Housing

Lord Martin of Springburn Excerpts

Thursday 21st October 2010 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hanham]

My Lords, so far as I am aware, the housing benefit will continue to be paid but there will be a cap on the amount of benefit available for housing. Effectively, that will mean that some people will not be able to afford the rent that they are currently paying. We have drawn attention before in this House to the fact that there are some people in London living in accommodation that could not be afforded even by investment bankers.

[Lord Martin of Springburn]

My Lords, in most cases, the housing estates throughout the United Kingdom are excellent communities to live in because the tenants themselves run the tenants’ associations, pensioners’ clubs and community centres. If the Government are going to start offering people nothing other than temporary tenancies, that is not going to help stability in our housing communities.

[Baroness Hanham]

My Lords, I happily endorse what the noble Lord has said about the actions of tenants’ and residents’ associations. The improvements in estates are a result of such interest being taken.

The new tenancy arrangements will of course be available to housing associations for the variation in tenure. That will not be a diktat. The tenure and affordable rents will be governed by what is required by those obtaining that accommodation. If their situation subsequently changes, discussions will take place as to whether it is correct for them to continue to use social housing, or whether they should be housed in other ways.