Is a rent freeze too much to ask?
But chiefs accept a council tax fix
I used to give talks to journalism students from Edinburgh’s Napier University.
I did my best – but they probably learned more in the pub session that followed as the Daily Record’s professional story-tellers – motivated by a fresh audience – recalled their most outrageous and outlandish experiences.
However, I recall one young lady who asked if I had any tips about writing regular ‘column’ articles.
I told her my golden rule was never to revisit a topic more than twice in succession – and it’s a trusty tenet I’ve tried to honour.
And then . . . there was this week! Housing. Yes . . . of all things . . . housing. To some, it’s a subject that’s dryer than a camel’s armpit.
But when its making national headlines – in our SNP government’s budget – and filling this newspaper’s letters pages, it’s just too tempting a stone to leave unturned.
Firstly, my thanks to letter writer Stewart Wallace who makes some telling points. He is quite correct in correcting me that the role of the Housing Revenue Account – the ringfencing of all housing finance including rents – is independent of council tax revenues.
That’s another thing I told the apprentice press. If you get it wrong – admit it. I am happy to concede.
But I would hope Stewart would also concede that if everyone stopped paying their rent – and the HRA couldn’t pay for SAC’s services his council tax bill would be showing a difference!
Stewart argues, also correctly, that if I were a council house tenant, I’d want a rent consultation. I would indeed.
But when the ‘consultation’ offers three choices – and they are all a rent increase – it’s more insult than consult.
Any consultation – even statutory, Stewart - is worthless unless its results are comprehensive and representative.
In the real world – in a galaxy far, far away from South Ayrshire Council and where performance is measured – anyone who submitted a ‘consultation’ with a response rate of just 4.7% would be rapidly unemployed.
Meanwhile, housing tzar Phil Saxton is still trying to defend a rent increase. “Not increasing the rent by a minimum 1.5% would have risked the 40 years business plan by £32 million for each year of a freeze”, he writes. Sorry? £32 million? A year?
I fear Phil has missed the calculator button on his mobile
– and opened the Euromillions ap instead! Even worse – has he confused the term “rent freeze” with “rent free”?
The only way I can get close to Mr Saxton’s £32 million is by taking the number of actual rent payers around 7700 – and multiplying it by the average annual rent - £4160.
Hey presto – we’ve got a £32,323,000 deficit . . . if tenants were rent free! But “rent free” isn’t what we’re supposed to be talking about here. It’s rent FREEZE!
By my calculations, the 2021 rent increase is an average £1.31 a week - £68.12 a year. Multiplied by 7700 households – that’s £524,524.
“And where do you suggest SAC finds that?” I can hear our housing leader asking?
Well, if he looks under section 3.11 of the rent setting agenda, he’ll see a housing SURPLUS of £2.01 million! In Mr Saxton’s ‘40 year’ plan, there has never been a year like 2020. A year’s rent freeze – then re-starting the three year rent setting cycle again in 2022 – would be welcomed by council house tenants facing the worst financial uncertainty in generations. Is it too much to ask?
I can only imagine our housing portfolio chair has had better weeks.
Last Thursday, the SNP party the Labour stalwart currently shares a bed with announced a £270 million cut in next year’s affordable housing budget.
A large chunk of it will be used to bail out the local councils who sign up to the SNP’s election carrot of a council tax freeze.
What we’ll end up with is an SNP-run local council who won’t countenance a council house rent freeze – but happy to obey their Edinburgh masters by approving a council tax freeze. And the council tax freeze is paid for by building fewer council houses and creating fewer rent payers.
Confused? You bet. Angry? Probably.
Please . . . don’t make me write about housing again next week!