Morning Briefing: homelessness minister apologises for racist language towards rough sleepers

In the news

The emails, sent before Ms Wheeler joined the government, are reported by The Guardian, which says they emerged during the filming of a Ross Kemp ITV documentary due to air next month.

In them the minister described rough sleepers as “the traditional type, old tinkers, knife-cutters wandering through”, with national charities working on behalf of Gypsies, Travellers and Romas condemning the use of the racist term “tinker”.

Also in The Guardian is a report on the investigation into the death of 64-year-old Stephen Smith, who was denied benefits despite being seriously ill and weighed 38kg (6st).

An internal review by the Department for Work and Pensions, according to the newspaper, found that the department missed “crucial safeguarding opportunities” but that it nevertheless “followed policy”.

The same newspaper has also used the Freedom of Information Act to uncover the news that the outsourcer Serco was handed nearly £7m in fines for its management of asylum seeker housing.

Serco, which nevertheless was awarded £1.9bn worth of new asylum seeker housing contracts earlier this year, was fined for failing to meet performance indicators.

Elsewhere, the Financial Times has published a piece on the growth of private investors owning their own registered providers of social housing.

It asks whether this is a good or bad thing, pitting the claims of private equity giants like Blackstone against the criticism of figures such as the UN’s special rapporteur on the right to housing.

In local news, Room 151 reports that Manchester City Council is lending £25m to one of its joint ventures in order to help the project move forward.

The money will go towards buying land for the council’s Northern Gateway project, which it is delivering together with the Hong Kong-based Far East Consortium.

In Cardiff, Wales Online reports that one of the city’s biggest developers has won planning permission to build a block of flats despite paying nothing towards affordable housing.

According to the website, Rightacres will build 74 apartments, contributing a mere £30,000 for a bike station, a fraction of the £1.4m the council had asked for to pay for infrastructure and affordable housing.

On social media

Yesterday saw Twitter-filled with debate over Camden Council’s development strategy after an article in The Guardian:

Councils-as-developer ventures in Camden, Hackney etc show why direct cross-subsidy is a bad idea. It means the non-subsidised housing must be as expensive as possible; it ties the non-market housing to market conditions rather than to rights; it concentrates risk for the council

— David Madden (@davidjmadden)

Councils-as-developer ventures in Camden, Hackney etc show why direct cross-subsidy is a bad idea. It means the non-subsidised housing must be as expensive as possible; it ties the non-market housing to market conditions rather than to rights; it concentrates risk for the council

— David Madden (@davidjmadden) June 20, 2019

Good to see @CamdenCouncil recognised as a leading council house builder - building the first new homes in a generation. 350 built of 1,100 planned, transforming lives. Where the housing market is failing, councils are stepping in. #CamdenBuilds t.co/lVrKo4rjZi

— Danny Beales (@DannyBeales)

Good to see @CamdenCouncil recognised as a leading council house builder - building the first new homes in a generation. 350 built of 1,100 planned, transforming lives. Where the housing market is failing, councils are stepping in. #CamdenBuilds https://t.co/lVrKo4rjZi

— Danny Beales (@DannyBeales) June 20, 2019