Housing Bill Would Spell Loss Of 80,000 Council Houses

Town hall leaders have criticised the government’s drive to boost homeownership, warning that it would lead to the loss of 80,000 council houses in the next four years and add more than £200m a year to the housing benefit bill. Lord Porter, the leader of Conservative councillors across the country, said the planned sell-off of council houses would drive people into the more expensive private rented sector and reduce their chances of saving enough to put down a deposit on their own home. The Local Government Association (LGA), which Porter also chairs, forecast that on top of the 66,000 council houses expected to be sold to tenants by 2020, town halls would also be forced to sell at least 22,000 of their highest value council homes to fund the sale of housing association homes to tenants. Read more on the Guardian website.