Affordable homes sales questioned
Updated on 26 November 2008
Twice as many affordable homes were sold as were built in England during the past eight years, a housing campaign group has said.
More than 440,000 affordable homes were sold under the Government's right-to-buy programme between 1999 and 2007, but over the same period only 205,123 new homes were built, according to the National Housing Federation (NHF).
Birmingham sold the highest number of council homes between 2000 and 2007. During that period the city lost 12,885 affordable properties. Sheffield was the second worst, followed by Leeds.
The overall number of social homes - both council and housing association properties - fell from 4.3 million in 1999 to 3.99 million in 2007. But over the same period the number of households on waiting lists for social housing increased by 61%.
David Orr, the NHF's chief executive, said: "For those who have been able to take advantage of the big discounts available to buy their home, the right to buy policy has unquestionably been a massive success. But for the four million people currently stuck on waiting lists, the mass sell-off of affordable housing has deprived them - and future generations - of a home."
The group is urging the Government to introduce a temporary ban on new tenants buying their rented homes.
Mr Orr added: "Set against a backdrop of rocketing waiting list numbers, rising repossessions and unemployment, the country cannot afford to sell off any more affordable homes on the cheap.
"Social housing needs to be treated as a scarce resource and protected. The time has come when we must consider suspending the right to buy for all new tenants in order to ease the dire housing crisis and allow the affordable housing stock to recover."
These news feeds are provided by an independent third party and Channel 4 is not responsible or liable to you for the same.
