Council backs Lib Dem housing plans

2.41.15pm GMT Wed 26th Nov 2008

Norwich City Council last night backed Liberal Democrat proposals to solve the social housing crisis in Norwich. The council backed plans to open talks with private developers to see if the authority can buy up unsold properties and sites from building companies to replenish the housing stock.

It has been reported in recent months that Norwich is facing an increasing shortage of social housing and a growing problem of private development being left unfinished, unsold or empty as the credit crunch bites the housing sector. Under Lib Dem plans, the council would buy up unused property and land and use it as social housing. The scheme is already being successfully pioneered by Newcastle City Council.

In supporting the motion David Fairbairn, Liberal Democrat Councillor for Lakenham, commented "'The situation in the city is that there are lots of homes without people and there are lots of people looking for homes. This motion is an attempt to bridge the gap between these two situations and get families off the social housing waiting list and into homes."

Latest figures show that, according to the National Housing Federation (NHF), one in every 16 households in the East of England are on a social housing waiting list. The last year has seen a steady rise in the number of people on social housing lists in Norwich.

Moving the motion Judith Lubbock, Liberal Democrat Councillor for Eaton, said it was important councils looked at ways of helping both residents and businesses during the economic downturn. "With developers finding it harder to sell their properties it would make sense for the registered social landlords to be able to buy them and the council making up the difference they have to pay." she said. "The time is right to ask government to relax their borrowing rules to allow local authorities to be able to do something practical."

The motion was passed with unanimous support from all four parties and will be referred to the Council's Executive.

Notes:

The Liberal Democrat Group motion passed at last night's Norwich City Council meeting:

"This Council Notes:

The amount of social housing nationally has dwindled from 4.386 million social homes to rent in England in 1997 to just 3.936 million social homes in 2006 while the number of households on social housing waiting lists has risen almost 70% to 1.67 million;

That, according to the National Housing Federation (NHF), one in every 16 households in the East of England are on a social housing waiting list;

The last year has seen a steady rise in the number of people on social housing lists in Norwich;

That many newly built flats and houses in the City are unsold or have been left empty due to the sharp economic downturn and associated problems;

The policy of Newcastle City Council to buy houses on a new private development, which was in severe financial trouble, and make the homes available for affordable rents;

Council Resolves to ask the Executive to:

1. explore the possibility of this Council buying up unsold properties and sites from building companies in order to replenish the social housing stock and help the property sector, using existing funding steams or asking the government to relax borrowing rules, allowing councils and social landlords to borrow against their assets to fund such a scheme;

2. open communication with private developers to see if localised solutions can be found to enable unused or unsold private housing to be used as social housing.

3. use the strong partnership arrangements which Norwich City Council has developed with local Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) to continue to work with these RSLs to identify local solutions to enable unused or unsold private housing to be used for social housing."

More information on the Liberal Democrat plans including quotes from Vince Cable MP can be found here: http://www.libdems.org.uk/home/liberal-democrats-approve-plans-to-tackle-mortgage-and-housing-crisis-551216;show

More information on the scheme in Newcastle can be found here: http://www.libdemvoice.org/lib-dems-in-newcastle-in-brave-bold-commendable-intervention-in-housing-market-3330.html