Earon the Grate
@earon66.bsky.social
99 followers 240 following 380 posts
I really don't like Brexit and Boris. And most of the Tory party. Plus Farage and his bunch of c**ts. Not fond of Apples and Cauliflower either. Don't get me started on the Orange Man-Child. Also, no more home ownership, build to rent cheaply!
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earon66.bsky.social
My view is that the government should be encouraging (in every way, shape and form) local authorities to build for-rent-only housing, with rents set at a level people can comfortably afford. You don't need to own a house for it to be a home.
earon66.bsky.social
"We don’t expect official figures on net additional dwellings—the government’s metric for this target—until the autumn. However estimates published so far suggest the government needs to pick up the pace of building to hit its target in the current parliament."
earon66.bsky.social
Let's hope this happens! There's too much land in private hands.
earon66.bsky.social
Would I oppose help for first time buyers? Yes, because I am fundamentally opposed to home ownership. That's me, I just don't agree with it.
earon66.bsky.social
Obviously there are people that can afford these prices, but they tend to be incomers rather than locals. £1200pcm is not a realistic, affordable monthly rent for many locals. Living costs are totally mad in this country, e.g. our water rates are £700 a year, up from £500 last year.
earon66.bsky.social
"This isn’t magic — the shortage stems from decades of underbuilding and right-to-buy; rebuilding social stock needs money and time." Absolutely. This is an issue that has been decades in the making and needs real drive and focus to rectify.
earon66.bsky.social
"Ministers are setting up review work to align rents/prices with local wages and clamp down on exploitative “affordable” definitions." Great!
"Would you trust a proper review to make “affordable” real for local people?" Yes, if that review is honest and open.
earon66.bsky.social
Again, how's this £39bn project going? Please, I'm happy to be proved wrong, but I all I read about this project is that it is stalled due to a lack of skilled labour, planning issues and projected high costs.
earon66.bsky.social
It shouldn't just be about "key workers", it should be for all. Making something available just to key workers is just another way of hiding the fact that they have no solution to tackle the overall housing crisis.
earon66.bsky.social
"Why defend a system that lets market prices define “affordable”?" - I don't and wouldn't. Prices should reflect what people can actually pay. There was a time when even those on low incomes could afford to at least rent a home of their own. Market forces are continuing to price out a generation.
Reposted by Earon the Grate
earon66.bsky.social
Will be happy to see 1.5m "affordable" homes, how are they getting along with that? And define affordable - in our area (rural East Anglia) an "affordable" rent is £1200pm and an "affordable" house purchase (2 bed semi) is classed as being £470,000 - almost half a million. Great...
earon66.bsky.social
Am I against home ownership? Yes, as there are no real checks & balances re affordability and sustainability. Ownership was Thatcher's way of safeguarding votes. Also against land ownership - they're not making land so much these days, so it's a finite resource, why should anyone own it?
earon66.bsky.social
I still think a better idea is to keep the Union but rotate the governance of it around the other nations. So let's start by moving the UK capital and parliament to Edinburgh and Cardiff for a period. Not even the English will want a return to Westminster once they see sensible politics in action 😁
Reposted by Earon the Grate
lyndseydoob.bsky.social
Please share if you can. Housing benefit is failing to cover the true cost of rent, it’s forcing people across Britain into poverty, ill health and homelessness.
I’ve asked my MP to urge the Chancellor to fix this at the UK Budget. @crisis-uk.bsky.social
campaigns.crisis.org.uk/page/176493/...
Email your MP: unfreeze housing benefit
Ask your MP to tell to the Chancellor to unfreeze housing benefit to prevent homelessness.
campaigns.crisis.org.uk
earon66.bsky.social
Fixing the housing crisis is the answer - more local authority housing with affordable rents. Stop calling it social housing and take the stigma away from living in a "council" house. Homes for all with controlled low rents, you'll have a happier nation by far!
earon66.bsky.social
Just finished The Iron Road - bloody brilliant! Great story, humour, fights, gore, mad schemes, wonderful characters, what more can you ask for...?
earon66.bsky.social
"Get rid of immigrants!" cry the racists, as they drive their German/Italian/Japanese cars to their local Starbucks/Chinese/ Indian/Pizza Restaurant, then enjoy a French wine/Spanish/German lager, whilst watching the news on their Korean TVs/Ameri-Chinese or Korean Phones...
earon66.bsky.social
And Labour's response is occasional piecemeal "fixes" with the EU, but is mostly: "Brexit? La-la-la-la not listening!" This is why they are haemorrhaging support to the Greens and Lib Dems, not reform as their Glorious Leader seems to think...
earon66.bsky.social
Is he still posting on Twitter? I suspect more of his target audience are there? Here, we would just agree with him, and that maybe isn't as much fun 🙂
earon66.bsky.social
(3) Not all Brexiters are racist but all racists are Brexiters...
earon66.bsky.social
(2) Me "You realise that Brexit is about exiting Europe? India and Pakistan are not part of Europe..."; FM "Eh?"; Me "It's Pawel and his chums that will go home, and you'll have to replace them with more people from outside of the EU, e.g., Africa, India, Pakistan."
earon66.bsky.social
(1) Back around Brexit time, a discussion between me and a family member: FM "I'm voting Brexit to get rid of immigrants!"; Me "Wait, you work with those guys Pawel, and Davide, and Johannes, they're immigrants"; FM "Yeah they're alright, it's the Indians and Pakistanis I don't like"
earon66.bsky.social
Why the obsession with home ownership? Home ownership is a debt burden for 25 - 35+ years, and increasingly unaffordable. The only way to fix housing is to massively introduce local authority managed housing with affordable rents.