Reform UK have continued to unveil measures designed to ease the UK’s housing crisis, following on from their leaders promise to ban all foreign nationals from social housing earlier in the year.
In a new but equally controversial measure, deputy leader Richard Tice confirmed that social housing would be prioritised for British families under-35, with additional favour for those in work.
To ask who qualifies as truly British under the ruling would be opening something of a pandoras box, as political debate hinges more and more on ethnic origin, a notable example being Restore UK’s leader Rupert Lowe previously being unable to confirm whether the current king is in fact British under his own requirements.
Families in this context also comes with red tape, as the policy would explicitly prioritise married couples with children. Single parents and unmarried couples would be exempt from the policy, a subject that has drew condemnation from critics.
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Speaking to Times radio, Tice elaborated on the decision to prioritise married couples:
“Yes, that is the preference. Well, because actually they’re doing the right thing. Families are a good thing. Having British children, British-born children is a good thing. We need to encourage that.
“And it’s a very natural, normal thing, has been over centuries, for people to get together, to get married, have children and contribute to their communities. And everything that we’re doing is focused solely on that.
“In an ideal world, it is well known that married couples – children in married couples, for example – will do really well at school. And we want to encourage that.”
Mr Tice also later added that priority would also be given to veterans and those in work more generally.
Homelessness charity Shelter weighed in on the comments, their Chief Executive Sarah Elliott calling the policy “divisive” and raising concerns that the plans would see families trapped in temporary accommodation for years on end. Shelter also previously released a report dissecting the social housing allocation system, finding that the current allocations process in fact creates additional barriers to those in the most dire need. Priority given to those already in work over those seeking work, one could only assume would exaggerate these barriers further.
A Labour spokesperson also condemmed the plan, saying “These unserious and unworkable plans are a desperate bid to shift headlines away from Reform’s sleaze, scandals and infighting.
“Access to social housing is already tightly controlled. Illegal migrants, asylum seekers and migrants on student or work visas are not eligible for social housing. This policy would go after long-term UK residents that have contributed to our country but are not British citizens, including NHS staff.
“It would leave more families at risk of homelessness and drive up use of temporary accommodation at the taxpayer’s expense.”
