In the balance
In recent weeks the leaders of the three main political parties have all been interviewed by Inside Housing. With the make-up of the next UK government still in doubt, here is what the various options could mean for the housing sector.
A Conservative minority government/Liberal Democrat coalition
The Conservatives could form a minority government, or form a coalition with one of the smaller parties to get an overall majority. A Conservative or Conservative-led government would:
- Call into question the future of regulator the Tenant Services Authority. Shadow Communities and Local Government minister Stewart Jackson has said the Tories would ‘abolish the TSA’, although party leader David Cameron did not go as far when quizzed by Inside Housing, saying only that a Conservative government would ‘look very carefully to see whether it [the TSA] is providing a good service’.
- Give the mayor of London greater powers over social housing. The party has said the London Homes and Communities Agency would be ‘incorporated’ into the Greater London Authority, giving the mayor control of its £1.1 billion annual budget.
- Reward ‘well behaved’ social tenants with a stake in their homes – a Conservative housing green paper suggested a 10 per cent stake would be given in exchange for five years of good behaviour.
- Introduce a right to move that would allow social tenants to demand their landlord sells their home and uses the proceeds to buy them one elsewhere in the country.
- Introduce a £20 billion scheme to make homes more energy efficient.
If the Conservatives enter a coalition with the Liberal Democrats, they could be forced to take some of their policies on board (see below).
A Labour/Liberal Democrat coalition
A coalition government would draw on the policies of both parties, and as such its intentions at this stage are unclear. In the run up to the election the Labour government set out a range of pledges:
- To reform local authority housing finance for councils to build up to 10,000 homes in five years
- A new ‘warm homes’ standard to improve the energy efficiency of up to 7 million homes
- Reform of the housing benefit regime
- The creation of a private landlord register
- Homeownership schemes to help working families onto the housing ladder.
The Liberal Democrats have promised:
- To set up an ‘eco-cashback scheme’ giving families £400 grants to improve the energy efficiency of their homes
- To invest £3.1 billion in a jobs and infrastructure package designed to bring 250,000 empty homes back into use – 100,000 of which would be for social housing
- Party leader Nick Clegg also said sheltered housing providers should have to ballot residents before removing warden services.
For more see the full interviews with Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg
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