A great deal to be done
The seemingly interminable process of dismantling the reviled English council housing finance system reached a significant milestone this week as the consultation closed on the previous government’s proposals to reform the housing revenue account.
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Housing minister Grant Shapps has already committed to weighing up the responses before deciding how to proceed. The responses which we reported on last month showed overwhelming support for proceeding with the plans to free councils from the central HRA system in exchange for taking on a share of the £25.1 billion debt.
There is concern around the details but the clear message to Mr Shapps is that councils are keen to do a deal. However, should the minister decide to go back to the drawing board, he must bear in mind that a number of councils will shortly have to cut planned repairs and maintenance in order to balance the books. There is a solution to prevent this that will ultimately slash billions from the public debt pile; Mr Shapps should grant it.