Following the news that councils will make a ‘major contribution’ to asset sales by selling housing, we’ve been trying to find out how ‘major’ that might be.
The Communities and Local Government department said it didn’t know, but maybe we should ask the Treasury. The Treasury said it did know, but it wasn’t going to tell us.
A cynic might think that is because the numbers don’t really stack up. Earlier this year we heard that right to buy sales had fallen ‘off the cliff’, so that wouldn’t be altogether surprising.
Apparently the figures will be available when the pre-Budget report is published later in the autumn, so we’ll keep an eye out of those.
In the meantime, it does look like the government is wondering if it can use housing sales to help with its debt. A statement from CLG says: ‘Every part of government has a responsibility to do its part to make savings and cut the national debt that includes local government.’
However it goes on to say: ‘Local authorities will remain in control of their assets and decisions on what to sell off will be taken in consultation with communities as is the normal practice.’
Elsewhere, Margaret Thatcher is back in the news. Metro reports that a group of squatters living in her street managed to get £45 together to buy her a book on English heritage and the history of housing for her 84th birthday.
They might have undermined the gesture slightly, however. Firstly by being squatters. And secondly by wrapping the gift in a map of Europe.
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Readers' comments (5)
Stephen West | 19/10/2009 9:55 am
Right to Buy sales will hardly go back to their pre 2004 level if the Labour Government is returned to office after the next General Election, as they have never sadly been the champions of mass home ownership of tenants wanting to exercise their Right to Buy their council homes. Remember it was two Jags and four homes John Prescott, as the then Deputy Prime Minister who dramatically reduced the discount available to tenants wishing to buy their council homes from a maximum of £38k to £16k.
Sales of council homes have slumped dramatically year on year ever since and together with the uncertainty of the present financial crisis together with the fall in property values added to this, the Governments Decent Homes Standards and future home energy efficiency standards and Local Authorities and Registered Social Landlords piling up the debts on leaseholders, what with legislation that still does not protect leaseholders of RSL's who have to pay Vat on costly repairs unlike local authority leaseholders who do not and for leaseholders of Local Authorities and RSL's who have to pay for improvement works to their blocks and estates unlike private leaseholders who do not have to pay for improvements, just who in their right mind, would want to exercise their Right to Buy their council homes unless the discounts available were increased considerably to make it worthwhile to tenants.
Stephen West
Acting Chairman
Orbit Bexley Housing Association Independent Leaseholders Group
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Jay | 19/10/2009 12:56 pm
The bottom line is tenants cannot afford to buy their homes because the prices have escallated and the discounts were reduced. Untill the discounts are revisited and incomes are considered then this will still be the case.
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Joe Halewood | 19/10/2009 1:53 pm
Selling off the family silver has always been the option of last resort in any other walk of life. RTB, just like all other national assets (Gas, Electric etc) are fundamentally flawed. Just as we now see proposals for selling off the meterological service being the latest national asset proposed to sold off to fund more tax cuts presumably by the Tories.
If RTB is right in principle then it must also be right for RTB to apply to private sector properties - Yet i dont see any adherents especially from the right wing parties to apply this "right" there.
Its not about increasing discounts its about stopping this insane policy of RTB - every one RTB sale crates an even bigger problem of lack of supply and further and increased cos in meeting that supply need - it is economic madness as well as amoral.
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gatwick | 21/10/2009 11:44 am
Mr Halewood.
When a right to buy is completed the local authority recieve the market value less a modest discount. From then on the leaseholder is responsible for paying for the maintenance of the property. A great deal for the local authority.
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Joe Halewood | 21/10/2009 1:44 pm
Gatwick - please see elsewhere on this site what happens when a RTB is concluded in monetary terms as it significantly contradicts what you suggest.
Secondly, RTB owners dont all become leaseholders, in fact outside London this is very rare.
Finally, do you wish to buy a national asset at a discount and then expect the council to still maintain!!!
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