menu
menu
Data collated by the Green Party has revealed that councils across London have been forced by the housing ombudsman to pay out more than twice as much compensation to tenants over the last twelve months compared to the previous year.
The total amount the Housing Ombudsman has forced local council’s to pay out for their failure to handle complaints raised by tenants has reached £263,028.00 – up from £103,517.00 in the twelve months previous.
The worst offending Council was Labour-controlled Hammersmith and Fulham Council, who paid out £41,190 in compensation to tenants compared to £11,111 the previous year. This was followed by Lewisham, Haringey and Lambeth – all Labour-run Councils – which saw the amount paid out more than double.
This comes days after the Housing Ombudsman revealed a 323% increase in severe maladministration findings against social housing landlords – including councils (1).
Councillor Zoë Garbett, who is the Party’s candidate for Mayor of London in next year’s election said,
“The Green Party has been clear that we believe everyone deserves a warm, secure and affordable home. But this data shows that social landlords, who often house some of the most vulnerable people across the City, are not treating residents fairly.
“Every home should be properly insulated and free from damp and mould and basic repairs should be getting carried out quickly. It is appalling that our councils, who are some of the biggest landlords in the city, are failing to handle complaints being raised by tenants.
“If elected as Mayor of London, I will do much more to hold our councils to account on this – many of the worst offending councils are Labour controlled – including the council I sit on in Hackney. It’s very clear that the Labour-run Mayor of London is not willing to hold other Labour leaders to account on this.”
Of the 28 boroughs that manage their own housing, 15 paid out more in the 2022/23 year compared to the 2021/22 year. A total of 13 of these councils have Labour administrations.
Five London boroughs do not have their own housing stock – Bexley, Bromley, Merton, Richmond upon Thames and Sutton.
*************************************
Notes: