We need council homes. Over a million people languish on waiting lists for council housing. In the main, these are people who cannot get together huge deposits either for rent or a mortgage, who can’t afford gruelling private rents, and don’t have the ability to buy a home either.
So-called affordable housing is out of reach for millions. 40% of council housing built in the last century is now in the hands of private landlords thanks to Thatcher’s ‘Right to Buy’ – kept in place by Labour and Tories since – and the fact sold homes haven’t been replaced.
Add in to the mix the amount of housing, social and private, that is in horrendous condition with black mould, damp, lack of proper fire access, and everything else making tenants unwell and sometimes causing death.
A tenant who puts their head above the parapet and complains about the condition of their home faces the threat of a Section 21 ‘no-fault’ eviction. The previous Tory government said they were going to end these but, considering they have so many landlords in their ranks (as with Labour), it’s no surprise that they weren’t willing to make it happen.
I think the pivot to 'taxing" developers by making them build “affordable” homes has been horrendous and they should be made to build social housing (some do as my friend works for a not-for-profit housing provider and they occasionally get pretty much given them).
In addition, new homes should be built to the passivhaus specs which would revitalise the home green energy industry, which got hammered by Tory incompetence. Then give grants to upgrade rented accommodation that would further help the sector and would go some way to addressing the cost of heating a home (and should help with damp and mould).
