Lambeth tenants face shock 162% rise in heating costs

2.47.12pm GMT Wed 3rd Sep 2008

Thousands of hard-pressed Lambeth council tenants and leaseholders are to have their charges for heating and hot water more than doubled at a stroke.

The staggering 162.2 per cent rise is being rushed through at a meeting next week, as the Labour-run council panics over a projected £10million overspend on its housing management account. The deficit could be as bad as £15.5 million by the end of the financial year, largely owing to the Council's appalling rent collection record.

The increases will mean 5,000 tenants paying an average of £13.41 per week more for their communal heating and hot water. The average charge of £8.27 will more than double to £21.68 per week. And on top of that 18,444 tenants will have to pay an extra 77 per cent for communal lighting.

Commenting on the issue, Lib Dem Campaigner Chris Nicholson said:

"These huge rises aren't just a product of inflation alone - Council mismanagement is much to blame. If Lambeth was not so appalling at collecting rent then there would not be this massive deficit on the Housing Revenue Account "

Liberal Democrat housing spokesperson Cllr Jeremy Clyne said:

"Everybody has heard about rises this year in gas and electricity prices of the order of 30 and 40 per cent, but tenants hit by these devastating increases will want to know why their charges are going up at four to five times that rate."

The council awarded new energy contracts in April, but only now in September is action being taken, with November the earliest that any increases can be applied.

The report fails to state the increased price being paid by the Council. "The Liberal Democrat Opposition will be challenging the Labour administration for a full justification for these devastating rises. Otherwise tenants are likely to suspect they are being asked to fork out to cover the huge hole in the Council's finances resulting from lax management and waste," said Cllr Clyne.

"The impact of these rises will be severe for thousands of people - it really does seem that the Labour Party has lost touch with the lives of ordinary people," he added.

The £10-15m overspend on the housing management account is in addition to the huge £14m overspend on temporary housing, the subject of a separate report at next week's Cabinet meeting.

That report will also be examined by the council's Finance Scrutiny Committee on September 4.