Council Housing

Isn't it great to see Midlothian building council housing when other councils are trying to privatise theirs.

We must keep up the pressure on Government to release the housing improvement funding and debt write off for local authorities of those sensible tenants who voted to keep council housing.

We know that this money is there because it was going to be given to the new housing associations (until the tenants became difficult). As councils pointed out during stock transfer ballots a very substantial part of all rents goes to pay interest on housing debt, which means that if the funds earmarked for the crony housing associations was to be released then rents could fall.

The May elections will be a real opportunity to let the Scottish Executive and the Westminster Government know how we feel about it.