Council welcomes 'Common sense' prevailing over local homes plan
The council has welcomed an announcement which confirms that local homes will continue to be available for rent by local people.
The council had expressed concerns a year ago that a set of housing proposals being championed by the former Mayor of London would spell the end to the notion of "local homes for local people".
His draft housing strategy would have meant local councils losing control over deciding who should live in newly-built affordable homes across London. Instead these decisions would have been taken by the Mayor's office.
It would have meant that people waiting for a council flat in Tooting or Putney might have only been offered accommodation in places like Hackney, Haringey or Waltham Forest - far from their friends, relatives and possibly their jobs.
The ex-mayor had also stated that by 2012 London's boroughs and housing associations would have to surrender to his control a quarter of all their properties that become available for rent. This would have meant Wandsworth handing over control of around 330 council homes each and every year.
But the plans have now been formally rejected by London Councils – the umbrella group representing the capital's town halls. The organisation said the policy was "flawed" and not viable. Without the co-operation of London Councils the proposals cannot proceed.
Wandsworth's housing spokesman Cllr Martin D Johnson said: "This is a welcome and common sense move by London Councils, which has finally signalled the demise of this ludicrous plan.
"People who had lived their whole lives in this and neighbouring boroughs, and who wanted to remain living close to their families and friends, would potentially have faced being shunted off to other parts of London, totally alien to them, where they would have no roots, ties or prospects.
"There was absolutely no justification whatsoever for the former mayor being able to tell thousands of Londoners where they could and could not live.
"Local town halls, with their detailed knowledge of the communities they serve are much better placed to determine local housing needs and help local people find decent homes. For those relatively few families needing to move elsewhere in the capital, arrangements are already in place between councils and housing associations to help bring this about."September 22, 2008