Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will take steps to encourage local authorities to cease their dependency on the private rented sector for residents where there is poor supply of properties.

The private rented sector is an important option in ensuring people have a roof over their heads to get the support they need and securing long term accommodation for people. Homelessness legislation allows local authorities to use private rented accommodation to prevent or relieve homelessness, or to bring the main housing duty to an end and as temporary accommodation while ensuring the accommodation offered is suitable in relation to the needs and circumstances of the households. Local authorities are encouraged to work in close partnership with local landlords and to develop opportunities to expand the provision of private rented accommodation that is available to people threatened with or actually homeless. Alongside this the Government has committed to improving the standards within the private rented sector and will publish a white paper this spring.

Local councils are best placed to determine how best to manage the demand for social housing – they are responsible for allocating housing through local schemes. These are governed by a framework of rules set by central government which ensure social housing is prioritised for those in housing need.

We are committed to investing in social housing. Our new £11.5 billion Affordable Homes Programme will provide up to 180,000 new homes across the country, should economic conditions allow. The new Affordable Homes Programme will deliver more than double the amount of social rent compared to the current programme, with around 32,000 social rent homes due to be delivered. Since 2010, we have delivered over 574,100 new affordable homes, including over 403,400 affordable homes for rent, of which over 154,600 homes were for social rent.