Make squatting a criminal offence

In an ongoing debate over the government's intention to make squatting a criminal offence Conservative MP Mike Weatherley has responded to a letter to the Guardian from 158 lawyers and academics who practise in housing law.

The lawyers and academics said the "squatting law is being misrepresented to aid ministers’ reforms".

"We are concerned that such repeated inaccurate reporting of this issue has created fear for homeowners, confusion for the police and ill informed debate among both the public and politicians on reforming the law."

The letter asks for ministers to make clear the extent of the current law and the actual nature of the proposed reforms and correct any statements they have made which are likely to have confused the public.

In reply Mike Weatherley MP said these lawyers and academics are "dangerously out of touch with the real world if they think that the arrest of somebody who will not leave is a satisfactory outcome".

"The police should be able to act immediately. Squatters need the threat of a criminal conviction to stop them. If any of those who signed the letter doubt this, then let me throw down the gauntlet – vacate your house for a few days and advertise its emptiness on the appropriate squatter sites."

The consultation 'Options for dealing with squatters' closes on 5 October 2011.

Transparency code of practice published

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles has today announced the publication of The Code of Recommended Practice for Local Authorities on Data Transparency.

The government believes that data transparency should extend beyond local spending and that full disclosure should be every council's default position.

The code of practice calls on local authorities to shine a light on every part of their business, from employees' salaries over £58,200 and details of all their contracts and tenders to details of grants to voluntary organisations, performance information and the locations of public land and building assets.

Eric Pickles said:

"We have always maintained that the best local leaders, those with control of the public purse strings, should be open and accountable for every one of their decisions. We have abolished top down inspection making local accountability more important than ever. Central Government has a role in ensuring that local people can exercise their right to know how their money is being spent and have the information they need to question that spending."

"But spending data is just one aspect of transparency. There is a wealth of information on the inner workings of councils across the country - from senior salaries and council assets to everyday decision making processes - and we shouldn't have to be data experts to see and understand it."

"The code sets out clear expectations. It will help unlock more information and increase accessibility for everyone, taking us one step closer to our ambition to be the most transparent government in the world."

A summary of responses to the consultation, in February to March this year, of the code of recommended practice for local authorities on data transparency has also been published.

Unemployed will be sent to back of housing queue

In a major shift in policy The Telegraph has reported today that Housing Minister Grant Shapps will unveil plans to ensure people who are employed or are actively seeking work will take priority when social housing is allocated.

Grant Shapps said he will present councils with a new 'allocation policy' document that will give them much greater freedom to decide who they put at the top of housing queues.

"I'm determined to end the something-for-nothing culture and replace it with a system that actively recognises individuals who work hard and play by the rules."

"When someone strives hard to hold down a job, I simply don't see why this should count against them when it comes to their housing. That’s why I plan to change the system of allocating homes to allow councils to actively support those in work, as well as continuing their duty to look after the most vulnerable in society."

This announcement comes days after Ed Miliband's speech at the Labour Conference in which he implied that working tenants should be favoured in allocation policies.

Commenting on Ed Miliband's speech, the CIH's Assistant Director of Policy and Practice Abigail Davies said,

"It might seem sensible and fair to prioritise people who work and contribute to society when it comes to allocating social housing, but most people would also say priority should go to those in housing need."

The National Housing Federation also responded to Mr Miliband's address, Chief Executive David Orr said,

"Mr Miliband needs to address the housing crisis and say what measures Labour in government would take to ensure new homes are built. Just talking about rationing an already scarce resource is not going to be enough."

Westminster City Council is already prioritising those with jobs as it bids to bring down its housing benefit bill, according to a London Evening Standard article.  It says adults who have been in work for two years, or actively seeking a job, will leapfrog those who are unemployed.

Planning reforms would lead to ghettoisation

Speaking at a Labour Conference fringe event organised by Shelter, Shadow Planning Minister Jack Dromey, claimed that government planning reforms would lead to "ghettoisation" and urged ministers to clarify changes to the use of greenfield sites for development.

According the Guardian Jack Dromey, who sits on the public bill committee for the localism bill, claimed that, in its current state, the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) would plunge the sector into chaos.

He also called on Labour leader Ed Miliband to tackle the growing demand for new homes with a national movement on housing, although he did admit that housing hadn't had the importance it deserved under the previous Labour government.

The Planning Officers’ Society (POS) has claimed, in a formal submission to the Government’s consultation on the NPPF, that the document should be changed.

The society, representing senior planning officers at local authority level, believes the framework will create excessive land releases, which will result in blight or sporadic development.

The Department for Communities and Local Government has responded to CPRE claims that the Government's planning reforms will result in more development on Green Belt and greenfields. It outlines five facts showing why these claims are wrong.

The National Planning Policy Framework consultation closes on 17 October 2011.

Delivering growth through localism

A comprehensive guide to growth and localism has been published by leading representatives from councils, social landlords and planners.

They include the Planning Officers’ Society, the Greater London Authority, Affinity Sutton, Westminster City Council and the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

The report, Working together: Delivering growth through localism, contains ten recommendations to government. These include:

• An extension to the scale of prudential borrowing by local authorities for investment in new housing. If councils were allowed to borrow against their assets and freed of historic debt in the system, up to 300,000 additional homes could be built in the next 10 years.
• Local Plans to be updated and completed by every local authority as an absolute priority.
• A stream-lined, low-cost procurement and disposal process for surplus public land, to maximise delivery of affordable housing.
• Fresh investment to revitalize town centres, not least in response to the recent riots, applying a Town Centre first approach in planning policy. 
• An urgent review of the potential to reintroduce technical colleges with day release courses, as a way to reconnect less academic young people with employment and training.

The report suggests that the new policy framework sets a revolutionary agenda for councils, business and communities. It recognises the challenges and concerns, while offering a way for practitioners to navigate this new environment and provides practical examples of success from around the UK.

Inside Housing says the report also encourages the government to continue to assess the potential impact of its welfare reforms.

Commenting on the report, Sir Bob Kerslake, Permanent Secretary at the Department for Communities and Local Government, said:

"This book is a welcome contribution to the work that is now going on to achieve the effective implementation of localism. The Department will look very closely at the conclusions and recommendations."

Government's response to Select Committee report on Localism

The government has published its formal response to the recommendations and conclusions set out in the House of Commons Communities and Local Government Select Committee report on Localism published in June.

There are some key themes which run throughout the Committee’s report, relating to the coherence of government’s overall approach to localism and the role of local government. The government's response addresses these key themes and moves on to examine, in turn, the specific conclusions and recommendations of the Committee’s report.

In 'localism and efficiency' it says "the government is committed to delivering significant efficiency savings where central co-ordination can demonstrably deliver them. This is the 'Tight Loose' approach led by the Rt Hon Francis Maude in the Cabinet Office, which means that the centre should tightly manage corporate areas, such as HR, procurement, finance and property, where co-ordinated action can increase transparency and achieve the largest economies of scale."

An example is provided from the results of 11 council led pilot projects, known as Capital and Assets Pathfinders.

"On average, these pilots identified that savings of 20 per cent could be achieved by rationalising public assets or co-locating local services based on customer needs."

In 'the accountability of delivery bodies' it says local government has an important role to play in opening up public services and the proposals in the Open Public Services White Paper to explore this.

Local government will also have varying roles and responsibilities, for instance "Where local authorities are themselves the commissioner of services, then they should hold service providers to account (including dealing with the service provider’s failure, where necessary) and should, in turn, be accountable to local people for their performance as service commissioner."

The Local Government Chronicle reports that "Ministers and MPs have clashed again over the government’s approach of endorsing localism" and the government has insisted localism is not "circumventing" local authorities and defended communities secretary Eric Pickles’ so-called policy of ‘guided localism’.

The Localism Bill has reached its Report stage in the House of Lords and a further line by line examination of the Bill is scheduled for 10 October.

Proposals to bring empty homes back into use

Speaking at the Liberal Democrat party conference in Birmingham Andrew Stunell, the Communities Minister, outlined government plans to bring empty homes back into use.

At a time of a chronic shortage in housing, it was a "crime" that 300,000 properties had been vacant for more than six months, Mr Stunell told the conference.

The government will consult on plans to allow councils local discretion to introduce an extra council tax charge on homes in their area that have been empty for more than two years, through an Empty Homes Premium.

At present, habitable properties are exempt from council tax for the first six months of being left empty, after which it is levied at the standard rate.

Mr Stunell said the policy would be a "nudge to owners to bring abandoned homes back into use" and be "an extra weapon in a council’s armoury in the battle to make better use of our housing stock".

The plan is in addition to the £100m kickstart fund announced last October to provide cash to councils, housing associations and community and voluntary organisations to begin the revamp of empty properties.

Mr Stunell also told the conference that the coalition would work with local authorities to identify areas where "effective homesteading schemes could be delivered to rejuvenate local communities".

The Minister said that homesteading – where empty homes are brought back into use through self-renovation – had proven successful internationally, "for instance in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, and also back here in the UK, such as in Benwell in Newcastle".

The government is due to publish its Empty Homes Strategy in the autumn, which will include a raft of initiatives to tackle the long-standing problem.

The Empty Homes Network (EHN) set out its views on the proposed national Empty Homes Strategy in a letter to DCLG in July 2011. The EHN called for the government to really get over to local authorities the importance of using the New Homes Bonus to invest in empty homes work.

Lib-Dems look to housing for economic stimulus

The Guardian reports that Liberal Democrat cabinet ministers have asked the Treasury to bring forward capital spending as an emergency response to stimulate economic growth.

Speaking to his party conference in Birmingham on Monday, Business Secretary Vince Cable listed the following measures that the government could take to support sustainable growth:

"Use Chris Huhne’s Green Deal to generate an estimated 100,000 jobs in energy conservation;

"Leverage in private investment through the Regional Growth Fund and the Green Investment Bank

"Adopt the Liberal Democrat policy to allow councils to auction land with planning permission using the proceeds for social housing;

"Step up investment in our clapped out infrastructure."

The Guardian claims that the government is considering fining developers that hoard land with planning permission. Cabinet Office Minister Oliver Letwin told a fringe session in Birmingham:

"We need to do the deficit reduction but that isn't the total answer to how you do things.

"We have been working extremely hard in other domains and I think you'll find that in the coming weeks and months we will have a great deal to say on the housing market."

The coalition government is due to publish a new housing strategy in November.

Meanwhile, Inside Housing suggests that the Liberal Democrats will go into the next election with their own distinctive housing policy - they will consult members during their spring conference next year.

Government to release £100m a year for council housing

Speaking yesterday at the Liberal Democrats annual conference in Birmingham, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander announced a measure which he said will generate £100m a year for local authorities to fund extra investment in housing.

Alexander said:

"To support local growth, I can today announce my decision to reduce the interest rate offered to local authorities by the Public Works Loan Board to finance the £13bn of debt needed to leave the Housing Revenue Account subsidy system.

"I've listened to local authority concerns that this is a one-off transaction within the public sector and should be financed as such.

"Let me put it simply – an extra £100m every year that councils can then reinvest in housing."

The HRA subsidy system for council housing is to be abolished in April 2011 and the outstanding debt and replaced with a system in which rents will be retained by local authorities. Debt will be reallocated across the 160 authorities which still have stock, and those councils taking on extra debt will need to raise new loans from the Public Works Loan Board or by issuing bonds.

Last October, the Chancellor George Osborne put up the interest rate charged by the Public Works Loan Board by 0.8 per cent - a move that led Wandsworth Council to take steps towards going to the bond market to borrow £250m.

Alexander's speech stressed the coalition government's commitment to deficit reduction, and the Lib-Dems aim for a liberal economy driven by free trade, long-term investment, shared growth and fair taxation.

He reiterated the government's determination to press ahead with reform of the planning system and to invest in infrastructure to help support employment.

Police Reform Bill decentralises decision making

The new Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill gained Royal Assent on 15 September, shifting police decision-making away from government, and giving communities the power to elect Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs).

Policing Minister Nick Herbert called the Act, "a landmark in the government's agenda to decentralise control and return power to the people." The Act includes:

• measures to give communities greater say over alcohol licensing to tackle problem premises
• a stronger local influence on licensing allowing everyone to comment on decisions
• a late-night levy allowing councils to charge for licences to pay for extra policing
• immediate powers to temporarily ban the latest 'legal highs'.

According to Policing Today the new Act is controversial, sparking lively debates on both sides of the House. The introduction of commissioners, with the power to set policing priorities and hire and fire chief constables, was the most contentious element of the Bill, with critics claiming it will politicise the police. Shadow Police Minister Vernon Coaker described the £100 million to be spent on PCCs as nothing more than, "an ideological experiment".

However, the Government insists it will make the police more accountable, with Herbert suggesting that the current system fails to represent the views of local people leaving them, "without a voice." Defending the Act he went on to say:

"These reforms are essential to address the democratic deficit in policing, to end the era of central government bureaucratic control, to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour and to drive value for money."

In a surprise move the Crime Minister, Baroness Angela Browning, has resigned due to ill health, to be replaced by Lord Henley. However, according to Police Professional the Baroness, 'is understood to have had disagreements with government policy.'

Shapps welcomes housing chiefs' pay freeze

Inside Housing today published the findings of its annual review of housing association chief executive salaries which showed that more than half the bosses of the largest 100 housing associations had their total remuneration packages frozen or cut in the last year.

Housing minister Grant Shapps said:

‘I am encouraged that a number of chief executives have done so over the past year, with some taking pay cuts of up to 14 per cent.’

Back in July 2010, Shapps stated that:

‘Chief executives need to be subject to the same scrutiny as other public figures whose salaries come out of the public purse. It is important that we shine a light. Everyone in the public sector should be subject to the same levels of scrutiny and transparency.’

Fifty eight chief executives are still paid more than prime minster David Cameron, whose annual salary is £142,500 but 55 of the largest 100 associations either froze their top bosses’ salaries or limited increases to one per cent, while 18 chief executives took a pay cut.  The chief executive of Anchor stays the sector’s biggest earner with a total salary of £313,250, 14 per cent higher than last year.

Interestingly, one finding of the survey was that sometimes denigrated "fat cat" bosses of larger organisations are paid less per homes owned and managed and per pound of turnover. The chief executive of London & Quadrant, which has 67,100-homes, receives the lowest pay per million turnover at £612. The head of Glasgow Housing Association, with 81,500 homes is paid the least per home at £2.29 compared with 7,558-home Irwell Valley Housing Association, who’s chief executive receives £20.43 per home.

David Orr, chief executive of the National Housing Federation, told the magazine that the survey results show ‘a sensible degree of restraint’. He added:

‘People out there are understanding the financial environment and there is real cost control going on. Salaries are something that people are looking at closely, not just for chief executives. It seems pretty sensible and rational to me.’

HB direct payments under Universal Credit

Speaking at the National Housing Federation (NHF) annual conference yesterday Welfare Reform Minister Lord Freud announced that vulnerable people and pensioners will continue to see the housing element of the new Universal Credit paid directly to their social landlord.

He also confirmed that at least 30 per cent of tenants will be affected by the switch to direct payments, starting with new claimants from October 2013 and with a managed, gradual transition for existing claimants. He said,

"...direct payments to tenants will be the default position for most working age benefit claimants living in social housing when they move on to the new system."

"I fully appreciate that some of your tenants simply cannot manage their own finances. I know some people are very vulnerable and this change is just not appropriate for them. We estimate that roughly between five and 10 per cent of all tenants fall into this category. For these vulnerable people we will continue to pay housing costs direct to landlord."

"I have decided that for pensioner tenants who receive housing support, we will retain the status quo. The vast majority will continue to have the housing cost element of Universal Credit paid direct to the landlord. New pensioners, after the introduction of Universal Credit, will be able to choose whether they receive their housing payment or it goes straight to the landlord."

His speech was made fresh from the Second Reading of the Welfare Reform Bill in the House of Lords on 13 September 2011.

Lord Freud also announced that the government is seeking to establish six small-scale demonstration projects to prepare for these changes. The demonstration projects will test some key elements of social sector housing support under Universal Credit while protecting social landlords’ financial position. He said,

"The demonstration projects will test the best way to support landlords under the new system of direct payments to tenants. And will specifically test different methods of implementation to ensure we get the transition to direct payments to tenants right."

"The projects will also look at potential safeguards for landlords. For example, we want to have in place a trigger which switches the housing payment to direct to landlords if tenants start to get behind with their rent."

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) intend to run demonstration projects in six local authority areas from June 2012 to June 2013, with a six-month lead in starting in January 2012. DWP is seeking volunteer local authorities and landlords who are interested in taking part in these projects.

The Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) celebrated these changes as a significant success for the housing sector. CIH Interim Chief Executive Grainia Long said,

"Lord Freud's announcement shows that government has listened to expertise shared by CIH and others. We are pleased by government's commitment to balance the principle of making payments direct to tenants with the need to minimise risks and protect the vulnerable. Clear articulation of the practical knowledge and experience of housing professionals, lenders and tenants has played a significant part in getting to this point."

Besides introducing Universal Credit and related measures, the Welfare Reform Bill makes other significant changes to the benefits system. It has now been moved to the Grand Committee in the House of Lords for its Committee Stage.

Pickles to deal with Britain's troubled families

Eric Pickles, the Communities and Local Government Secretary, has been tasked with sorting out Britain's 120,000 'problem' families.

Following the recent riots, David Cameron promised to put these families through family intervention programmes. However, the Spectator points out that this idea, 'was bogged down in bureaucracy as it cut across so many different departments.'

The DCLG will receive extra budget to deliver the scheme, 'with the money coming from education and work and pensions, and staff to deal with this.'

According to 24dash, 'Iain Duncan Smith had initially been earmarked to deliver the policy, and was keen to take it on, but the Spectator believes this is further evidence that the Liberal Democrats remain wary of Duncan Smith's social conservatism.'

In mid-August, Cameron said he would put "rocket boosters" under the scheme to, "turn round every troubled family in the country" by the end of the current parliament.

Rise in the number of homeless households

Government figures reveal there has been a 17% rise in the number owed a main homelessness duty, compared to the same quarter last year.

In response to the increase Housing Minister Grant Shapps has called on the country's top 50 housing associations to use their expertise and wide-ranging experience to bolster Government-led efforts to tackle homelessness. Shapps said:

"There is a need to tackle homelessness in this country. Families who have been languishing on waiting lists for years are crying out for the stability and security that a new home can provide, and I want to see an end to the need for anyone to sleep rough on Britain's streets.

"That's why for the first time we have a cross-Whitehall group of ministers dedicated to tackling its complex causes, and it's why we're maintaining £400million homelessness grant funding. But I also see a crucial role for housing associations.

"Already they are helping to ensure our Affordable Homes programme exceeds expectations and delivers up to 170,000 new homes. But today I'm calling on the country's top 50 landlords to work with Whitehall and Town Halls and offer their experience and expertise to help those in greatest need across the country."

Meanwhile, homeless charity Crisis has published a 'baseline' report for its Homelessness Monitor 2011-2013 - undertaken by Heriot-Watt University and the University of York it is a three year study providing an independent analysis of the impact on homelessness of recent economic and policy developments in England.

This 'baseline' report highlights concerns that the combination of the economic downturn and the weakening of welfare protections will cause all forms of homelessness to increase. In particular its statistical analysis indicates that some aspects of ‘visible’ homelessness – including rough sleeping and statutory homelessness – have commenced a very recent upward trajectory.

Direct access to the housing ombudsman rejected

A bid by Labour peer Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town to ensure social housing tenants have direct access to the Housing Ombudsman has been rejected.

The amendment of Clause 167 (Housing complaints) of the Localism Bill, which would have given tenants the choice to involve an elected representative if they wished, was defeated by 24 votes.

It follows a campaign by the National Housing Federation to ensure tenants can continue to complain directly to the Housing Ombudsman.

Baroness Hayter outlined several reasons for amending this clause, "The first is the role of MPs untrained in this area and the conflicts of interest that might be involved, which I think are fairly obvious. It would be a brave MP or councillor who rejected a complaint maybe three weeks before an election. The councillor could, of course, be the provider of housing, which would be a serious conflict of interest."

She said the Law Commission "prefers a dual system whereby complainants could either go through a local representative or direct to the housing ombudsman, which is what these amendments set out."

She concluded, "Without these amendments tenants will lose that choice and will lose access to justice. Residents who just happen to be in social housing will be further stigmatised. No other category of citizen is having their right to an ombudsman removed in the course of remedying a perceived democratic deficit. In the light of that, I hope we can retain the right of direct access to the Housing Ombudsman."

Communities and Local Government Minister Baroness Hanham maintained it was important that social housing tenants should only contact the Housing Ombudsman through their councillor, MP, or member of a tenant panel - a process known as the ‘democratic filter’. She said this would help elected representatives remain 'connected' to housing disputes.

However, following pressure from peers, Baroness Hanham did agree to look at whether it should be a requirement for an MP, councillor or tenant panel to have the final say of when a matter is then passed on to the Housing Ombudsman.

Inside Housing reports the Housing Ombudsman is concerned by government plans to bar tenants from complaining to him directly.

A full transcript of the debate is available in Hansard - Localism Bill, Report stage 2nd sitting, House of Lords, Wednesday 7 September 2011, Column 299.

Inquiry into financing of new housing supply

The Communities and Local Government Select Committee in the House of Commons is to conduct an inquiry into the financing of new housing supply.

The inquiry will focus on the steps which need to be taken by government to ensure that resources are available to enable the nation’s housing needs to be met - both the private sector, and social and affordable housing, particularly in the context of the government’s Affordable Rent policy and the reduction in grant funding.

Interested parties are invited to submit written responses on a number of issues, including:

• How and where limited public subsidy can provide the biggest return on the investment, in housing supply terms
• What the role is of state lending or investment, as opposed to grant funding
• What the barriers are to providing public sector support in kind
• How the reform of the council Housing Revenue Account system might enable more funding to be made available for housing supply
• How effective the Government’s ‘Affordable Rent’ proposals are likely to be in increasing the funds available for new housing supply.

The deadline for submissions is Friday 21 October 2011.

Ruling to provide list of empty homes

London Borough of Camden must now comply with a Freedom of Information Act request for a list of empty council managed and private homes in the borough.

The tribunal ruling means Camden Council must comply with the request by Yiannis Voyias of the Advisory Service for Squatters. He argued that by making the list publicly available it would "rejuvenate the empty homes debate" and promote transparency, accountability and "public understanding".

The Telegraph reported that Camden’s lawyers argued that disclosure of the list would compromise 'the prevention or detection of crime', and that police argued there was a link between squatting and a range of crimes, including vandalism, drug use and threatening behaviour.

However Judge Fiona Henderson emphasised that squatters were not law-breakers and said official concerns were outweighed by the "public interest in putting empty properties back into use".

Housing Minister Grant Shapps responded to the judge's ruling saying:

"This is a bizarre decision that flies in the face of common sense. Rather than trying to prevent the anti-social and unfair practice of squatting, this judge is instead insisting that Camden Council publish a 'squatter's road map' - which in other areas has led to the numbers of squats doubling."

In July this year Justice Minister Crispin Blunt announced his intention to make squatting a criminal offence for the first time. In the consultation Options for dealing with squatting the Government puts forward for discussion a number of plans to overhaul what it sees as outdated laws. The consultation closes on 5 October 2011.

Chancellor supports government's planning reforms

Chancellor George Osborne and Communities Secretary Eric Pickles have written a joint article for the Financial Times supporting the government's controversial planning reforms outlined in the draft National Planning Policy Framework.

George Osborne and Eric Pickles said planning reform is key to economic recovery.

"Opponents claim, falsely, the government is putting the countryside in peril. We say that sticking with the old, failed planning system puts at risk young people's future prosperity and quality of life."

Planning delays cost the economy £3bn a year, and reform is imperative, they add.

"The house building slump was due to a range of factors, but a complex and adversarial planning system, which left many communities resentful, was part of the problem."

The article concludes, "Reforming a slow and inefficient planning system will be good news for the small business looking to expand; for the young family hoping for more affordable house prices; and for the community wanting to decide on their own future. This is our opportunity to unlock the new investment and new jobs the country needs."

According to the Daily Mail the Centre for Economics and Business Research has today published research claiming that a massive house building push would drive the UK economy out of stagnation – as it did in the 1930s. It suggests, in support of the government, that dropping planning reforms would be a disaster for jobs, the economy and living standards.

"The economic think-tank argues there would be huge benefits from increasing the number of new homes built from 95,000 a year to 300,000 a year by 2015. This includes creating 200,000 jobs, increasing supply of affordable homes, bringing down rents and boosting family living standards by at least four per cent a year."

However heritage groups argue it would be wrong to sacrifice the countryside and historic sites.

American writer and president of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) Bill Bryson has joined a growing wave of opposition to government moves to shake up planning laws. In an article in the Guardian he says, "The government's good intentions risk being undermined by the talk of economic growth at any cost. We are deeply worried to learn that environmental laws are regarded as red tape and that the planning system might be weakened to allow for more development."

The National Trust, CPRE, Friends of the Earth, RSPB, Greenpeace and other countryside and environment organisations have also told the Guardian that they fear communities will lose the ability to influence decision-making as planning is streamlined in favour of developers and as economic growth is prioritised over social and environmental concerns.

The Daily Telegraph is also urging ministers to think again and has launched the Hands Off Our Land campaign.

Geographical impact of government welfare cuts

Research by Professor Chris Hamnett of King’s College has found the government’s proposed cuts in welfare spending will have a disproportionate effect, hitting two areas particularly hard - the old industrial areas of Britain and inner London.

Professor Hamnett was speaking at the annual International Conference of the Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) in London on 2 September 2011.

His research found that in central and inner London cuts to housing benefit and the welfare benefit cap could lead to the displacement or squeezing out of inner London of as many as 80,000 low income households living in expensive rental housing.

The other parts of the UK to be affected would be the old industrial regions such as the North East, Scotland, Wales, and the North West, where there are high levels of unemployment and a high proportion of people on incapacity benefits.

Commenting, Professor Hamnett said:

"The greatest impact of the benefit cuts, and the benefit cap, will be felt most strongly in those areas where a high proportion of the population are already on one or more key social security benefits, notably former industrial and mining areas. There are low levels of benefits in the south, apart from inner London and some coastal towns."

"In inner London where rents are very high, thousands of low-income households who receive the benefit will be effectively excluded from the private-rented sector in much of central London, creating an even higher degree of social class and income segregation in the capital between a rich (and increasingly gentrified), central and inner area, and lower cost areas."

He found the rates of social security claimants range from 29.8% of the working age population in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales to just 4.2% in the Isles of Scilly.

The second reading of the welfare reform bill in the House of Lords is scheduled for 13 September 2011.

Pickles bans disproportionate voluntary sector cuts and council 'snooping'

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles has published a single page Best Value directive to local authorities, replacing the 56 page version of the previous government.

As heralded in April when the draft was issued for consultation, the new guidance will say that authorities should seek to avoid passing on disproportionate cuts to the voluntary sector, and give at least three months notice if they are intending to end or reduce funding to a community organisation. Cuts to the voluntary sector and and small businesses should not be larger than those the council takes on itself.

The new guidance reiterates the duty imposed by the Local Government Act 1999 to consult a wide range of local persons, including local voluntary and community organisations and businesses in deciding how to secure continuous improvement to the way it fulfils its functions.

However, in an addition to the consultation draft, the guidance now states:

"In the interests of economy and efficiency, it is not necessary for authorities to undertake lifestyle or diversity questionnaires of suppliers or residents."

Pickles said:

"At a time when taxpayers are watching their pennies, the last thing councils should be doing is sending out unnecessary and intrusive questionnaires.

"Local residents shouldn't be asked to reveal detailed personal information just because they've enquired about getting their bins emptied or how to join their local library.

"Clamping down on such town hall activity will save taxpayers' money and protect the privacy of residents of all backgrounds.

The final version of the guidance was 'tweaked' in response to consultation responses to add clarity, in particular on the terms 'social value' and 'disproportionate cuts'.

However, the motivation for the additional statement on lifestyle or diversity questionnaires seems to stem more from Daily Mail articles than from any official consultation response: "Councils banned from snooping on your sex life."

Funding to train tenant panels

Congratulations to the National Communities Resource Centre on my doorstep at Trafford Hall in Cheshire. The Centre has been awarded £535,000 to deliver residential training and support to empower tenants to set up groups to lead on the management of their social housing.

The training will focus on developing their skills and confidence to take positive local action to make a positive difference at in their area. It is expected to deliver:

• at least 1,500 social tenants trained to sit on tenant panels
• at least eight different training courses covering a range of subjects - including sitting on tenant panels, influencing landlords, and sharing information and learning
• seed grants for up to 100 tenants to help them spread learning in their community and kick start local initiatives; and
• opportunities for interested tenants to work towards accredited qualifications, which could help them onto new career paths.

The funding covers the period October 2011 - October 2013.

Applications to run the training were invited in June but the Minister couldn't resist spinning the news to suggest it was a response to recent riots with a headline "Tenants to be trained to take control of their neighbourhoods post-riots".

Boris's new housing strategy targets overcrowding

Following publication of the London Plan in July, London Mayor Boris Johnson has now published his revised London Housing Strategy for consultation with the London Assembly and GLA Group. The document focuses on those areas where there will be significant change from his 2010 strategy which set out investment plans for 2008-11.

Johnson claims that his strategy will "harness creativity" to increase housing supply in the capital and "offer greater choice and mobility for all Londoners".

One of the key issues it seeks to address is overcrowding. Building on the London Overcrowding Action Plan published last year, it sets a target to halve the level of severe overcrowding in social rented housing to 7,000 by 2016. Strategies to achieve this goal include:

• prioritising underoccupiers and tenants in work for the pan-London mobility scheme which should be in place by early 2012
• a Londonwide goal for half of all new affordable homes to be family-sized
• a target for at least 8,000 underoccupier moves by 2016

The strategy also sets a target of 13,200 affordable home completions a year and the provision of more than 17,000 First Step homes by 2015. First Steps is the Mayor’s programme to help low and modest income Londoners access home ownership, and is to give greater priority to people from the armed forces.

From 1 April 2012 the Mayor will be directly responsible for strategic housing, regeneration and economic development in the capital. He plans to set up a new Housing and Regeneration Directorate in the GLA, merging the housing and regeneration roles of the HCA, GLA and LDA.

Johnson's strategy has been criticised by his political opponents. Writing in the Guardian, London Assembly's Labour Group spokesperson for housing and planning Nicky Gavron says the new build target is too low. She claims that the scrapping of the London-wide target that 50% of all new residential developments across London should be affordable will lead to social segregation on an unprecedented scale. 

However Johnson's housing adviser, Richard Blakeway has robustly denied these claims calling them, "entirely unfounded".