'Where do they go?': 'Right to buy' extension will create 'perfect storm' for homelessness, housing boss claims

Boris Johnson’s plan to extend the ‘right to buy’ to housing association tenants would help create a ‘perfect storm’ for homelessness, a leading Stockport councillor has warned. The Prime Minister is reportedly keen to offer renters discounts of up to 70pc in a bid to help young people - often referred to as ‘Generation Rent - get on the housing ladder.

It would be a significant expansion of the scheme initially rolled out to council house tenants by Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s. Around 2.5m households - or five million people - in England who rent from housing associations could potentially qualify for the reduction.

However Councillor Sheila Bailey, cabinet member for Sustainable Stockport, has slammed the idea, claiming it will only exacerbate the current ‘housing crisis’. Coun Bailey, whose portfolio includes strategic housing, said: “It’s just another blow to the availability of rented properties. If you take an increasing number of them off the market by giving huge discounts it’s not something that’s going to assist the housing crisis we have at the moment.

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“In fact, quite the reverse should happen. There should be a moratorium on the sale of all public sector housing - including housing associations - until such time as this country can provide everyone with a decent home.” Plans to scrap section 21 no fault evictions were included in the Queen’s Speech on Tuesday, having first been mooted in 2019 before being included in the government’s Levelling Up White Paper in February.

The government intends to publish a white paper setting out more details on its ‘landmark reform’ of the private rented sector