Thomas Bridge 11 August 2016

Councils call for urgent reform of Right to Buy rules

Councils have called for an overhaul of Right to Buy rules, after figures showed they are struggling to build new homes to replace those sold off.

The Local Government Association said 12,246 council homes were sold off to tenants under Right to Buy in England last year, with just 2,055 replacements started by councils.

It said councils would struggle to replace the 66,000 properties expected to be sold off by 2020 without an overhaul of discounts and sale receipts.

The LGA is calling for tenant discounts to be set locally to reflect local house prices and called for councils to retain 100% of receipts from any council home sold off.

LGA senior vice chair, Cllr Nick Forbes, said: ‘If we are to stand a real chance of solving our housing crisis, councils need the funding and powers to replace any homes sold under RTB quickly and reinvest in building more of the genuine affordable homes our communities desperately need.’

A Department for Communities and Local Government spokesperson said: ‘There is a rolling three-year deadline for local authorities to deliver an additional affordable home and so far they have delivered well within their sales profile.

‘However, we have always been clear that if local authorities don’t start building replacement homes within the three-year deadline, then we will step in and build them for them.’

SIGN UP
For your free daily news bulletin
Highways jobs

Adult Social Worker Mental Health

London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and London Borough of Wandsworth
£38,976 - £52,767
Mental Health Social Worker
Recuriter: London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and London Borough of Wandsworth

Director of Finance (Deputy Section 151 Officer)

Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames Council
up to salary max £121,445 per annum
We are now seeking a Director of Finance and Deputy Section 151 Officer to play a pivotal role Hybrid / Kingston Upon Thames
Recuriter: Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames Council

Principal Engineer - Adoptions

West Northamptonshire Council
£49,587 - £52,860
We are seeking an experienced and motivated Principal Highways Engineer to join our Highways Development Management team at West Northamptonshire Council. This is a senior role leading on the assessment, negotiation, and delivery of highway works linked t Northampton
Recuriter: West Northamptonshire Council

Head of Highway Operations

Derbyshire County Council
Grade 15 £63,002 - £69,103 per annum
As we begin to implement our new structure, we have an exciting leadership opportunity as the head of our new operations service. Derbyshire
Recuriter: Derbyshire County Council

Trainee Roadworker Driver

Derbyshire County Council
Grade 5 £25,185 - £25,583 per annum
We’re looking for Roadworker/trainee LGV drivers to be part of our team undertaking all aspects of highways maintenance and improvement works Derbyshire
Recuriter: Derbyshire County Council
Linkedin Banner