The housing crisis is out of control

One of the things that drove me to stand for election in my home ward was a desire to tackle London’s housing crisis. This ties into my core political beliefs, but it’s been enhanced by personal experience. 

In my five years of navigating our broken private rented sector, I’ve had my fair share of horrible experiences – boilers and showers left broken for weeks; cold and damp; threatening behaviour; hidden fees and charges; high rent and safety risks. To more than a third of Haringey residents that rent from a private landlord, I’m sure this will sound familiar. 

Unfortunately, it’s getting worse. Rent prices increased by nearly 20% in inner London in the first quarter of this year, and by 10% in outer London. With the cost of living crisis, people are less able to afford rent, but every private renter I speak to has been hit with an enormous increase at the end of their contract this year. The market is out of control and people’s desperation is being exploited, with agents encouraging people to make offers way over the asking price and sometimes charging people just to attend a viewing. 

This moment of crisis requires an overhaul of national policy. But councils have powers to help – they can prioritise building more council houses, place conditions on planning proposals, introduce landlord licensing schemes and be proactive with inspections and enforcement action. Haringey’s commitment to building 3,000 new council homes by 2031, the insourcing of our housing services and the introduction of a new selective licensing scheme on top of our existing scheme for HMOs, are all positive things. Seeing what I see in casework, I just want us to go further and faster. 

In Stroud Green, many residents are stuck in cramped and unsuitable private housing, unable to afford anywhere better and with no hope of getting a council house because of the decades-long waiting list. There are families of four getting by in one-bedroom properties. 

Even with licensing schemes, I’ve seen landlords try to dodge responsibility. When the council inspected one property after a tenant complained of poor living conditions, they rightly instructed the landlord to apply for a HMO license and carry out renovations to bring it up to a minimum standard. The landlord promptly tried to serve an eviction notice on all the tenants to dodge the work and expense. Thankfully, we were able to challenge these illegal actions. 

I’ve joined with tenants to successfully oppose a planning application where the landlord was trying to cram yet another household into an already tightly carved up property. Whenever I walk around by Upper Tollington Park, I notice modestly sized houses with five, six, seven doorbells. I am now investigating – as a council we need to be proactive in setting clear expectations for living standards in HMOs, and ensuring accountability for the homeowner. 

So many overlapping issues have contributed to the current situation – the decimation of council housing through ‘Right to Buy’, inadequate tenants’ protections and now, soaring rent. We won’t get the required change under this rotten Tory government – although we will try – so while lobbying for national improvements, we must also fight for a progressive Labour government. At the same time, we must use our powers to shield residents from the worst of the housing crisis. My first three months as a local councillor have only strengthened my resolve to do this.

Alexandra Worrell is a Labour councillor for Stroud Green. If you are a ward resident, you can get in touch:

Call 07969 859906

Email [email protected]