We are asking tenants organisations, housing campaigns and the trade union movement to support the statement which opposes 'social rent convergence' and 10 years of CPI+1% rent increases, for council and housing association tenants.

As the statement says this will impoverish already poor tenants who do not have all their rent covered by housing benefit. We will need to campaign for these policies to be overturned. Making tenants pay for the under-funding of council housing revenue accounts, and the indebtedness and commercialisation of housing associations, is a substitute for adequate central government funding. These increases are guaranteed to drive up rent arrears.

The government's own impact assessment says that a £2 a week convergence payment will cost the Exchequer £4 billion in increased benefit payments. That makes no sense. 

We are looking at the possibility of a meeting on this theme, in the House of Commons in November. In October we will know what the September inflation figure is, which will determine next April's maximum rent increase.

If you support this statement, please add your organisation's name to the statement/petition. 

Paul Burnham, Haringey Defend Council Housing

Martin Wicks, Labour Campaign for Council Housing

Supporters also include:

Newton Abbot CLP, Jessica Field, independent researcher and author of Eviction: A Social History of Rent, Andrea Egan, Andrea Egan, UNISON Gen Sec elect, Fire Brigades Union, Greater Manchester Tenants Union, Haringey & Barnet UNITE Community, Haringey DCH, Brent West CLP, Haringey & Barnet UNITE Community, National Pensioners Convention, Gloucestershire, Avon & Somerset, Lindsey German, Convenor of Stop the War Coalition, Kevin Courtney, former joint General Secretary of the National Education Union, Diane Abbott, MP, Imran Hussein, MP, Rachael Maskell, MP, Brian Leishman, MP, Apsana Begum MP, John Moloney, Assistant General Secretary PCS in p/c, John McDonnell, MP, Bell Ribeiro-Addy  MP, Clive Lewis MP, Richard Burgon, MP, BAFAWU (Bakers Union), Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC), Labour Campaign for Council Housing, Streets Kitchen, UNITE Community National Housing Group, Somerset & North Devon UNITE Community, UNITE housing Workers Branch LE1111, Unite Community National Housing Group, Paula Barker, MP, Neil Duncan-Jordan, MP, Glyn Oliver, Branch secretary, Unite Community Southampton, Jackson Caines, Housing Campaigner, Harrow Law Centre, Housing Action Teeside, Kim Johnson MP, Jon Trickett MP,  Brighton and Hove Housing Coalition, Chris Hinchliff MP 

https://c.org/TPNXnDY7TG

 Statement & Sources

LCCH Briefing Notes