New government must invest in truly affordable council homes
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Version 0 of 1. Letters: Council tenants being forced to move into homes planned for demolition is a consequence of selling off public land, writes Rev Paul Nicolson, while Cllr Matthew Bennett describes the constraints faced by local authorities The consequences for council tenants of a systemic abuse of power called the London housing market are described by Hazel Sheffield (Under the wrecking ball: hundreds of homeless families placed in housing slated for demolition, theguardian.com, 4 November). The homeless families are not “placed”; they are “forced” to move under the wrecking ball by council officials on pain of being declared intentionally homeless, thus losing any right to further assistance from the council. Before 2012 councils were required to offer council housing at council rents to tenants faced by demolition. Since 2012 tenants can be forced by the same threat to take permanent accommodation in the private sector, sometimes tearing them out of their communities, and moving their rent from £90 a week to more than £300 per week for a two-bed home. The low-income citizens of London need public land in order to live in truly affordable permanent homes. Local authorities and the government are recklessly selling that land to the highest bidder. The number of families in temporary accommodation in London has risen 77% to 56,000 since 2010. It will only get higher unless there is a dramatic intervention to buy land and empty property. The banks were saved by quantitative easing. Why not the homeless? Rev Paul Nicolson Taxpayers Against Poverty • Your report on families placed in housing planned for demolition ignores the reality of the housing crisis in Lambeth and the council’s efforts to address it. The crisis is the result of a toxic mix of Tory policies on housing and welfare that should rightly be on the agenda in the coming general election. The lack of funding for new homes or refurbishment is precisely why we are proposing to rebuild some estates that are in poor condition. While every social tenant has the right to a brand new home on the estate, some have taken the option to move to a council home elsewhere in the borough. While the plans for rebuilding come forward, we are using those homes to accommodate homeless families. This provides a home for those families near their schools and jobs, and saves the council money on private rented accommodation. We are working to address any problems with outstanding repairs – though this is often difficult because of the design and quality of these 1970s homes which is why the council has decide to rebuild them. Fundamentally, we need a Labour government that will invest in new council homes, fund councils to refurbish existing homes and remove the punitive approach to welfare policy that is placing so many families in such difficulties. Cllr Matthew Bennett London Borough of Lambeth • Join the debate – email guardian.letters@theguardian.com • Read more Guardian letters – click here to visit gu.com/letters • Do you have a photo you’d like to share with Guardian readers? Click here to upload it and we’ll publish the best submissions in the letters spread of our print edition |