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Lee Jasper, the senior Ken Livingstone aide currently under investigation by the GLA, lives in state-subsidised social housing, despite earning £117,000 a year, the Standard has learned.
Mr Jasper, the Mayor's director of equalities and policing, pays around £90 a week - a sixth of the market rent - for his three-storey, four-bedroom Victorian terraced house on a quiet side street in Clapham. It is a housing association property, the modern-day equivalent of the council house, although not a typical one.
It is period, rather than post-War, it is not on an estate, and it has a 60ft back garden.
The house is in council tax band F, putting it in the top 12 per cent of all properties in its borough, Lambeth.
A similar private house in the area, moments from the fashionable bars and shops of Clapham Road and about 10 minutes' walk from the Common, would cost at least £750,000 and rent for around £550 a week. A one-bedroom flat in the same street is currently on sale for £320,000.
London Assembly members reacted with amazement last night to the news that Mr Jasper, on a salary of £2,250 a week, is occupying a property intended for a low-income family. "The Mayor is always talking about providing affordable housing, but I didn't realise he meant for his own advisers," said the Tory assembly member, Richard Barnes. "Mr Jasper speaks a lot about helping the needy, but by his presence in this house he is depriving a needy family of a home."
There are currently around 13,600 households on the housing waiting list in Lambeth, the seventh-highest total of any London borough.
Brendan Sarsfield, the chief executive of Family Mosaic, the association which owns Mr Jasper's home, said last year that more affordable housing was "desperately needed" in the area.
"High prices mean buying a house in the private sector is an impossibility for many ordinary Londoners," said Mr Sarsfield. "At Family Mosaic we are building what we can, but many more people need housing than we can help."
There is a particular need for large properties of the type occupied by Mr Jasper, since most new-build affordable homes are one- and two-bedroom flats.
Mr Jasper has a large family, but several of his children are believed to have grown up and moved away.
A spokeswoman for Family Mosaic confirmed that Mr Jasper is one of their tenants, with a secured tenancy that gives him the right to live in his house for the rest of his life, to buy it at a discount or to pass on the tenancy to another member of his family when he dies.
The spokeswoman did not disclose Mr Jasper's exact rent, but said Family Mosaic's typical charge for a "larger property" like his in the area is £90 a week. "In line with nationwide policy, we don't currently means-test our tenants to find out their income," she said. "We have had no discussions with Mr Jasper about him leaving his property."
Family Mosaic received a public subsidy of £80 million last year, an average of just over £3,800 for each of its 21,000 properties.
The investigation into Mr Jasper is probing his role in funnelling hundreds of thousand of pounds of GLA money to an organisation, Brixton Base, which appears to do little, if any, work in return and is run by a friend of his.
Mr Jasper declined to answer our questions on how he had managed to obtain social housing. "I'm not prepared to comment about my personal circumstances," he said.
The Mayor's office refused to comment.
Reader views (18)
Elizabeth Obisanya, London, Thamsemead
If you have the audacity to make this an issue of race, you should be ashamed of yourself.
Would you feel the same way if Jasper was white?
The man is on £10 GRAND PER MONTH and he is paying £90 p/w for a luxury property? How the hell is that right?
This is an outrage against ALL decent people. You are a disgrace.
- Emmanuel Musoke, Hackney, UK
Neil wrote : "Disgraceful... What I do find amazing is that it is national policy not to means test people for these houses and flats."
I agree. Take a look for example at Frank Dobson MP, in his "mansion overlooking the British museum" (aka a "mansion" financed for the former leader of the London Borough of Camden, by said London Borough of Camden).
- Jack, London UK
It seems that Nu Liebour,the Scottish Liebour Party and the Ken Livingston are all alike, all in it for the money, and we have to pay for them.
- Nigel, Wimbledon
Elizabeth Obisanya, London, Thamsemead
Maybe you can tell us exactly what "white LDA funded projects that are not catering for black needs" are? What sort of needs are these?
Maybe you're saying that there is some sort of discrimination here?
If so, name and shame. Or, better, make a formal complaint.
- Chuck Unsworth, London
What does this man do for his hugely inflated salary? How the black community must feel betrayed. As for the housing of Mr J, how could his tenancy of the property ever be allowed when he earns such a shed load? He must laugh every day he pays the rent. Whatever were Family Mosaic thinking of - are there any skeletons in the cupboard there? Keep digging Gilligan - more power to your elbow.
- Mickf, Maidstone UK
Disgraceful... What I do find amazing is that it is national policy not to means test people for these houses and flats.
- Neil Grinsell, London
Why don't Housing Associations means-test applicants and tenants? What's to stop Bernie Ecclestone or Lord Levy getting a place under these circumstances.
Labour politicians have been quick to say in the last few years that old people should sell up their family homes to make space for families - why doesn't that apply to Jasper?
This is not about being black, it's about being a hypocrite at the very least.
- Dougal, London
These Nu Labor guys really are something. Shame we have to wait for the election. I guess they must be scared now though because soon IT WILL BE FINISHED!!
- Peter, London NW1.
Shame on Lee Jasper for betraying these communities, and Londoners in general, by playing the race card in order to make political and financial capital. Let's hope this little man's exploits don't set race relations back yet again.
Thanks for nothing Lee.
- Ed, London
What about the good job the man has done? Why is he a freeloader just because he doesn’t want to spend his £2000+ odd which you wished you had! He makes sense.
It is an attack on black businesses anyone can see that..
Black business are already underfunded and we are more likely to be offered loans (those who can get it that is) than grants and then less time to repay it back.
There are other white LDA funded projects that are not catering for black needs e.g startinternational a business premises center in LDA funded Royal Arsenal Woolwich that still has over 10 offices unlet has had it for the past 2 years at least. [Woolwich is a predominately black and asian community area.
- Elizabeth Obisanya, London, Thamsemead
What no-one has bothered to establish is HOW LONG he and/or his family have been tenants. It could well be that he applied for a 'council' house years ago, when earning far less (regardless of their absence of means-testing, which is odd) and was judged to be 'deserving' of one. Now that he could afford better, he stays put, and good luck to him! If he's crooked elsewhere, nick him for it, but the fact that he lives in a 'council' house is irrelevant, unless he broke the rules to get it.
- Sibbo, Crawley
This is disgusting. This man is always stating he is helping black people. The only black person he is helping is hemself. He is a disgrace, but does he care, of course not.
- Vera, London England
Another example of our commissars' policy of "Do as we say, not as we do."
- R M, London, UK
Goodbye Kenneth. Welcome Boris.
- Annabelle, London
I have recently approached my council about renting out my currently empty flat through the local housing association in the hopes that someone less fortunate than myself can be housed. However, I most certainly will not be following through for a number of reasons.
To make my lovely flat 'habitable' (I use council words here) will cost me in the region of £5k. Apparently the recently decorated property may not be to someone's taste - they may not like the very pretty, very expensive flowered wallpaper in the bedroom. Also, the fridge and freezer aren't brand new (but are less than 2 years old), so should be replaced, apparently. They're not mad keen on the washing machine either. Furthermore, the flat is FAR too small for 2 people - in spite of the fact that it has been on the market for an extortionate sum and only couples have been looking at it - indeed it is most unusual to find a flat of this size with only one occupant. The sitting room can easily become a good sized second bedroom and the second living area can easily house a sofa AND dining table for 4.
But of course, now that I know that people earning in excess of £100K are the real recipients of Housing Association property, I understand why I am expected to spend so much money on refitting the property - for a return from the council which is nearly than 30% under the market rate. The kinds of recipients are not the genuinely homeless at all, but council spongers instead. Disgraceful.
- Jane, London
Is that a 'No Comment' no comment, then?
Keep on digging, there's so much more to come out yet.
- Chuck Unsworth, London
Can someone earning £2,250 a week apply to live in a council house? And is this a criminal matter? If it is, then this person must be charged and face the sack and justice. Shame 'Red' Ken continues with such shady characters.
- George, London, UK
I'm getting sick of hearing about how this freeloader is taking us for a ride. He is a disgrace to our black communities. When a black man talked sense like Trevor Phillips, Mister Livingstone sacked him.
Mister Livingstone has played fast and loose with our money on Bob Kiley and now Lee Jasper. The sooner we get rid of them all the better.
- Michael Oudouadje, London
