Second Homes for the powerful

[office at tlio.demon.co.uk]

Second Homes for the powerful
from ben, 06.01.2004 
sent to: indymedia.org.uk
send yr replies to the original article at: http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2004/01/283483.html

Government fund its' own ministers second homes while homeless reaches crisis levels.

Tony Blair has made it possible for ministers to receive an extra £18,000 a year to assist them in maintaining a second home, combating rising costs in the housing market. 

At the same time, the National Housing Federation has warned that homelessness in the South West is reaching crisis levels. The NHF blames a chronic lack of affordable housing. The result has been that many thousands of people in the region were left homeless this Christmas, few with the resources to reach institutional care centres located mainly in wealthy boroughs - often seen as a ploy to help prevent wealthy city boroughs from being "smeared" by homelessness. 

The main centralisation of homelessness is in London were there is a complete lack of affordable housing or rentable accommodation available for those out of work. No unemployment benefits exist for those without a permanent address. 

Meanwhile, government ministers have put pressure on the prime minister to receive extended housing allowances, they say that they are struggling to make ends meet on annual salaries of up to £128,000. They want to be able to claim the same benefit claimed by backbench MPs serving constituencies outside inner London, which is intended to help them keep a home in the capital. 

The average house price in the UK is just under £135,000 a year and the average house price in London is now £233,683. It would then be possible for a government minister to pay of the price of their house with a high interest mortgage in less than five years. For the average homeowner it is more than thirty years before a mortgage loan can be repaid, without assistance. 

A review board to overlook backhand deals benefiting wealthy government ministers in such a way and managing the allocation of taxpayer’s money must be brought into order to prevent such drastic mismanagement of funds. 

However, I suggest that an organised squat-drop should be assembled and given sufficient cover with which to infiltrate the Houses of Parliament claiming Section 6 of the Criminal Law Act 1977 as amended by Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994. Use their own laws against them. 

I'm game. 


 http://www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/acts/acts2002/20020007.htm 


 e-mail: mcabromb at livjm.ac.uk