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Looking after number one
Published 18 February 2024
Housing is the top political issue, Lib Dem spokesperson Sarah Teather tells Jeremy Kuper.
Lib Dem housing spokesperson Sarah Teather is passionate about housing reform and the plight of the almost 90,000 children living in temporary accommodation in Britain.
Two-thirds of them are in London and Teather’s constituency, Brent, has the second highest number after Haringey. And the problem seems set to worsen. There has been a national 9 per cent increase of children living in temporary housing since 2004–05, and a massive 38 per cent rise in London during the same period.
Teather says people in her constituency have been failed by the system – including some who have spent their entire lives in temporary accommodation. ‘There’s a young woman who was born into temporary accommodation. Now she’s raising her children in temporary accommodation,’ she says.
‘What we need now is exactly the same as a year ago, two years ago, five years ago. The issue is about building more homes, full stop. And homes that are at a level which are affordable for people to rent.’
She accepts that in the current climate it may be hard to persuade people that building affordable homes should be a major priority. Too much emphasis is placed on middle-class concerns. ‘And those are not the people who use council housing. People who would never have the opportunity to earn enough to buy their own property are often forgotten.’
It is unacceptable in a just society that the poorest segment of the population is ignored. Bad accommodation does not allow children to prosper at school. And it affects health, which puts a burden on the health service.
The Lib Dem spokesperson says she sees a lot of asthma and tuberculosis among families in poor housing, and it never fails to shock.
And the recession is likely to add to the numbers of people facing serious problems. ‘What the recession has done is to include people who were previously secure, and never thought they’d be in difficulty.’
It is impossible to underestimate the importance of the housing crisis – and the need for urgent action to resolve it.
‘It is probably the number one political issue right now,’ Teather says.
