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Council explores legal options over Budget policies
Cambridge City Council is to ask local MPs for help in lobbying against the housing policies set out in the Budget and may pursue a legal challenge.
A meeting of the Labour-controlled council on 23 July voted to call on two Cambridge MPs – Daniel Zeichner and Heidi Allen – to take up a series of concerns about policies announced by George Osborne on 8 July. A letter is expected to be sent to the MPs later this week.
A motion agreed by the council warned of the effect of plans for a £20,000-a-year benefit cap, freeze on housing benefit and local housing allowance and market rent for social housing households with incomes of £30,000 or more, with rent receipts going to the Treasury. It said these measures would ‘seriously worsen’ the housing affordability crisis in Cambridge and increase poverty and homelessness.
The council also estimates that the proposed 1% rent cut in social rents over the next four years will lead to a loss of rental income of £14.9m over three years, leading to ‘significant consequences’ for home building.
At the meeting Labour council leader Lewis Herbert also indicated the authority was considering its options over a legal challenge.
Liz Bisset, director of customer and community services at Cambridge City Council, told Inside Housing: ‘We want to explore the legal implications of the government’s plans and we will want to work with other local authorities on this.’
Nigel Howlett, Cambridge Housing Society Group chief executive, who was invited to speak at the meeting, said the Budget policies would lead to his housing association facing loss of income and independence, as well as increasing the cost of future borrowing.
‘The loss of income as a result of the cut in rents – that takes £2.5m out of our business plan over the next four years,’ he said.
A spokesperson for Daniel Zeichner said the Labour MP had ‘huge sympathy’ with the council.
UPDATE: 28.07,15 11.03am
Lewis Herbert, the leader of Cambridge City Council, has issued a statement calling on other social landlords who want to challenge the government’s policy legally to get in touch. He said: ‘We want to hear from other councils and RSLs in the same boat as us who also want to challenge the changes including investigating legal channels.’
