London councils have splashed an estimated £120million on social housing that is now on hold as Britons fume over migrant hotels.
More than 3,800 private and social homes are on hold in 31 out of 33 councils, despite the Government recognising the UK’s severe housing crisis, according to a Freedom of Information Act report.
Local residents have expressed anger at being unable to access the housing market, as rent and mortgages have skyrocketed over the past decade.
The London housing was put on pause due to spiralling building costs, increased pressure on council budgets, and stricter building regulations brought in following the Grenfell Tower fire, among other reasons, local authorities have said.
One area suffering is Waterloo Estate in Romford, east London, where the council invested £19million on demolishing a former estate in 2021 to make way for 1,380 “new, high-quality, modern, energy-efficient homes.”
The project has not even started, with no construction having been carried out.
“We’re very, very keen to make sure that our housing is the safest it can possibly be for our residents, but of course that increases the costs and that was the reason why we had to pause [the development],” Council leader Ray Morgon told the BBC.
The Building Safety Regulator (BSR), which oversees the development of higher-risk buildings, has been criticised for slowing down planning applications.
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London councils have spent an estimated £120million on social housing that’s on pause, according to a fresh Freedom of Information Act report
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Lord Best, former chair of the Affordable Housing Commission, said that the planning applications must be processed “a lot faster” and that the regulator needs more resources.
To add to the frustrations, in some areas, housing which has been built is understood to be used to accommodate asylum seekers, with a new report revealing townhouses worth around £300,000 in Suffolk were offered to migrants.
The three-bedroom properties feature en-suite bathrooms, underfloor heating, electric vehicle charging points and have a rental value of £1,200 a month.
It is believed that at least one migrant family has moved in so far, who arrived in Britain through a legal means.
This computer-generated image shows the new homes planned for the Waterloo Estate
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Residents claim they were not informed of asylum seekers being housed there, adding they have been “kept in the dark” and questioning why the properties were not instead offered to locals who are struggling to get onto the property ladder.
A Government spokesman said that although the BSR played a “crucial role in making buildings safer”, it was creating a “system that works for developers and keeps residents safe”.
The spokesman said reforms were planned to speed up decisions so that “developers can get on and build the homes London desperately needs”.
A spokesman from BSR said: “Setting up a new regulator has been complex, and huge progress has been made in a short time. The construction industry must meet standards that will keep residents safe in high-rise buildings.”
The homes have been leased to Serco on behalf of the Home Office | KESTREL HOMES AND CONSTRUCTION
This year nearly 30,000 migrants have crossed the English Channel
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Housing for asylum seekers is the responsibility of the Home Office, with many local authorities disagreeing with the location used.
Before 2020, many migrants were placed in rental homes or apartments while their claims were processed; however, due to the immigration surge and slower processing of claims, the Government has had to rely on hotels.
The London developments, which stalled several years ago, could be restarted in the future, but there are no official plans to relaunch the projects.
The Government says it has announced a “package of reforms” to speed up building safety and planning applications in order to hit its manifesto pledge of building 1.5 million new homes.
