Government To Raise Rent For Poor Families

Ministers are cutting Government subsidy to new affordable homes under a new scheme that will replace the current scheme implemented by Labour.

The Government plans to offset the lost funds with private investment, which will be recouped by higher rent. Rent for homes under the new framework will cost up to 80% of market value, even if this is high due to the location of the development.

On top of this, the new Affordable Homes Programme (which is managed by the HCA) allows for the provision of up to 150,000 new homes from 2011 – 2015 will, according to Labour, include 67,000 homes from Labour’s previous program. This gives an actual figure of 83,000 of new homes to be introduced by the coalition Government.

Alison Seabeck Labour Shadow Housing Minister

Alison Seabeck MP, Labour’s Shadow Housing Minister said: “These figures are extremely worrying. Once Labour’s homes are built the figures fall off a cliff. Labour was putting money into meeting the housing needs and aspirations of local families in London but the Tories have come in, cut that funding, and the policies they’re talking about won’t deliver the extra homes we need. This Tory-led government isn’t delivering and they need to think again; their confused and conflicting policies will not deliver the homes which are so desperately needed.”