be living in those blocks, they are not fit for purpose.”

Regarding the way the council initially handled the situation, particularly at Shires Estate where residents were forced to shower in outdoor cubicles during freezing weather, Cllr Erbil admits mistakes were made and adds: “I can assure you lessons have been learned.”

Cllr Erbil closes the interview by saying his “two pillars of delivery” are “community safety and tackling fly-tipping”. He says there is “no excuse for fly-tipping in our borough” and that the council will take “every step to prevent it and prosecute those who do it”.

On tackling violent crime, he also vows: “Making Enfield safer is a key priority for me […] I cannot accept my children growing up in a society where violent crime is deemed the norm. We can’t have that, we have to leave a better Enfield for future generations.”

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