http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... Trent.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... Trent.html

Completely different situation from Dame Shirl's gerrymandering.

Presumably Grant Shapps has contacted every single one of those landlords coming up on his Rightmove search to check that they are happy to accept tenants in receipt of Housing Benefit?

Otherwise it's like telling 1,000 unemployed orthopaedic surgeons that there are 1,000 local job vacancies for dentists. About as pointless as Mr Shapps himself.

It's let's play political football with the poor time. Both the government and the Labour party are disgraceful.

Some interesting points here, although I don't entirely agree with the stuff about rent caps – other countries manage it. Indeed, if memory serves, we're the only country in western Europe that doesn't have any rent regulation.

Some interesting points here, although I don't entirely agree with the stuff about rent caps – other countries manage it. Indeed, if memory serves, we're the only country in western Europe that doesn't have any rent regulation.

Newham council have written to 1,179 different housing associations (according to the BBC article quoting the leader of the council) so you would have to be a bit mad to do that to make a political point.

I have to say though the fact they wrote to one in Stoke has highlighted the issue so if that is playing politics with this and got this issue to the fore why is that a bad thing?

Or would you rather it be brushed under the carpet and hope it goes away?

There are 88,000 families in London who are on housing benefit that live in properties with rents above the new government guidelines which means they have to move. Where to?

The problem is obvious. A lack of social housing that the less well off can afford to rent (council houses). Without such property being available the Tories beloved market forces come into play and we end up where we are with private rents through the roof and housing benefit going with it which means we the taxpayer are funding private landlords!

The Tory solution? As Boris has said a "Kosovo-style social cleansing of London".

The sensible solution? Tackle high rents realising first you can't let market forces do that for you because it clearly doesn't work.

As to Snapps he would never countenance private landlords being compelled to take housing benefit tenants so his comments are typical Tory spin.

There'll be 2,800 almost-new, vacant homes available in the borough by the end of the year, why would Newham need to ship families out?

Who will own the homes, how much will they cost to rent?

It's not just Newham.

It's not just Newham.

DaveO wrote:Who will own the homes, how much will they cost to rent? Dunno but this is from the 2012 website: After the Games After the Games, the Olympic and Paralympic Village will be a lasting legacy of essential new housing for east London. It will be transformed into 2,800 new homes, including 1,379 affordable homes. The communities that develop in the area after the Games will be supported by new parks, open space, transport links, and community facilities including Chobham Academy – a world-class new education campus with 1,800 places for students aged 3-19. Quite why all of the 2,800 cannot be "affordable" (whatever that may mean) is beyond me, although a mixed housing development with a majority "affordable" is something of a first in this country. Usually it's the other way round and the "affordable" housing seems to be magically allocated to relatives or friends of councillors and developers. I'd dearly love to see a London Mayor (or Mayor of any major conurbation) follow an initiative like that set by John Norquist, a previous Mayor of Milwaukee and a strong advocate of New Urbanism

DaveO wrote:Who will own the homes, how much will they cost to rent? Dunno but this is from the 2012 website: After the Games After the Games, the Olympic and Paralympic Village will be a lasting legacy of essential new housing for east London. It will be transformed into 2,800 new homes, including 1,379 affordable homes. The communities that develop in the area after the Games will be supported by new parks, open space, transport links, and community facilities including Chobham Academy – a world-class new education campus with 1,800 places for students aged 3-19. Quite why all of the 2,800 cannot be "affordable" (whatever that may mean) is beyond me, although a mixed housing development with a majority "affordable" is something of a first in this country. Usually it's the other way round and the "affordable" housing seems to be magically allocated to relatives or friends of councillors and developers. I'd dearly love to see a London Mayor (or Mayor of any major conurbation) follow an initiative like that set by John Norquist, a previous Mayor of Milwaukee and a strong advocate of New Urbanism