Reform UK's plans to overhaul the social housing system have been criticised as "unserious and unworkable", with critics warning they will leave more families at risk of homelessness.
Deputy leader Richard Tice will on Monday unveil plans to make it more difficult for single parents, unemployed people or those born outside Britain to access social housing. Under the party's changes, British nationals who are in work will be prioritised, as Reform "believes social housing should not be a reward for welfare".
Critics brand plans a 'cruel gimmick'
British-born workers under the age of 35 will be placed at the front of the queue with priority given to married couples with children. Reform has already said it would remove foreign nationals from social housing, pledging to evict them after a short grace period.
Critics branded the plans a "cruel gimmick" that could punish UK residents who contribute to society like nurses and health professionals just because they were born outside Britain.
More than 1.3 million households are on a waiting list for a social home, according to homelessness charity Shelter. Experts say this is due to a failure to build enough social housing.
Charities warn of increased homelessness risk
Sarah Elliott, chief executive of Shelter, said: "Designed to stoke division, these plans will only serve to tear disrupt the lives of thousands of families, tear communities apart, and put even more people at risk of homelessness.
"Putting nationality and employment ahead of housing need, and moving away from a system designed to prioritise people who are homeless or at urgent risk of homelessness could leave even more families trapped in awful temporary accommodation for years on end. Not to mention putting those escaping domestic abuse and violence at serious risk of harm.
"We need politicians to stop scoring cheap political points and get on with building the 90,000 social rent homes a year for the next ten years that we desperately need."
Francesca Albanese, director of policy and social change at homelessness charity Crisis, said: "These plans will not deliver the number of social homes needed to fix Britain's housing crisis. Instead, they risk stoking division and scapegoating people who are already facing housing insecurity.
"Excluding people from social housing because they are out of work would mean turning away older people, disabled people and carers. Nearly half of households moving into a social home include someone with a long-term illness or disability."
Political reaction and next steps
A Labour Party spokesman said: "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."
Gideon Amos, the Liberal Democrat's housing and planning spokesman, branded the plans a "cruel gimmick". He said: "Threatening UK residents and workers, including for example many of our nurses and health care professionals with eviction because they were born outside the UK shows the Reform Party are intent on dividing every local community for their own ends.
"This idea is a cruel gimmick aimed at victimising the poorest for Britain's failure to build the social homes we need - a failure for which Conservative politicians, so many of whom are now found in the Reform Party, bear full responsibility."
At a press conference on Monday, Mr Tice will set out Reform's plans to build 50,000 affordable social homes a year. Mr Tice, who is Reform's business, energy and trade spokesman, said: "It is time for us to prioritise young British workers, and that is what our policy is about. I have spent my entire career in property development, as a private citizen I have led companies which delivered thousands of new homes. In Government I will break down the barriers to getting generation rent onto the housing ladder."
When it was elected, Labour set a target to build 1.5 million homes by the end of this Parliament. On Sunday, it was announced that Andy Burnham is set to give mayors new powers to take control of local planning decisions and green light large-scale developments. The move would see mayors allowed to "call in" the decisions and direct councils to take them forward or refuse them. They will also be able to grant upfront permission so developers can start building without having to apply.
