Housing+-+No+Rent+Rises+(1.2009)

//From Haringey Defend Council Housing...//


 * No inflation-busting 6.1% rent rises! **
 * Stop the 18-20% rent increases for elderly tenants **
 * Lobby Haringey Council, Civic Centre, Wood Green High Road, from 6.45pm**
 * Monday 26th January ****, 6.45pm **

16,000 Haringey Council tenants face inflation-busting 6.1% rent rises in April, double the current rate of price inflation. The increases would increase Housing Benefit costs, and drive hundreds more into the poverty trap.

On top of this, the Council wants to treble communal lighting charges in blocks, and increase 'District Heating' charges for 626, mainly elderly tenants by 104.7% to an average £22.95 per week in February, without waiting for the start of the new financial year. The 626 tenants will have average aggregate rent rises of £16.17 p.w. (18.4%), and 150 of them will have rises of over 20%. This is a scandal, because the Council has a duty of care for these elderly tenants.

Haringey's rent consultation letter went to only 320 tenants and those most affected by the service charge crunch know nothing at all about it. Two of us attended the Residents Finance Panel on 6th January, and the meeting decided NOT to endorse the increases in 'District Heating'. Management should have foreseen the increases in lighting and heating costs, but they did not. Now they are trying to pass the full cost of their business failures onto tenants, and this is completely unacceptable.

Tenants around the country are rebelling against these huge rent rises, coming at a time when families face increasing economic uncertainty. Behind the increases is a 'billion pound tax on tenants' that could see the Government taking £7.5 billion from housing rent accounts over the next fifteen years, "with no guarantees that any of it will be spent improving tenants' homes". (Inside Housing, 10/01/08).

Haringey should drop these pointless and unnecessary rent increases. Haringey Council and Homes for Haringey should stand with tenants, trade unionists and MPs to demand decent funding for council housing. We will be lobbying Haringey's Cabinet on Monday 26 January, and taking part in Defend Council Housing's evidence session at Parliament on 25 February. Please visit www.defendcouncilhousing.org.uk for more details. Please come and join us, and together, we will win!

All comments and feedback are welcome Paul Burnham Haringey Defend Council Housing paul959burnham@btinternet.com 07847 714 158


 * HOW YOU CAN HELP**

With your help, I believe we can stop at least some of these increases. So far:

· Tottenham Journal published a lead letter for M. Allende of Broadwater Farm opposing rent rises in this economic climate. · Two HDCHers attended the Residents Finance Panel, and after discussion, the panel decided not to support the excess service charge increases. · We have printed 5,000 leaflets opposing the increases. So far, these have been distributed in two sheltered housing schemes, and a other places. Elderly and Sheltered hosuing tennats have strong community and social networks, and we need to get the leaflets seen and handed round. · We have spoken to a meeting of Haringey Federation of Residents Associations and answered questions. HFRA are supportive, helpful and willing to publicise our case. · There is to be a lobby of the Cabinet from 6.45pm, Monday 26th January, at / outside the Civic Centre, Wood Green. We want a big protest, but we also want a serious discussion with councillors asking them to think again. · The Lobby has been advertised on the Facebook web site. A press release has been issued, and chased up with the Tottenham Journal.

What I think we need to do now:

· List sheltered estates (the tenants with the hugest rent rises) and visit as many as possible. Can you help with info? · Write letters to the local papers and to the housing trade press. · Contact Councillors, Almo Board members, tenants reps and the elderly tenants' reps committee - and local MPs. · Another press release - aiming to get the story on local front pages. · Send out a mailing to our supporters. · Ask members of the housing workers' trade union Unison to take part. · We need to get all the leaflets out - into general needs housing as well as to sheltered schemes. Please let me know if you can help! · Any other ideas and suggestions - Please let us know.

reply please to

Paul Burnham - HDCH 07847 714 158 paul959burnham@btinternet.com