In this ‘tale of two cities’ Oxford Unite member Dr Hosnieh Djafari Marbini, re-standing as a city councillor, believes that local people working together can truly bring about real change in…Read more…
Cautious welcome for eviction plans
New government plans to ban “no-fault” evictions for renters have been given a cautious welcome by housing campaigners. Although the plans will give renters more security by ensuring landlords…Read more…
Affordable Housing Conference – “A Bold Plan for Local Authority to Deliver it’s own Housing”
My speech today at this “Affordable Housing” conference in central London.
“Thank you. As I think I am the only politician speaking today, I hope you will find our perspective of what we are doing in Newham of interest.
First the bad stuff, whi…Read more…
3m more council homes needed
England needs to embark on the biggest council house building programme in its history if millions of people are to avoid living in unsuitable, cramped or dangerous homes, a cross-party commission…Read more…
‘Reckless’ scheme
Local authorities only have enough funds to replace less than a third of the number council homes sold under the government’s controversial right-to-buy scheme over the past six years, new research…Read more…
Labour’s Housing Green paper – Part 2
Labour should introduce a duty on councils to build council housing in the framework of the housing revenue account Labour’s Housing Green Paper has a fundamental flaw at its heart. It says that a Labour government “will introduce a duty (on coun…Read more…
‘Ambitious plan’
Unite welcomed the Labour Party’s new housing policy review, which was launched today (April 19) by shadow housing secretary John Healy and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. The Housing for the…Read more…
‘Tinkering around the edges’
Housing campaigners were left disappointed this week after prime minister Theresa May revealed policies that did little to tackle a shortage that’s been plaguing the UK for years. Planning…Read more…
25% so-called “Affordable” Housing is not enough! West Ham Branch Labour Canvass & Petition about former Ford Car showrooms development.
Picture collage from last Sunday when I was with Cllr John Whitworth and a West Ham CLP Labour team campaigning in my ward, West Ham. We were again asking for signatures for a branch petition calling for more social housing on the proposed development …Read more…
Where ‘guardians’ dwell
Walk past a boarded up or disused building in London and you may spot a sign informing passers-by that the property is “protected by live-in guardians”. Used primarily to deter squatters and…Read more…
‘Homelessness is a national crisis’
Homelessness is a “national crisis” and the Tories are “unacceptably complacent” about tackling it, a cross-party committee of MPs said today (December 20). A public accounts committee (PAC)…Read more…
‘Come clean’ call
Royal Mail announced yesterday (August 30) that it would be flogging off property part of its central London Mount Pleasant sorting office to private developers Taylor Wimpey to build luxury flats….Read more…
Remove ‘pests’ outrage
An eviction company has been slammed by Unite after running an advert comparing domestic renters to vermin. The Facebook advert for the Remove a Tenant firm, which provides eviction services…Read more…
‘Housing emergency’
Council houses are being sold off nearly three times as quickly as news ones are built, new figures reveal. Under the Tories’ right-to-buy scheme more than 12,000 council houses – worth more…Read more…
Bottom of the table
Poorer families in the UK are much less likely to own their home than their counterparts abroad, new research that highlights Britain’s chronic housing crisis shows. According to Organisation…Read more…
‘More than tinkering at the edges’
Unite assistant general secretary Steve Turner on buy-to-let tax loopholes: “Solving the housing crisis and protecting private tenants facing spiralling rents will require a lot more than…Read more…
At the mercy of landlords
Buy-to-let landlords are using loopholes to avoid new taxes which come into effect April of next year, with many saying that they intend to hike up rents, according to a new report. Chancellor…Read more…
A home is a human right
Families evicted by private landlords are becoming homeless in record numbers because they can’t afford a place to live, shocking new government figures show. Nearly a third of the 15,170…Read more…
Right-to-buy promises failing
Tory promises to build one home for every one sold under the controversial right-to-buy scheme are flatlining, with the National Audit Office (NAO) warning that a “fivefold increase” in new…Read more…
Fundamental right
Laura Pidcock, a Unite delegate from Blyth Valley, today (Monday 26 September) addressed the National Policy Forum report on housing. “Conference, every single person should have a home as a…Read more…