London (Parliament Politics Magzine) – Unions are urging UK ministers to undo “years of damage to the housing sector” by the prior Conservative government and honour its commitment to tackling the housing emergency by presenting a form of rent cap.
Steve North, the leader of Unison, the UK’s largest union; Mick Lynch, the general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT), and Matt Wrack, the general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, are among seven prominent union leaders and 19 signatories, including NGOs, renters’ groups and an estate agency business, to back the proposal.
What is the proposed solution for rent caps?
In a note to Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister, who heads the housing brief, they note: “Between 2021 and 2025, the government is assigned to spend £70bn of taxpayers’ money on housing benefit for private residences, with an extra £1.74bn annual spend on temporary accommodation. More cheap rents would take pressure off councils and the public purse, freeing up funds that could be supported in much-needed social and council housing.”
The signatories demanded the government to devolve controls to metro mayors so they could raise rent caps, “invest in a mass expansion of public housing”, and give councils adequate recourse to “buy up homes that private landlords want to market and convert them into social housing”.
Stephen Cowan, who authored the report, noted the “double-locked” rent caps would not have broken levels of supply or investment, with the support of several economists and housing groups. The letter to Rayner said: “The overwhelming bulk of new homes will be unaffordable to people on lower earnings and there are widespread concerns that the targets pledged will not significantly decrease prices … Generation Rent calculates that an extra 20 homes per 1,000 people would only enhance affordability by 2.8% of average incomes.
“Combined with the reality that major housebuilders such as Barratt are lowering their build targets, it is evident that housebuilding alone cannot tackle the ranking and urgency of the affordability problem.”
What are the implications of rising rents for families?
Daniel Kebede, the general secretary of the National Education Union, stated: “After years of abstinence, the rising cost of rent is pushing residents to the brink. Teachers and school support staff are incapable of keeping up with skyrocketing rents. Children cannot grow when they are growing up in insecure houses or living in cramped temporary accommodation. Schools in London are shutting because families cannot afford to live in the region and education funding is inadequate.”