Greens call for the "Right to Rent"

3rd September 2008

Sheffield Green Party members will be calling for Right to Rent for
home-owners threatened with repossession at the party's Autumn
conference in London this weekend.

The Greens' policy motion states that any house owner who could not pay their mortgage and is threatened with repossession would have the right to sell to the council and then continue to live in the property and pay rent.

Gordon Brown is reported to be planning to help local authorities
increase their housing stock by allowing them to buy unsold or
repossessed properties and offering financial aid to struggling
families in exchange for a stake in their homes.

Graham Wroe, who is attending the conference, commented : "While these steps are welcome, we really need a huge new
programme of Council house building to solve the ongoing crisis of
affordable housing. This would include a range of other measures to
reduce costs for householders, such as providing free home insulation."

ENDS