NORTHUMBERLAND Labour has hit back at comments made by council leader Glen Sanderson on housing need in the county.

Labour leader Cllr Scott Dickinson was angered by comments made by his Conservative opposite number, who claimed the vast majority of people on the county’s housing list were not in housing need.

Cllr Dickinson branded the comments “disgraceful” and claimed some residents had “horrific” stories about their experiences waiting to be homed in the county. 

READ MORE: Councillors slam Government's huge rise in county's housing targets

It comes as the new Labour Government begins consultation on proposals that would see Northumberland’s housing target increase by 222 per cent. This would mean the council would have to deliver 1,768 homes every year – as opposed to 549 under the current targets.

Cllr Sanderson made the comments following a question from a Tory colleague on the new Government targets at last week’s meeting of full council.

The council leader argued that despite Northumberland’s Homefinder register showing 14,801 people as of September 1, those in “need of housing” was around 2,200. This did not take into account those classed as being in “medium housing need” – for example those whose households are overcrowded.

Speaking after the meeting, Cllr Dickinson said: “I meet dozens of people on the Council waiting list each week, I have listened to their horrific stories, read their medical letters, and sympathised with their situation.

“To suggest that these people are not in need is disgraceful. So many young people leave our county or live with parents until they are in their thirties.

“We struggle to attract those needed to boost our economy all due to the lack of the correct housing and sheer volumes of second homes. I welcome these new housing policies.

“Under the Conservatives, housing has been imposed on communities rather than developed in collaboration with them. The Conservatives have permitted some small communities to be overwhelmed without the necessary infrastructure or resilient policies in place to support them. Some communities have become saturated, while others have had none.

“A Labour council working with a Labour Government and Mayor will prioritise housing, building it where it’s most needed, in collaboration with communities to ensure the required infrastructure is delivered.”

Labour described the delivery of 1,500 homes last year as a “fraction” of what is needed for the county. A spokesman added: “When it comes to the need for housing, over 14,000 people are on the waiting list with applications into Homefinder.

“Of these, 12,500 are in band 2 or 3. Contrary to what Conservative politicians have stated, these individuals ‘simply wanted to move and were not in need’.

“This is false – hundreds of people are in dire situations and need to move due to various reasons beyond their control. Both the social and private rental housing markets in Northumberland are overwhelmed by individuals who require housing.”

Responding to Cllr Dickinson’s comments, Cllr Sanderson told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “This administration said we would build 1,000 affordable homes, and with those in the pipeline we have built nearly 2,000.

“I’m really pleased with that figure. Housing is one of our key priorities. We’re building a lot of affordable homes and we are holding an inequalities conference all around housing in October.

“This all stems from the consultation from the Labour Government wanting us to build more homes. Our local plan was a cross-party agreement and those figures would increase the housing targets by 222 per cent.

“We just do not think we can do that. We don’t think it’s realistic or right and we will continue to say that to the Government.

“There is no money following this. We need the extra money for adults and children’s social care – in the last five years we are spending £60 million more on those areas, taking huge amounts out of our spending power and our reserves.

“More houses would put more pressure on the budgets for adult and children’s services and frankly, we cannot afford it. It would also put more pressure on our roads, our GPs, our NHS and our school places.”

On Homefinder, Cllr Sanderson added: “Homefinder has its faults. We are hopefully going to come up with a new system because it’s very old, too competitive and too impersonal.

“I can’t say for definite, but hopefully we will be bringing a paper to cabinet to look at an alternative to Homefinder.”

Asked about those residents in Band 3, Cllr Sanderson continued: “It is really important that we help them, but it is not real housing need. Normally, it is about people wanting to move to a different area.

“Our housing officers decide what band people are put in. It is a statutory duty and there is guidance we have to follow.”