Morning Briefing: Corbyn warns against social cleansing in Manchester

“Because of what we’ve seen in London – and I know about it in my own constituency – is essentially a social cleansing of central London, central areas of London, by developers.”

It follows a row in Manchester about the low levels of affordable housing in developments in the city centre. There have been 19 schemes given planning permission with affordable housing in the city centre in the past two years, which will provide 850 affordable homes, 136 of which will be social housing. But other schemes containing 15,000 homes will deliver just 65 shared ownership properties with many containing no affordable housing at all, according to recent investigations by The Guardian.

Also from the Manchester Evening News, is a report about how the region’s new housing deal with government will see 110 new social and affordable homes built in Collyhurst.

The Birmingham Post carries a story about how the Conservatives would increase residency requirements for council housing if they win local elections in May. Currently residency requirments sit at one year but the party would up it to five.

Liverpool Council’s council housing company will invest £50m in building 100 new homes in the next 18 months, The Liverpool Echo reports.

Chesterfield will see a house building boom, with almost 2,000 homes to be built in the city during the next five years, The Derbyshire Times reports.

The Financial Times carries a report on how China is looking to use Real Estate Investment Trust funding to ease housing issues. Investors have been increasingly seeking opportunities to use this form of funding in the UK recently. It follows president Xi Jingpin’s statement that “houses are for living in, not for speculation”.

In an interview with The Times yesterday, Steve Morgan, founder of housebuilder Redrow, says that it would have been impossible for him to launch his business today because of Britain’s bureaucratic planning system.

On City Metric, professor of housing and social research at DeMontford University, argues that Theresa May’s recent ‘tinkering’ with planning laws is not enough to solve the housing crisis.

Much of the national press has also picked up Sajid Javid’s statement yesterday about the slow rehousing of Grenfell survivors. You can read our piece here.

A survey by design agency McBains warns only 16% of the homes built over the next year will be for social housing.

There is also a study released this morning by the Institute for Fiscal Studies looking into whether adult social care should be considered either a local or a national issue.

In Scotland, the government has committed a further £40m to its affordable housing bonds programme.

Elsewhere, The King’s Fund has published a document looking at the connections between housing and social care and how health authorities could better use housing providers. It is supported by the National Housing Federation.

On inews.co.uk there is a call for a national strategy for better housing for people with disabilities.

And the Residential Landlords Association (RLA) is warning that plans to cap deposits for private sector tenancies at six-weeks’ rent is “a charter for rent cheats”.

David Smith, policy director for the RLA, said: “Ministers need to address the problem of tenants failing to pay rent every bit as strongly as rogue landlords.”

On social media

Want to see a short video of the housing minister on a building site? Of course you do.

Visiting the Heyford Park development housing minister @DominicRaab on our new £215m housing deal set to deliver 100,000 much needed homes in #Oxfordshire #UKHousing #unlockinghousing pic.twitter.com/aqjhhjJC49

— Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Govt (@mhclg)

Visiting the Heyford Park development Housing Minister @DominicRaab on our new £215m housing deal set to deliver 100,000 much needed homes in #Oxfordshire #UKHousing #unlockinghousing pic.twitter.com/aqjhhjJC49

— Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Govt (@mhclg) March 22, 2018

And one from the archives that is getting a few laughs

Kids - this is called ’a political promise’. pic.twitter.com/FK4tcf4jhW

— Henry Pryor (@HenryPryor)

Kids - this is called 'a political promise'. pic.twitter.com/FK4tcf4jhW

— Henry Pryor (@HenryPryor) March 22, 2018

What’s on

• In London today from 10am, Chartered Institute of Housing president Alison Inman will launch a conference bringing together domestic abuse and housing professionals. You can follow events using the hashtag #DAhousing18