Exempt Rural Communities from Right to Buy

Exempting rural communities from right to buy and cracking down on fraud could help stop vital social housing being lost according to the CIH. The organisation said exempting council houses in areas with a population of less than 3,000 people from the policy would help protect the dwindling supply of affordable homes in rural communities, which is pricing many younger people and families out. The Audit Commission estimates that instances of fraud have increased nearly five-fold since 2009/10 and now cost £12.3m a year. CIH is recommending measures to tackle right to buy fraud, including extending the time local authorities have to process applications and putting mandatory affordability checks in place. Read more on the CIH website.