City Right to Buy scheme is halted for five years

THE Right to Buy scheme, which allows tenants living in social housing to buy their home at a discount, will be stopped in Cardiff temporarily.

The Welsh Government said the scheme will be suspended in the capital for five years to ensure there is enough social housing available.

The move comes as Welsh Government legislation to abolish Right to Buy across the whole of Wales is proceeding through the National Assembly.

Right to Buy allows eligible social housing tenants to buy their council or housing association property at a discount. The proposed legislation will end these rights to prevent the social housing stock from getting smaller.

The Welsh Government said that over the past 30 years Right to Buy has resulted in a significant reduction in social housing stock. Between 1981 and 2014, 138,709 council homes were sold – this is a 45% reduction in the social housing available since the policy was first introduced.

Research also indicates that many of these homes end up in the private-rented sector, and as a result, cost people more to rent.

The Welsh Government’s Communities and Children Secretary Carl Sargeant said: “I have agreed to Cardiff Council’s application to suspend the Right to Buy to help them deal with the pressure their social housing is facing.”