Sadiq Khan demands 2-year rent freeze to combat cost of living crisis
11 May 2022, 15:48 | Updated: 11 May 2022, 15:57
The Mayor of London tells LBC government must work with developers and local leaders to tackle housing and cost of living crises, especially in the capital.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
Sadiq Khan spoke to Shelagh Fogarty live from California, where he has been pushing for investment from Silicon Valley tech companies in London.
The Mayor of London was quizzed on his housing policy, amid revelations that government plans to boost social housuing stock will fall short of their manifesto pledges.
"What we could do very easily is support the 2.4 million Londoners renting by saying rents will be frozen for the next two years – that'll help with the cost of living crisis", Mr Khan told Shelagh.
He went on to call on the government to give his office "the power to control rent prices in London."
Caller says his letting agent put up his rent during the pandemic
Thirdly, Mr Khan called for collaboration between developers, local and national governments to ensure we are "building the right sorts of new homes" for Londoners.
"There is no point in letting the market dictate what kind of homes are built" he said, insisting that ordinary people are "being priced out of London" because of deregulation of the housing market.
Shelagh asked the Mayor of London about NIMBYs hampering new developments in rural areas of the country, which has in part slowed the government's progress in developing housing stock.
He stressed the need for a "grown-up conversation" on housing amid new proposals by Michael Gove which would potentially lead to people having renovations being put to vote by their neighbours.
