Labour leader contender Rebecca Long-Bailey to back council house ‘building boom’ at Peterborough rally

The shadow business secretary is to argue at a rally in Peterborough on Friday evening that the pledge as part of her “aspirational socialism” programme would fix the housing crisis.

Ms Long-Bailey is challenging opponents Lisa Nandy and Sir Keir Starmer, who has already backed a large-scale building scheme, to back the move she says would also drive up standards for all.

Her speech comes before the ballot of Labour members and supporters to choose Jeremy Corbyn’s successor opens on Monday.

At the rally, Ms Long-Bailey is expected to say she will “proudly argue” for the building of more social housing.

“Council waiting lists have soared while owning a home is but a distant dream for most young people,” she should add.

“And it’s not just private tenants who are being ripped off by sky-high rents, we all are. Because there aren’t enough council homes, private landlords pocket around £10 billion per year in housing benefit.

“We could do so much more with that money, like support dignity in old age with free, universal personal care for the over-65s.

“If we want to lay the foundations of aspirational socialism by fixing the housing system from top to bottom we’ve got to start with a council house building boom.”

She is expected to say that it is possible for councils to build “desirable, actually pretty swanky” homes, pointing towards Salford in her constituency.

There the council has embarked on a programme of providing new homes which have been welcomed by the local press as “luxurious”.

Mr Starmer,the Shadow Brexit Secretary, has argued a “new generation of council and social homes in every community” is essential to fixing the crisis and won the backing of the Labour Housing Group affiliated to the party.

He also stood by Mr Corbyn’s manifesto pledge to build 150,000 new council and social homes per year within five years.