Clegg gives pledgeon homes crisis

LIBERAL Democrat leader Nick Clegg yesterday told of his determination to confront an affordable housing crisis in the Westcountry which was leading to a "massive social problem".

Speaking to the WMN on a visit to Cornwall, he called on the Government to "free up local authorities to raise money and spend money on social housing".

In a wide-ranging interview, Sheffield MP Mr Clegg spelt out his party's agenda for fishing, farming, helping the low-paid and poor, Europe, the environment and the next General Election.

He said the Lib-Dems would step up their campaign to save local post offices and to build sustainable communities. And he named housing as a priority issue facing the people of Devon and Cornwall.

Mr Clegg said: "The scale of the crisis is enormous. We have one million fewer in social housing than we did during the last housing crisis of 1992-93. We have 1.6 million people on the waiting list for social housing nationally, 19,000 in Cornwall and growing. You're not going to solve that unless you give local authorities more freedom.

"Government has to give councils the freedom to raise and spend money to build up their stock of housing. We are saying to Gordon Brown, you have got to let go and relax all the Treasury rules that restrict social rules. But time and time again, the Treasury just turn a deaf ear and say it would be dangerous to Government finances, which is nonsense."

"Why is it that local authorities are not allowed to keep the money from the sale of council houses? Why is the Treasury snatching money away from the local communities that need it the most?

"They could tomorrow decided that all local authorities keep the receipts from the sale of public housing. And combine that with greater freedom to borrow money."

Mr Clegg said the Government had to lead by example by "by promoting very actively shared ownership – a scheme that would allow a young couple trying to get their feet on the housing ladder to buy 25 per cent of the house and rent the remainder."

Mr Clegg saw in person how the housing crisis was affecting small communities such as St Agnes, where the average house price is in excess of £200,000.

At the same time, average household wages for the area are £20,000 – a tenth of the asking price.

Cornish MPs echoed the view that local people were being "priced out of their communities. St Austell MP Matthew Taylor said: "All the political parties need to work together on this.

"That's why I did a report to the Prime Minister making specific recommendations, and I hope there will be a positive response this autumn. What I have suggested is the community should be given much greater power to decide where the local housing is, where it is, what it looks like, and that it's in perpetuity for local people.

"I don't think there's a market solution to this because you could build an awful lot of houses in lovely villages like St Agnes and the price will still be high because there are people wanting to move in from other parts of the country.

"The only way you can keep them affordable is to use planning rules to make it the case that they have to be sold or rented at affordable prices with a local connection. That can be done, it's just not done often enough. As an average, villages likes this will get one affordable home every five years."

Julia Goldsworthy, MP for Falmouth and Camborne, said: "Second home ownership is a real problem in certain communities. But local councils are not even given the power to understand how great the problem is, let alone tackle it."

Their comments came as Adam Symons, the prospective Lib-Dem candidate for Torridge and West Devon, reported the concerns in Devon of Shelter, the national homelessness charity.

Mr Symons said: "The housing downturn is threatening plans to increase the number of affordable rural homes.

"Shelter said that housing needs in Torridge and West Devon are still acute, and building new affordable homes is the major way of relieving the pressure.

"The housing downturn is threatening plans to increase the number of affordable rural homes in the area. Fewer private builders are entering the market, therefore it is up to local authorities and housing associations to bridge the gap."

Click below to listen to Neil Young's interviews with Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg during his visit to Cornwall with Falmouth and Camborne MP Julia Goldsworthy.