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Tom Murtha (Guardian letters) asks a simple but politically necessary Q.:

When groups are priced out of any (including social) housing, where do they go?

And as he says: this is a crisis foretold!

#housing #politics

Ten years ago I wrote an article for the Guardian that predicted the slow death of social housing. I was heavily criticised by sector leaders at the time for doing so. My main argument was that various factors were coming together, which meant that in future housing associations would no longer provide homes for poor people. Last week, Crisis produced a report which says exactly that (People on lowest incomes being denied access to social housing, research finds, 8 December). The lack of social-rent homes, the increase in so-called affordable housing, the letting criteria of many housing associations and government policy on benefits all now prevent poor people from accessing social housing. In the same week, Shelter reported that the number of homeless people has reached unprecedented levels. This begs the simple question I asked 10 years ago: where will those people go? And what is the future for social housing if it is no longer able to carry out one of its main functions – to provide homes for those in the greatest need? Perhaps a new form of social housing is required, funded directly by the government, managed locally and accountable to local communities. I wonder what we would call it? Tom Murtha Studley, Warwickshire
#politics #housing
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