Protests in Westminster on Tuesday fifth January 2016 by housing teams who say ‘Tories Threatens Social Housing’ and Kurds protesting towards Turkish help for ISIS and the genocide of Kurds.
Kill the Housing Invoice protest – Westminster
The Housing and Planning Act 2016 handed by the Tory authorities was mentioned to be a landmark in housing coverage aimed a selling residence possession and it was claimed would result in a rise within the variety of properties being constructed.
In follow it appeared to have little affect on residence constructing, which continued to indicate a small annual enhance from its low level in 2010-2011. However the act did radically incorporate Tory views about housing and specifically the person possession of properties, each via the extension of ‘proper to purchase’ to housing affiliation tenants and its assault on social housing which appear geared toward more and more marginalising what many people see as essentially the most smart and cost-effective means to offer housing actually for these on under common incomes, if no more broadly.
Tory housing insurance policies modified radically through the years. In 1968 native authorities constructed over 190,000 new properties and though this had roughly halved by the Thatcher turned PM in 1979, by the point she left workplace this was right down to 17,000 with numbers persevering with to drop each underneath the Tories and New Labour – with solely 130 new native authority properties in 2004.
Elements of the invoice have been opposed by over 150 housing sector organisations, however their submissions have been ignored by the federal government. In addition to its assault on each housing affiliation and native authority housing the act additionally introduced in a discriminatory discount of obtainable housing websites for Gypsies and Travellers and likewise hit barge dwellers.
Architects for Social Housing ready a abstract of its results which I quoted on My London Dairy:
- Exchange the duty to construct properties for social lease with an obligation to construct starter properties capped at £450,000 in London and £250,000 in England;
- Lengthen the Proper to Purchase to housing associations with out the duty to exchange them, additional depleting the variety of hoems for social lease;
- Compel native authorities to promote ‘excessive worth’ housing, both transfering public housing into non-public arms or liberating up the land it sits on for property builders;
- Pressure so-called ‘excessive earnings’ tenants with a complete family earnings over £30,000 (£40,000 in London) to pay market rents;
- Grant planning permission in precept for housing estates designated as such to be redeveloped as ‘brownfield land’;
- Section out safe tenancies and their succession to youngsters and exchange them with 2-5 yr tenancies – with such tenancies additionally being relevant to tenants who’ve been ‘decanted’ for the needs of redevelopment.
The one ‘good’ housing as far as the Tories are involved is housing which creates earnings for the non-public sector, a lot of whom make giant contributions to get together funds, These embrace home builders and personal renters, together with ‘purchase to let’ house owners who use their potential to borrow cash to get tenants to purchase properties for them. Purchase to let mortgages first turned out there in 1996 and since then have seen an enormous development, notably with the exceptionally low rates of interest out there till just lately.
The protest on Tuesday fifth January 2016 in Outdated Palace Yard was on a day when the invoice was being rushed via in parliament, and was supported by a really wide selection of organisations, although most have been solely represented by a handful of individuals.
As I reported, “there have been clearly variations in the best way some thought the protest must be carried out. Whereas Class Warfare and others protested loudly on the entrance of the gang going through Parliament, with some highly effective speeches from Lisa McKenzie and Martin Smith amongst others and a few housing songs led by John Hamilton of Lewisham Folks Earlier than Revenue and the Strawberry Thieves Choir, a smaller group on the again in entrance of George V appeared decided to carry a separate and extra organised occasion. And when somebody set off a inexperienced smoke flare, a SWP newspaper vendor got here and picked it as much as carry away from the protest.”
Ultimately after a variety of speeches, Class Warfare and associates determined it was time for a extra lively protest and determined to go on a march. Police tried to forestall them, however when this didn’t work gave up and facilitated a brief march alongside the Embankment and up Horseguards Avenue to Whitehall and Downing St, the place they blocked the highway for a couple of minutes earlier than transferring on to protest in entrance of the Homes of Parliament in Parliament Sq. after which rejoin the smaller group who have been nonetheless in Outdated Palace Yard, the place speeches have been persevering with.
Extra at Kill the Housing Invoice protest.
Kurds protest Turkish military killings – Parliament Sq.
Additionally in Parliament Sq. have been Kurds protesting towards the Turkish help for ISIS and the assaults on Kurds in Syria by ISIS and the Turkish military. Turkey is finishing up a coverage of genocide towards the Kurdish individuals, who’ve suffered years of oppression in Turkey.
Extra at Kurds protest Turkish military killings.
Tags: Class Warfare, London, march, peter Marshall, police, protest
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