Housing - singled out for cutbacks

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Thatcher's Britain branded drugs.

HOUSING is one of the least politicised areas of struggle and yet it remains one of the most central and crucial aspects of our lives.

Not only do we all need somewhere to live, the sexual, racial and class inequalities which pervade Labour Research, February 1983) our society are almost exactly miriored in the way in which housing resources are allocated. To the women, lesbians, gays, blacks, ethnic minorities and working classes go the slums; and to the men, straights, whites, middle and upper classes go the adequate and luxury homes. * Over the past two decades, housing has invariably been singled out whenever successive governments have introduced cuts, and apart from special interest groups such as CHAR, Shelter and • own tax system. some Tenants' Associations there has been a minimum of positive responses. In tandem with cuts, there has been a subtle and yet ll. devastating change in won by many central (and by inference their monthly local) government housing rel-everywhere Metro/bus ticket.

policy.

Post-war The massive post-war redevelopment programmes have been superceded by area-based iditions there. improvement programmes aimed, not at demolishing slums and building new ie of control of the services provided. homes, but at the rehabiliStation of sub-standard or slum housing.

These area programmes are smaller in scale and much-less expensive than it the needs of the working class." redevelopment and they A review of a new report, 'Housing Action?', $1.80 from CDP PEC, Brookside, Seaton Burn, Newcastle upon Tyne NE13 6EY.

have formed the basis of all government policy since the early 1960s. They have also been completely unsuccessful.

Council

Additionally, Council house building has given way to Housing Association acquisition and rehabilitation, echoing the trend that first emerged late in the 19th century, when central government was afraid that state provision would lead to socialism. At the present time, Council house building is virtually at a standstill, and local authorities are referring an unprecedented number of houses to Associations.

The area based policy has also led to a concentration of available resources in those small, geographical areas, thus starving other neighbourhoods who have not been designated as 'special'. The area policy has led to the obvious, and totally incorrect conclusion, that if you don't live in a designated area, then you can't possibly be living in a "Inequalities are mirrored in housing... slum' In the face of these attacks on housing provision, and the pro-Landlord legislation which has been introduced on a massive scale, overtly political opposition has been virtually non-existent. Labour shadow ministers have made their usual and totally ineffectual noises, while the principled left both inside and outside the Labour Party has remained virtually silent.

It is not difficult to understand why this has been the case. Private and Council tenants do not have the same political muscle as the trade union movement, and neither do they have the charisma • that attaches itself to international campaigns.

Housing is largely an 'invisible' issue, affecting only those who live in slums and not those of us who are fortunate (or rich) enough to live in adequate housing. The organisation of such people is invariably local to begin with, and it is otter difficult to 'link up' different tenants' groups and build towards a more national campaign.

Councillors

However, we. ignore housing as a political issue at our peril. Those who are most subject to the inequalities in our society are often more likely to become involved in housing campaigns, whilst 'fighting shy' of the more esoteric (but equally important) campaigns favoured by the Left in this country. It is these very people who weHousing: an 'invisible' issue... must win over if we are to achieve a more equal and just society, and it is essential that ve pay more atten tion to where people actually are, rather than where we (theoretically) would wish them to be:..

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NUPE NO GUTS IN SERVICED LONDON

by Angela Birtill and Steven Taylor