In welcoming Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s words today, Rokhsana Fiaz OBE, Mayor of Newham, said:
“Over the past 6 years we’ve started building more and more homes our people can afford as part of our mission to tackle the housing crisis we face. We’ve delivered 800 in the past two years alone, part of the 2,500 homes I have promised to deliver – with 792 more in progress. Working with Populo Living, our housing company, we’ve mobilised the power of the Council and embarked on one of the most ambitious municipal-led housing delivery programmes in the country.
By building genuinely affordable high-quality homes that are energy efficient and improve local neighbourhoods, we are doing good for our people and they like it. Just last week local residents resoundingly backed our third estate regeneration scheme in our borough bringing a £500m investment to Canning Town with 1,700 homes where 50 percent will be social rent and include much needed family homes; alongside huge improvements to the neighbourhood.
That’s why I am excited and ready to work with the new government, as we can contribute significantly to the Deputy Prime Minister’s mission to build 1.5million homes for our country. But after 14-years of soaring rents and housing insecurity in London, homelessness in Newham is increasing and costs of temporary accommodation are spiralling. We can’t simply build our way out of this housing crisis. That’s why we have an number of innovative ideas that could make a real difference in the face of pressures being faced by council’s up and down the country because of rising costs of temporary accommodation; and I’ll be taking these ideas to the heart of Government.”
