Osborne Is 'Deliberately Misleading People' On Housing

Labour has accused George Osborne of ‘deliberately misleading people’ by claiming the coalition is funding an expanded social housing programme. In October 2010 the chancellor announced that the government would no longer fund the development of social rented homes and would instead subsidise a new tenure called affordable rent which charges higher rents of up to 80 per cent of market rates. However, in an interview Mr Osborne told BBC Radio 5 Live the coalition was funding ‘the largest programme for building social housing for a generation’. Shadow housing minister Emma Reynolds attacked Mr Osborne’s comments for badging the £1.8 billion affordable rent programme as being the same as social rent. Read more on Inside Housing.