Rents set to ‘skyrocket’ due to government’s new Housing Act

Councillor Glanville, Cabinet Member for Hackney Homes and Regeneration Estates. Photograph: Hackney Council

Rents are set to “skyrocket” and the council will be “forced to sell off hundreds of homes” due to the Housing and Planning Act, Hackney’s housing chief has warned.

Councillor Philip Glanville said the controversial Act, which received Royal Assent last Friday “will be hugely damaging to the social fabric of inner London boroughs like Hackney”.

The Housing Act has been subject to a barrage of criticisms from campaigners, who argue it will lead to ‘social cleansing’ due to the forced sale of social housing and the extension of right-to-buy.

The Act forces councils to sell off high value vacant local authority properties to fund the extension of the government’s right-to-buy scheme to housing association tenants.

It also introduces ‘pay to stay’ charges for tenants in council houses earning more than £40,000 per household a year in London.

Campaigners argue the Act will lead to the loss of social housing, as well a decline in the availability of affordable housing.

Cllr Glanville, who has campaigned vociferously against the Bill since it was first introduced, said: “It does nothing meaningful to address the capital’s housing crisis, improve the stability or affordability of private renting, or deliver on the homeownership aspirations of residents.

“As it stands, Hackney Council will be forced to sell off hundreds of homes to private buyers and many of our tenants could see their rents skyrocket.

“There will be far fewer genuinely affordable properties built on new developments, fewer homes available for struggling families living in temporary accommodation, and the council will end up paying millions of pounds to cover various extra housing costs.”

Cllr Glanville says the Housing and Planning Act will force Hackney Council to sell up to 700 council homes over the next five years, with proceeds going to the government to cover the extension of Right to Buy to housing associations.

He predicts that Hackney Council will have to spend an extra £18 million a year on housing costs to support the likely increase in the number of families in temporary accommodation.

Cllr Glanville said he would continue pushing the government to alter details of the Act to “help address the needs of Hackney and our aspiration to keep it one of the most vibrant, diverse and dynamic boroughs in the country”.

But the government’s Housing and Planning Minister, Brandon Lewis, called the Housing and Planning Act a “landmark” piece of legislation that “will help anyone who aspires to own their own home achieve their dream”.

“It will increase housing supply alongside home ownership building on the biggest affordable house building program since the 1970s,” he said.

“The Act will contribute to transforming generation rent into generation buy, helping us towards achieving our ambition of delivering one million new homes.”