I SHARE the concern expressed by the tenant who asked why council rents are going up at a rate above inflation.

Like with so many things a council does, it must follow rules set by national government.

This year the Coalition Government requires that council rents had to go up according to a formula of retail price index inflation for September 2011, plus 0.5 per cent, plus up to £2 a week.

When at a meeting with Greg Clark, Minister of State for Communities and Local Government, I challenged him to allow Oxford City Council to continue to charge social rents for the city’s housing stock.

The minister replied bluntly: “No.” So much for localism.

Coalition policy is limiting help available for low income tenants for payment of rents.

On the other hand, coalition policy is increasing rents from about half of what the property would attract if it was a private tenancy to at least eighty percent of a private tenancy.

The Coalition Government wants to abolish “social rent”.

It uses the phrase “affordable rent”, which in Oxford is no where near to being affordable!

No wonder why homelessness has increased in Oxford by more than 17 per cent within a year.

VAN COULTER, Labour and Co-operative Councillor for Barton and Sandhills, Executive Board Member for Leisure Services, Ruskin College, Dunstan Road, Oxford