The Conservative Party has proposed a policy to restrict access to social housing in England, aiming to prioritize British families by excluding most foreign nationals from eligibility. Helen Whately, Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, stated that the policy would ensure "British families always come first."
Under the proposed changes, social housing tenancies would be reserved for UK nationals. Exceptions would be made for those with EU Settled Status. For all future tenancies, only UK nationals would be eligible, excluding EU citizens and other nationalities.
Whately cited figures indicating that nearly a quarter of a million social homes in England are currently rented by foreign nationals, with almost half of London's social housing occupied by non-UK citizens. She argued that this situation is unfair to British families who face long waits for social housing, with over 1.3 million households on waiting lists.
The proposal suggests that as these properties become available, they would be allocated to British families at the top of the waiting list. The party estimates that approximately 230,000 homes could become available for British families. This initiative is part of a broader plan by the Conservatives to reform the welfare system, which they claim could save taxpayers an estimated £7 billion annually by ending benefits for foreign nationals.
The party argues that the current system, which has historically given individuals who arrived in the country two years prior the same chance at social housing as long-term British families, needs to change. The proposed policy seeks to restore what they describe as a principle of fairness by prioritizing British citizens.