Housing chiefs in Medway have pledged "to put things right" after a damning report by the Audit Commission, the public spending watchdog.

The commission gave Medway's housing department a zero rating, only the fourth time in the body's history that a local authority's housing department has been given no stars.

In its report, the commission said standards were poor and added there was little chance of the department improving.

But housing bosses have pledged to get one star within 18 months - or lose their jobs.

Cllr Howard Doe, the housing portfolio holder, was put in charge in January. He told a press conference: “I have a brief to put things right. I stand or fall by that.

“I would expect to be removed from my post if I do not achieve that.”

Cllr Doe - who is a director of a housing association and worked for the housing charity, the Peabody Trust - said: “The Audit Commission report is a wake-up call. We take it very seriously.”

In a separate report, covering the year 2006/07, the council was given a three-star rating overall.

However, that report was prepared before a separate detailed examination was undertaken of the council's housing role following an initial visit by the commission in February this year.