Greens slam Labour for “refusing to listen” to council housing tenants and “betraying renters”The party claims Labour have “gutted” their Notice of Motion, which calls for better housing conditions for all renters in the city.
The Greens’ motion calls on the council to explore what powers it has to expand the intention of Awaab’s law to cover more tenants. Ahead of the meeting, Labour have put forward a significant amendment to the motion, which Greens say “guts” it of its key parts, replacing them with “shameless party propaganda”.
The original motion asks the council to work “in close partnership with council tenants on how to improve and prioritise housing maintenance of council-owned properties.” This bullet point has been completely removed by the Labour amendment, with no replacement in place – an act which Greens say is a “complete betrayal” of council tenants.
- Greens have also criticised Labour for trying to remove another part of the motion, which calls for a faster expansion of the council’s Landlord Licensing Scheme – a vital initiative for renters in the city, which was started under the previous Green administration, but currently only covers four wards.
Cllr Marina Lademacher (she/her) who will be proposing the motion said:
“Refusing to commit to working with council tenants on how to improve their accommodation is a complete betrayal from this administration. Labour were keen to claim the credit for the Greens’ landlord licensing scheme, yet now refuse to even entertain the idea of rolling it out faster to protect more tenants in our city.
“While upcoming legislation may cover those in the private rental sector, people in temporary and supported accommodation are still left behind, as are those in shared ownership properties. Labour removed key asks from our motion that could have helped tenants in our city, instead replacing them with shameless party propaganda.
“While Labour are focused on desperate attempts to repair their trashed reputation, Greens are taking bold action to help our city lead the way on renters’ rights.”
