Following relentless campaigning by Islington Labour councillors and over 1,000 residents who signed the ‘Axe the Tory Tenant Tax’ petition, the Tory Government announced this week that the unfair Tenant Tax will be scrapped.
The Tenant Tax would have seen working people forced to pay extra tax, simply because they are council tenants. This would have hit families with a household income over £40,000 per year, seeing those affected pay 15% more tax.
In an astonishing U-turn, the Tory Government announced on Monday 21st November that the Tenant Tax would no longer be compulsory for local authorities. Islington Council will formally agree not to implement the policy at its Executive Meeting on Thursday 24th November.
The tax would have been a disincentive to work, as tenants could have been pushed over the Tenant Tax threshold by taking on a job or promotion.
But there is more work to do to fight the Tories’ damaging housing plans and we need residents’ continued support to send a message to the Government.
Please sign the petition to tell the Tories that our homes are not for sale.
The Government still plans to force councils to sell hundreds of council homes each year, making it even harder for local people to find an affordable home in Islington.
The Tory Government still does not understand that everyone has a right to feel secure in their home, as it is determined to push ahead with its ban on lifetime tenancies. This would end the security that Islington Council tenants are currently offered.
Cllr Diarmaid Ward, Executive Member for Housing and Development, said: “Islington Labour has been campaigning against this new tax on working people since it was first announced. We are pleased the Government has listened and will not now force working people to pay more tax, simply because they are council tenants.
“I want to thank all the local residents who have supported our campaign against the Tenant Tax, including those who got in touch with their stories of how this new tax on working people would have had a really damaging impact on their lives.
“We will continue to campaign against the Government’s plans, which do nothing to deal with the housing crisis.”
Pictured – Cllr Diarmaid Ward, Executive Member for Housing and Development