A housing policy in disarray
Worryingly for the housing and construction sectors, personnel changes may signal downgrading of housing policy at a time when housing is growing in importance.
Kevin Gulliver
Website Kevin writes for Left Foot Forward about housing and the impact of government policy on low income communities. He is the Director of Birmingham-based research charity the Human City Institute and Chair of the Centre for Community Research but writes in a personal capacity; Kevin's interests are social and economic policy, especially relating to housing, health, communities and inequalities.
Towards a one nation housing policy
Yesterday the Labour Housing Group published its long-awaited ‘One Nation Housing Policy’ paper – ’50 Policies for Labour’ – beginning the process of providing Labour with a coherent housing strategy for the next General Election.
We need less corporate socialism for private sector landlords
The UK housing debate is increasingly focused on who the housing system serves: the nation’s needs or vested interests that seek to preserve tenure-based wealth inequalities.
A challenge to ‘In the Black Labour’: Housing benefit will continue to rise unless we tackle the buy-to-let market
In a follow-up to their 2011 report In the Black Labour, Graeme Cooke, Adam Lent, Anthony Painter and Hopi Sen reaffirm their commitment to fiscal conservatism.
Welfare reforms are cementing social tenants at the bottom of the economic pile
The picture emerging is one where social tenants are bearing the brunt of welfare reform and worsening austerity. This doesn’t quite gel with the chancellor Osborne’s claim that ‘we’re all in it together’.
If Osborne’s Help to Buy scheme is a success, another housing market crash may be just around the corner
Despite bits and pieces to encourage provision of a few more affordable homes within the social sector, the big housing news from last week’s budget was that the government is seeking to expand home ownership again after a decline in the number and proportion of homeowners since 2005.
The economic costs and real life consequences of the social housing crunch
Ahead of the Autumn Statement, Kevin Gulliver looks at the costs – economic and human – of the social housing crunch.
Towards a ‘One Nation’ housing policy
Kevin Gulliver writes about putting Tenants Mutual at the centrepiece of a ‘One Nation’ housing policy for Ed Miliband and Labour.
Reshuffle: Housing: Shapps’s legacy, and the challenges facing Prisk
Kevin Gulliver looks at Grant Shapps’s legacy as housing minister and the challenges facing his successor Mark Prisk.
Cutting housing benefit for young people could cause homelessness
The Tory-led government’s plans to cut housing benefit for young people could cause homelessness.