Housing and Regeneration Bill
3:30 pm
Yvette Cooper: Let us be clear about the intention that we have set out. The idea is simply to capture what social housing is and to write it down; it is not in any way to change the definition of social housing. We have been very clear about the amount of social housing we expect to provide. My colleague, Mr. Wright, has already said that the definition in clause 68(c) should be clarified because it talks about the accommodation being made available
“to ensure that it is occupied by people who cannot afford to buy or rent at market rate.”
There will, of course, be people who might be able to afford to rent in the private rented sector, but who might need social housing because they have other kinds of problems. They might need the stability that they cannot get in the private rented sector. That is the first area where we think that there should be an amendment to that clause, so that it refers to people whose needs are not met in the market. I think your concern is that we are somehow merging the definitions of low-cost home ownership and social housing.