Social housing: Councils demand action to bolster affordable accommodation
The right-to-buy scheme must be reformed to ensure those most in need have access to secure accommodation, councils have warned.
The Local Government Association (LGA) said the scheme, that enables social tenants to purchase their homes with big discounts, meant that 7,449 social homes were lost on a net basis during the last financial year.
Its figures showed that of 10,896 social homes sold through right-to-buy in 2022/23, only 3,447 had been replaced since, in breach of government commitments.
The cross-party body said the budget, due on 6 March, was an opportunity to address a number of flaws that were exacerbating shortages.
The LGA said the main concern was that rising discounts, alongside other measures that restrict councils’ use of right-to- buy receipts, meant that home ownership was increasingly being prioritised over access to secure, safe, social housing.
It said a commitment made by government in 2012 that promised to replace each home sold under right-to-buy with a new social home, had not been met.
LGA analysis found more than 110,000 properties had been sold under the scheme since, but only 44,000 replaced.
The discount rate is set to increase again in April, by 6.7%, providing maximum purchase discounts of £136,000 in London and £102,000 elsewhere.
“At a time of acute housing shortages, where more than one million people are on council housing waiting lists and councils are spending £1.74bn annually on temporary accommodation, the LGA is calling for major reforms,” its statement said.
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January: Priorities for social housing
The list included giving councils control over how money raised from the scheme is spent on development and property acquisitions.
Councils are also seeking powers to protect their investments in housing and greater flexibility to shape right-to-buy schemes to suit the needs of local areas.
The housing issue has been a thorn in the sides of successive governments, with supply failing to meet demand over decades and placing upwards pressure on prices as a result.
More recently, the cost of living crisis and rising interest rates to tackle that inflation have resulted in surges to everyday household bills.
Some councils, including Liverpool, have said they are witnessing record rough sleeper numbers, with local authority and other accommodation being further squeezed by asylum claimants.
Housing minister Lee Rowley told Sky News on Tuesday that the government has “got to have targets”, piling pressure on the Conservative party’s position after an election manifesto pledge in 2019, for 300,000 new houses each year by the mid-2020s, was watered down.
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‘Where should I go? What should I do?’
The government has argued that councils are part of the problem, dragging their feet on planning applications especially for building on brownfield sites.
Its focus in England is on smoothing planning processes covering derelict sites to deliver more homes in towns and cities.
Labour says an overhaul of the planning system that it would introduce, if elected, would unlock the construction of 1.5 million new properties over the course of the next parliament.
Darren Rodwell, LGA housing spokesperson and Labour leader of Barking and Dagenham Council, said: “We are facing a significant housing shortage in this country which has pushed council budgets to the brink as they struggle to find suitable homes for an ever-increasing number of people.
“Whilst the right-to-buy can and has delivered homeownership for many, the current form does not work for local authorities and those most in need of housing support are simply unable to access secure, safe social housing.
“It is time for the government to overhaul a system that has seen our social housing stock significantly diminish.”
A Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities spokesperson responded: “The government remains committed to the right-to-buy, which since 1980, has helped over two million social housing tenants to become homeowners.
“We are committed to increasing the supply of affordable housing, and our £11.5bn Affordable Homes Programme is delivering well over a hundred thousand affordable homes – including tens of thousands of new homes specifically for social rent.
“We have also made it easier for councils to deliver replacement homes and to provide more safe, secure and decent council housing for those that need it, and we have given them more control over how they spend their right to buy receipts.”
Four people have been arrested by police investigating cyber attacks targeting M&S, Co-op and Harrods.
A 20-year-old woman and two males, both aged 19, and a male aged 17, were detained in London and the West Midlands this morning as part of a National Crime Agency (NCA) operation.
They were arrested at their homes on suspicion of Computer Misuse Act offences, blackmail, money laundering and participating in the activities of an organised crime group.
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Electronic devices were seized from the suspects and are currently being analysed by forensic experts.
M&S halted online orders, and shelves were empty in shops after the cyber attack on the retailer earlier this year.
The initial hack into the retailer’s systems took place in April through “sophisticated impersonation” involving a third party.
Disruption is expected to continue at the retailer until the end of this month.
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Mickey Carroll in May answered why M&S cyber attack was so bad.
The Co-op and Harrods were also subsequently targeted by hackers.
Paul Foster, head of the NCA’s National cybercrime unit described the arrests as a “significant step” in their investigation, which remains “one of the Agency’s highest priorities”.
He added: “…our work continues, alongside partners in the UK and overseas, to ensure those responsible are identified and brought to justice.”
The National Crime Agency is keen to “signal” to “future victims” the “importance of seeking support and engaging with law enforcement”, stating that “the NCA and policing are here to help”.
The NCA has also thanked M&S, Co-op and Harrods for their support in their investigations.
The arrests, which took place early on Thursday morning, were supported by officers from the West Midlands Regional Organised Crime Unit and the East Midlands Special Operations Unit.
Earlier this week, the chairman of M&S told MPs that the hack had been “traumatic” and like an “out-of-body experience”.
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Archie Norman, however, refused to be drawn on whether the retailer had paid any ransom.
“We are not discussing any of the details of our interaction with the threat actor, including this subject, but that subject is fully shared with the NCA,” he said.
It is estimated that the cyber attack will cost M&S up to £300m this year.
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Days after M&S was attacked, the Co-op was targeted and forced to shut down some internal systems.
Harrods was then hacked, and also had to shut some systems despite its website and shops continuing to operate.
Of those arrested, a 17-year-old British male and a 19-year-old Latvian male were from the West Midlands.
A 19-year-old man was from London and a 20-year-old woman from Staffordshire.
Royal Mail is to be allowed to scrap Saturday second-class stamp deliveries, under a series of reforms proposed by the communications regulator.
From 28 July, Royal Mail will also be allowed to deliver second-class letters on alternate weekdays, Ofcom said.
The post will still be delivered within three working days of collection from Monday to Friday.
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The proposals had already been raised by Ofcom after a consultation was announced in 2024, and the scale back was proposed early this year.
Royal Mail had repeatedly failed to meet the so-called universal service obligation to deliver post within set periods of time.
Those delivery targets are now being revised downwards.
Rather than having to have 93% of first-class mail delivered the next day, 90% will be legally allowed.
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The sale of Royal Mail was approved in December
The target for second-class mail deliveries will be lowered from 98.5% to arrive within three working days to 95%.
A review of stamp prices has also been announced by Ofcom amid concerns over affordability, with a consultation set to be launched next year.
It’s good news for Royal Mail and its new owner, the Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky. Ofcom estimates the changes will bring savings of between £250m and £425m.
A welcome change?
Unsurprisingly, the company welcomed the announcement.
“It is good news for customers across the UK as it supports the delivery of a reliable, efficient and financially sustainable universal service,” said Martin Seidenberg, the group chief executive of Royal Mail’s parent company, International Distribution Services.
“It follows extensive consultation with thousands of people and businesses to ensure that the postal service better reflects their needs and the realities of how customers send and receive mail today.”
Citizens Advice, however, doubted whether services would improve as a result of the changes.
“Today, Ofcom missed a major opportunity to bring about meaningful change,” said Tom MacInnes, the director of policy at Citizens Advice.
“Pushing ahead with plans to slash services and relax delivery targets in the name of savings won’t automatically make letter deliveries more reliable or improve standards.”
Acknowledging long delays “where letters have taken weeks to arrive”, Ofcom said it set Royal Mail new enforceable targets so 99% of mail has to be delivered no more than two days late.
Changing habits
Less than a third of letters are sent now than 20 years ago, and it is forecast to fall to about a fifth of the letters previously sent.
According to Ofcom research, people want reliability and affordability more than speedy delivery.
Royal Mail has been loss-making in recent years as revenues fell.
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In response to Ofcom’s changes, a government spokesperson said: “The public expects a well-run postal service, with letters arriving on time across the country without it costing the earth. With the way people use postal services having changed, it’s right the regulator has looked at this.
“We now need Royal Mail to work with unions and posties to deliver a service that people expect, and this includes maintaining the principle of one price to send a letter anywhere in the UK”.
Ofcom said it has told Royal Mail to hold regular meetings with consumer bodies and industry groups to hear their experiences implementing the changes.
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