British nationals will be put at the top of council house waiting lists under plans being considered by Government ministers, according to reports.
They are discussing how to introduce legislation that would require councils to give British citizens and permanent residents higher priority than more recent migrants.
They fear that because housing is usually allocated according to need, foreign nationals with visas can 'jump the queue' if their needs are seen to be greater than British people.
Latest figures show that more than 1.2m households are on waiting lists for social housing and about one in ten of those given a home are non-UK nationals.
The Government's discussions about social housing are reportedly at an early stage and come amid public concern at record levels of net migration which hit 606,000 last year.
It is believed ministers are keen to ensure there are no 'knock-on effects' for groups such as Afghan and Ukrainian refugees who have come to the UK under official schemes.
