Thanet Greens Defend Social Housing

Thanet Greens announced today that the Government’s Housing Bill, which has reached the report stage in Parliament, “will have extremely serious implications for Thanet if it becomes law”.

The Bill includes measures which will force Housing Associations to offer their tenants the right to buy their homes at heavily discounted rates, and will force local Councils to sell off a third of their  properties, which will be the most valuable.

Party Branch Secretary Tricia Hartley said “The Housing Bill could easily be the beginning of the end for social housing. If this goes ahead, thousands of homes will be lost from the social housing sector every year, and it's highly unlikely that they will be fully replaced by new properties. The effects of the Bill will also make it extremely difficult for Housing Associations to balance their books and do what they were set up to do, and many may close.”

Andy Jefferson Green Party election candidate for Ramsgate Town Council in the forthcoming Newington ward by election said “Thanet has the longest social housing waiting list in Kent. Passing a law which reduces social housing numbers in Thanet will make an already difficult situation much worse. Because council and housing association are important for people on low income I believe that if they are to be sold then the money raised should be ring-fenced and used to build at least one new home for every one sold. Any new homes built by council and  housing associations homes under such a scheme must be built to the highest environmental standards. This would ensure that tenant's energy bills are kept to a minimum and help meet greenhouse gas emission targets that the UK has agreed to."

Ian Driver who is standing for the District Council vacancy in Newington added “in Scotland the SNP has passed a law in the Scottish Parliament which  ends the right to buy council and housing association homes in August 2016. In WalesPlaid Cymru is committed to using  its devolved powers to do the so the same thing. It beggars belief that in England, despite the overwhelming evidence that we need much  more social housing, the Government is trying its best  to destroy it”

promoted and published by Ian Driver 45 Sea View Rd CT101BX on behalf of Ian Driver and Andrew Jefferson Green Party candidates in the Newington by-election.