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Government falls further behind Right to Buy replacements pledge
The government has fallen further behind its pledge to replace homes sold under the Right to Buy, the figures on the policy reveal.
Statistics published by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) today reveal 2,722 homes were sold under the Right to Buy between January and March, meaning 66,647 homes have been sold since discounts were raised in 2012.
In the same period, 17,911 replacement homes have been started on site or acquired, with 1,543 added to that figure between January and March.
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This means the government is now more than 1,500 homes behind its caveated promise to replace ‘additional’ homes sold as a result of the increased discounts within three years.
It first revealed it had slipped behind the pledge in March, and promised to consult on additional flexibilities for councils to replace homes as a result. However, this consultation has not yet been published.
Last year, former housing minister and now aide to Theresa May, Gavin Barwell said Right to Buy as a policy is “only politically justifiable” if the replacements pledge is being met.
In total, £5.1bn has been raised through the sale of council homes since 2012 with £224.9m raised between January and March.
But much of this money is hived off to the Treasury or used to pay historic debts. Inside Housing revealed last month that less than half had gone to replacement housing, with the Treasury claiming £920m.
This week the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) called for a suspension of Right to Buy. Terrie Alafat, chief executive of the CIH, said: “It cannot be right that not only are we not building enough homes for social rent, we are losing them at a time when we need them more than ever.
“We support the principle of helping tenants move into homeownership but it cannot be at the expense of other people in need.”
An MHCLG spokesperson said: “The latest figures show councils have delivered 92% of the replacements required to meet the one-for-one target.
“We are ambitious to do more, which is why we will be consulting further to ensure we support local authorities so they can deliver more council homes.”
