Politics

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Consultation on the Regulatory Reform of Registered Social Landlords

Reform has become necessary because the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reclassified RSLs as public market producers in a recent review. This means that any private sector market borrowings taken out by the newly reclassified public sector RSLs will score against Welsh Government’s capital budget. The Welsh Government’s borrowing powers, which come into force in 2018/19, have a set limit which would not provide enough capacity to accommodate RSLs’ current annual borrowing requirement. 

The review identified central and local government controls which led the ONS to conclude RSLs should be reclassified. These are mainly powers set out in the Housing Act 1996, and provisions inserted by the Housing (Wales) Measure 2011. The consultation is therefore proposing regulatory reform of RSLs to remove or amend the relevant powers so that the ONS would be able to consider reclassifying RSLs in Wales to the Private Non-Financial Corporations sector, thus restoring their borrowing abilities. 

The Communities Secretary said:

“RSLs play a vital role in helping us to meeting our target of 20,000 new affordable homes and they, in turn, require the sector to continue to have the freedom to use private sector borrowing to supplement the Welsh Government’s social housing grant funding and other funding programmes.

“This reclassification would mean fewer new affordable homes and limited options for the Welsh Government to maximise the positive contributions RSLs make to the communities in which they work including significant local employment and economic benefits. It would also result in uncertainty for funders who have made long term commitments to funding an independent RSL sector.

“Unless we take action which would enable ONS to reverse the reclassification and return RSLs to the private sector, our plans to address the shortage of affordable homes in Wales will be severely compromised.”

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Welsh Government •

It’s official: Sturgeon surge is now the Sturgeon slump

Official figures published today have confirmed that the Sturgeon surge has turned into a ‘Sturgeon slump’.

Labour’s General Election campaign manager James Kelly said Nicola Sturgeon can no longer claim to speak for all of Scotland having secured less than a third of votes in last week’s council elections.

The Electoral Management Board for Scotland data shows that nationally the SNP vote stands at 32 per cent – dramatically down 18 points on its 2015 General Election showing.

Labour defied the pollsters to win three councils, tie in first place in one more, and was just one seat behind the SNP in another two.

The figures show that voters are turning their backs on the SNP on the basis of a divisive second independence referendum.

Labour General Election campaign manager James Kelly said:

“It’s official – the Sturgeon surge has turned into a Sturgeon slump with the threat of a divisive second independence referendum hanging over Scotland.

“How can Nicola Sturgeon claim to speak for all of Scotland having secured less than a third of the vote?

“In 2015 the SNP secured half of the Scottish vote, and these official figures show that has now plummeted by 18 points.

“It is clear that more and more people are getting sick and tired of the SNP’s obsession with dividing us again.

“Labour believes that together we’re stronger. That is why the only way that people across Scotland can reject this Tory Government and reject the threat of a divisive second independence referendum is to vote Labour on June 8.”

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Scottish Labour