Ahead of the Government’s inflation-busting 6% rise in council housing rent in England due in April, Nick Clegg has been meeting families who are already struggling to pay their social housing rent.
Research obtained through freedom of information requests by the Liberal Democrats to local authorities in England shows:
- More than one third of tenants are in arrears, a larger proportion than any of the previous five years
- The number of council tenants who have fallen behind in their rent has risen to over 330,000, representing a rise of 7% compared to this time last year for the average local authority
- Over 37,000 tenants have been threatened with eviction since October last year.
Commenting, Nick Clegg said:
“The recession is hitting family finances hard, leading to more and more households falling behind on their rent.
“As the financial crisis worsens thousands of families could face homelessness as they struggle to pay the bills.
“Families across the country are struggling to pay their bills. The Government needs to take action now to help low paid working families by introducing big, permanent and fair tax cuts.”
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