Stock transfer threatens the viability of district councils, one of the leaders of a new campaign to win a better deal for council housing claimed this week
Worcester city council leader David Barlow said taking housing away would "strike at the very core" of district authorities like his.

Worcester and seven other district councils have launched a campaign calling for a "level playing field" for local authority housing.

They claim the current regime, particularly the "Daylight Robbery" housing revenue account clawback, means they could all be forced to transfer their stock within five years.

Barlow said there was a substantial difference between metropolitan authorities, with substantial disrepair problems and a raft of other services, and smaller authorities.

"We don't have education or social services, so transfer strikes at our viability," he said. "We have actually got some very frightened tenants who don't want to leave the council."

Representatives from the eight councils have agreed to a cross-party lobby of ministers to "present the case for council housing".

"We have all shown our management of council housing to be efficient and effective and our highly competitive rent levels enjoy the support of our tenants," Barlow said. "Yet the fact still remains that if the finance regime continues we will be unable to continue to invest in the repairs and modernisation that council homes need."

The councils involved in the campaign are Cannock Chase, Bridgnorth, Bromsgrove, Redditch, North Warwickshire, Wellingborough, Stafford and Worcester. They plan to canvass support from other authorities, as well as working with MPs, MEPs and tenants.

The campaign comes after a Housing Today survey last autumn found 70 per cent of Labour housing chairs wanted to hang on to their stock, despite the growing pressure to consider transfer.

Source

Housing Today