New Times,
New Thinking.

  1. Politics
4 August 2010

Council homes for life could go, says Cameron

Prime Minister signals the end of lifetime tenancy, as he warns that impact of cuts is here to stay.

By New Statesman

David Cameron has signalled the end of lifetime council tenancies, as he warned that the coming public spending cuts could shrink the state for good.

Speaking in Birmingham, the Prime Minister said that he wanted to see fixed terms of as little as give years for all new council and housing association tenancies, to help increase social mobility.

Council tenants should have to move into the private sector if their earnings improved significantly, he said, to help to tackle the backlog of five million people on waiting lists.

A consultation paper, which could be published tomorrow, will outline the plans. It would involve regular reviews of tenancies to see if the tenant has sufficient income to move to the private sector. It will also check whether still need such a large property, for example if their children have grown up. It will be implemented by local council.

At present, council tenants have tenancy for life and can hand their property onto their children. Housing association tenants have tenancy for life, too, after a probationary year, although they cannot pass the property on.

Select and enter your email address Your weekly guide to the best writing on ideas, politics, books and culture every Saturday. The best way to sign up for The Saturday Read is via saturdayread.substack.com The New Statesman's quick and essential guide to the news and politics of the day. The best way to sign up for Morning Call is via morningcall.substack.com
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how Progressive Media Investments may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
THANK YOU

Cameron conceded that it would prompt “quite a big argument” but said that he wanted to see a more flexible system where people could “move through council housing rather than seeing it as something you get for life”.

The communities department argues that tenancy for life is not an effective use of scarce resources.

The coalition’s housing minister, Grant Shapps, said that those losing out from the current system were the 1.8m on waiting lists for council housing.

Labour said what was needed was “more secure homes, not less”.

Content from our partners
No health, no growth
Tackling cancer waiting times
Kickstarting growth: will complex health issues be ignored?

Topics in this article : ,