Cllr Diarmaid Ward, Executive Member for Housing and Development, welcomes Shadow Housing Secretary John Healey MP’s speech at the Labour Party Conference.

All eyes are on the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool this week, as the party sets out bold policies that it would implement in Government. That includes urgently tackling the housing crisis by delivering much-needed genuinely affordable homes and empowering private renters.

In London and across the UK, too many people do not have a decent place to live, are on insecure tenancies and find themselves sleeping rough. The Tory Government has had multiple opportunities to tackle the crisis but has missed the mark each time, most recently when it published its housing green paper without announcing any new funding for local councils to build council homes.

John Healey’s speech at Labour Party Conference proved that only a Labour government will tackle the housing crisis. Labour councils will particularly welcome the announcement that a Labour government will support councils to build much-needed council homes, unlike the Tories who refuse to lift red tape that would enable councils to borrow responsibly to build those homes.

Labour-led Islington Council’s top priority is to deliver more genuinely affordable homes, prioritised for local people. Between 2018 and 2022, we will build at least a further 550 new council homes, as we deliver 1,900 more new genuinely affordable homes across the borough. We are investing £57 million into building new council homes, the largest investment in council homes in a generation. However, with a Labour government supporting and funding local councils, we can go further.

Homelessness is also a major problem that can only be solved by fixing the housing crisis. Soaring rents and precarious renters’ rights mean that the end of a private tenancy is now the leading cause of homelessness. Labour recognises this, which it why its pledge to strengthen private renters’ is closely linked with its other pledge to end rough sleeping within a parliament.

John Healey’s speech would have been music to the ears of many private renters. Pledges to end ‘no fault’ evictions, crack down on rogue landlords, legislate for new renters’ rights and control rents are desperately needed to give private renters much-needed peace of mind and security.

I particularly welcome today’s announcement that the next Labour government will back and fund new unions for renters, so renters who feel vulnerable or exploited can join together and defend their rights. Islington Council is firmly committed to supporting private renters but unions also have an important role to play in providing another line of support.

Islington Council has led the way in supporting private renters. I am proud that we have been responsible for two thirds of total fines issued by London councils to rogue landlords since new enforcement measures were introduced in 2015. We also launched London’s first not-for-profit lettings agency, Islington Lettings, where tenants do not have to pay tenancy fees. As well as this, we have helped to improve over 1,400 private rented homes and offered advice to over 2,200 renters through our dedicated reporting line since 2014.

Only Labour will tackle the housing crisis, by supporting councils to deliver more genuinely affordable homes, tackle homelessness and protect private renters. I thoroughly welcome John Healey’s speech at Party Conference, which demonstrates Labour is a government-in-waiting.

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