Labour and Conservative Councillors of the East Riding of Yorkshire Council are united in their determination to safeguard Council Houses for future generations of East Riding tenants.
Recent rumoured changes to the benefits system suggested that the Government was considering a proposal to give Council Houses to people who shift from being unemployed and on benefits to being employed and off benefits.
Locally, both Conservative and Labour Councillors are of the view that such a system of rewards would be deeply damaging to the East Riding Council’s ability to provide sufficient Council Houses to cater for local demand.
George McManus said;
“The Government is determined to ruin our public services. Following the disastrous top down ‘re-organisation of the NHS, they introduced a new system for financing of council housing. This led to ERYC borrowing an extra £200m, debt which the next generation will pay for.”
“They now wish to use council housing as a reward for people who move out of unemployment into jobs. Its cruel and unfair. I’m glad that local Tories are following Labour’s lead in opposition to this bullying approach.”
Mover of the Motion Councillor Keith Moore, Goole North Ward Labour said;
“Cross-Party support on this important issue is very much welcome as the proposals make no sense. Under the proposed scheme tenants accepting a free house would no longer be eligible for housing benefit and if they sold the house within 3 years would have to pay back 35% of the proceeds in tax.”
“To give away Council Houses would be another nail in the coffin for affordable housing. Whilst I fully support the aspiration of home ownership this should not be at the expense of thousands of East Riding residents who are on the waiting list, and in any event these are not the governments to give away, they are part of this Council’s housing stock.”
Councillor Symon Fraser, Conservative lead on housing commented;
“The whole idea of handing over Council Houses as a reward for people getting back into work is flawed. Not all Councils have retained Council Houses; how would this proposal be operated across the whole country? The answer is that it cannot.”
Councillor Fraser added;
“The Government forced a whole a new system of self-financing on Councils who have Council House stocks; how on earth do the Government expect Local Authorities to fund this idea without severely damaging our ability to provide housing? Let me be clear I fully support the aim of getting people back into employment.”
The Motion “this Council agrees to write to the appropriate Minister requesting that any proposals to give away Council housing be abandoned” is being put forward by Councillor Keith Moore of the Labour Group and seconded by Councillor Symon Fraser of the Conservative Group.
Councillor Fraser concluded;
“At this stage of the Parliament, so close to a General Election, it would seem wise to write to both the Conservative Minister and the Labour Shadow Minister to express our concerns over the idea of giving away Council Houses.”
