Many of my constituents who live in housing association accommodation have had to endure heart-breaking conditions over the last few years: leaking ceilings, heavy heaters falling off a wall near small children playing on the floor, lifts breaking down on a weekly basis and 30 flats left without lights for weeks. Circle Housing is one of these housing associations and it is proposing to merge with Affinity Sutton to create one of the largest housing associations in Europe. Over 127,000 properties could be owned and run by this shoddy housing provider.
Hard-working housing associations in my constituency and up and down the country provide affordable, quality rented and shared ownership accommodation, and are at their best when anchored in their communities. They are also a critical part of the solution to Britain’s housing crisis. But a trend towards bigger, more remote and less accountable housing associations with multi-million pound turnovers and substantial assets and reserves behaving like companies are not serving their communities.
Last night, I held an adjournment debate to make sure the government, who has given £250 million in funding to Circle Housing since 2010, holds them to account. People should not be expected to live in such awful conditions. The government needs to urgently ensure there is better regulation on large housing associations.
Watch my speech here: http://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/20a8bef5-ab08-455c-9183-7aecd54e1ea2?in=21:32:54