Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of removing the rent cap for tenants of the Grenfell Walkways who have not yet been rehoused on the ability of those tenants to afford their interim accommodation.

The policy for rehousing residents affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower remains a matter for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC).

Tenants who lived in the Walkway blocks who have moved into alternative private rented accommodation will have their rent and service charges capped at the same level they paid for their home in the Walkways until at least the end of June 2018.

RBKC has set out a draft permanent rehousing policy that applies to residents of the Walkways who do not wish to return to their homes. The public consultation on this policy ended on 5 January 2018 and the Council will take residents’ views into account when they confirm a final policy.

We are working closely with RBKC to ensure residents are able to return to their homes where possible. We have allocated £15 million of funds in the recent Budget, which will be matched by RBKC, to invest into the Lancaster West Estate to make it a model for social housing and a wonderful, vibrant place to live.