British nationals 'will be put at the front of council housing queue'

British nationals ‘will be put at the front of council housing queue under plans being considered by Government’

• More than 1.2 million households are on waiting lists for social housing

British nationals will be prioritised for council housing under plans being considered by the Government, it was reported last night.

Ministers are discussing how they can include legislation in this autumn’s King’s Speech that would require councils to push British citizens and permanent residents higher up waiting lists than more recent migrants.

Housing is currently often allocated according to need, with priority given to those who are homeless, living in overcrowded homes or domestic abuse victims.

This means foreign nationals with visas giving them indefinite leave to stay in Britain – as well as refugees – can effectively ‘jump the queue’ if their needs are seen to be greater than British nationals.

More than 1.2 million households are on waiting lists for social housing and around one in ten of those given a home are non-UK nationals. This figure is considerably larger in areas with higher immigration, such as the London borough of Brent where 40 per cent of new social homes were let to non-UK nationals in 2021-22.

Ministers are discussing how they can include legislation in this autumn’s King’s Speech that would require councils to push British citizens and permanent residents higher up waiting lists than more recent migrants (stock image) 

In Southwark, also in London, the proportion was nearly a third in the same year. The discussions about social housing are reportedly at an early stage and come amid public concern at record levels of net migration, which hit 606,000 last year.

A source familiar with the plans told The Times: ‘Social housing is a finite resource so it’s only right we look at what more we can do to ensure UK nationals are prioritised.

‘The UK will always welcome the economic contribution of legal migrants to this country, but they shouldn’t be allowed to jump the queue for social homes.’

It is believed ministers are keen to ensure there are no ‘knock-on effects’ for groups such as Afghan and Ukrainian refugees who have come to the UK under official schemes.

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