Councils To Use Borrowing Powers To Accelerate Homebuilding Programmes

Last year, the Government accepted the LGA’s call to scrap the housing borrowing cap. The LGA’s new survey shows the move will support the delivery of local housing with 94 per cent of housing stock-owning councils (59) saying they will use the new powers to accelerate or increase their housebuilding programmes to build homes desperately needed in their communities. The number of homes built for social rent each year has fallen from over 40,000 in 1997 to 6,000 in 2017. The LGA said this decline has resulted from the policies of successive governments, such as rules and restrictions hampering the ability of councils borrowing to build. Read more on the LGA website.

https://www.local.gov.uk/about/news/lga-survey-councils-use-borrowing-powers-accelerate-homebuilding-programmes

CLG Issue Impact Assessment On Housing And Planning Bill

The CLG has issued their assessment of the impact of policies and proposals set out in the Housing and Planning Bill 2015. Stock retained councils will be particularly interested in the government's assessment of the impact of the proposals in the Bill to force the sale of high value council housing and introduce a mandatory 'pay to stay' scheme for higher earning tenants. The estimates are that:

·         There are currently 350,000 council and housing association tenants with household earnings above £30,000 who would be required to pay a market or near market rent

·         The number of tenants affected is expected to rise further by April 2017 (the date of the planned introduction) because of rises in the National Minimum Wage/National Living Wage and wage rises generally.

The caseload (number of tenants affected) by 2017/18 is estimated to be:

·         200,000 council tenants; and

·         240,000 housing association tenants

Read more on the ARCH website.

Authorities Use HRA Reforms to Repurchase Homes

Research by Inside Housing into English stock-holding authorities’ use of housing revenue accounts to finance new homes reveals town halls are buying former council homes, sold at a discount, as part of wider plans to boost supply. Matthew Warburton, policy advisor for the Association of Retained Council Housing, said the practice had happened on a ‘fairly low level’ for years but reforms to council housing finance, introduced in April 2012, allowed local authorities the flexibility to do more. ’In the bigger picture, it’s a completely insane use of public money to spend it undoing the consequences of a policy that should have never been allowed to happen in the first place,’ he said. However, he acknowledged buying back homes on existing estates can be cost-effective as maintenance and management arrangements are already in place. Read more on Inside Housing.

Social Rented Housing – Parliamentary Written Answer

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what steps the Government is taking to ensure that local authorities are able to build or purchase properties for social housing; 

(2) how much the Government has set aside for local authorities to build or purchase properties for social housing in each of the next five years

Kris Hopkins [holding answer 6 February 2014]: Following the reform of the Housing Revenue Account and introduction of self-financing of council housing in April 2012, all stock-holding local authorities have a stable source of funding with which to make long-term business plans, which can include the provision of new affordable homes. The Government will also be making available an additional £300 million Housing Revenue Account borrowing, across 2015-16 and 2016-17, to support about 10,000 new affordable homes. In addition, local authorities can bid for a share of the £3.3 billion of Government funding to support delivery of 165,000 affordable homes between 2015 and 2018. An independent review, led by Natalie Elphicke and Keith House, will review the role that all local authorities can play in housing supply, which is due to report by end 2014.

MP Attacks Allocation of £1.4m of Right to Buy Cash

A former Labour housing minister has accused the government of favouring Tory areas when allocating £1.14 million of funding to promote the right to buy.  John Healey, the MP for Wentworth and Dearne, made the claim after questions he submitted in parliament revealed Welwyn Hatfield was one of the areas to receive funding. Welwyn Hatfield is the constituency of former Conservative housing minister Grant Shapps. The government has said right to buy marketing spending was allocated based on levels of housing stock, but Welwyn Hatfield comes 63rd on the list of stock holding councils. Read more on Inside Housing.

Right to Buy Scheme – Parliamentary Written Answer

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment his Department has made of whether councils are informing social tenants of their right to buy.

Mr Prisk: Councils have a statutory duty to inform their tenants of the Right to Buy and to provide information to help their tenants decide whether to exercise this right. I would expect all local authorities with social housing stock to take this responsibility seriously.  A Right to Buy road show is an excellent way to ensure that tenants are both informed about the scheme and are given the information they need to achieve their aspiration of home ownership. My Department is offering support to all councils who wish to hold a road show and I invite my hon. Friend's council, Crawley borough council, to take up this offer. I shall be attending one of these road shows myself.

Labour Councils Bin Fixed-Term Tenancies

The majority of Labour-led councils are rejecting fixed-term tenancies in favour of maintaining security for tenants.  An Inside Housing survey of the 100 largest stock-owning councils in England reveals emerging tenancy and allocation policies and tenancy strategies, to which housing associations must have regard.  Of 50 councils that responded, 29 are in favour of retaining lifetime tenancies, while 16 are backing flexible five-year tenancies, made possible under the Localism Act 2011. The act also gave councils more freedom to restrict eligibility for social housing. Read more on Inside Housing.