Labour’s £1.4bn blitz on unhealthy homes
LABOUR is today unveiling a blueprint to tackle the £1.4billion scourge of unhealthy homes as it pays tribute to Nye Bevan’s NHS.
Two Shadow Cabinet ministers plan to bring together health and housing in the spirit of the NHS founder, who held both portfolios in the post-war Labour government. Shadow Health Secretary Jonathan Ashworth and Shadow Housing Secretary John Healey will announce proposals for “healthy homes zones” to target areas with the poorest quality accommodation.
Councils would have to draw up homes strategies and be given powers to crack down on damp, shabby and overcrowded rental properties which cause or worsen illnesses. Other plans include a national “healthy homes tsar”, a £50million Housing and Health Inequalities Fund and extra inspections by environmental health officers.
The healthy homes zones would focus on properties let by private landlords, which tend to be older and worse than other types of housing.
Mr Ashworth said: “Labour, in establishing the NHS 70 years ago, knew of the link between health and quality of housing.”
Mr Healey added that more people are in private rented homes than at any time since the 1950s and hundreds of thousands of properties are unfit.
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