Rayner will pledge 'decent, safe homes' for all in speech
The Independent|September 22, 2024
Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner will pledge decent homes for all in a speech that puts the dismal state of housing front and centre of the Labour party conference.
HOLLY BANCROFT, DAVID MADDOX
Rayner will pledge 'decent, safe homes' for all in speech

Opening the conference in Liverpool today, Ms Rayner will announce a number of measures designed to ensure tenants are no longer plagued by disrepair, mould, damp and fire safety concerns.

In comments ahead of the speech, Ms Rayner said Labour have “inherited a Tory housing crisis” and that her government will take “a wave of bold action to not only build the housing our country needs and boost social and affordable housing, but to ensure all homes are decent, safe and warm”.

She will announce that the government will consult on a new Decent Homes Standard for social and private renters. Labour will also press ahead with Tory legislation, known as Awaab’s law, which sets timescales for social landlords to remedy problems such as damp and mould.

Ms Rayner will renew Labour’s promise that such protections will be extended to the private rented sector. She will also announce bringing forward new access to information requirements on social housing landlords, to enable millions of housing association tenants to hold them to account.

A source close to Ms Rayner said the hope is for all of the reforms “to be in place by summer next year subject to [getting them through] parliament”.

Ms Rayner said ahead of the conference that too many people “have been let down for too long stuck in substandard and even dangerous homes”. Following the Grenfell inquiry report, Ms Rayner will also pledge a Remediation Acceleration Plan to remove unsafe cladding faster from dangerous homes.

This story is from the September 22, 2024 edition of The Independent.

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This story is from the September 22, 2024 edition of The Independent.

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