• 40% rent up! Can’t pay, will stay
  • Tenants refuse to pay outrageous 40% rent increase.
One Housing tenants in east London discussing the fight against their 40% rent hike, photo Scott Jones

One Housing tenants in east London discussing the fight against their 40% rent hike, photo Scott Jones   (Click to enlarge: opens in new window)

One Housing Tenants Action Group press release

One Housing Group (OHG) has backed away from imposing 40% rises on “key worker” tenants in Newham. The climb down came in an email sent to Truus Jansen, chair of the One Housing Group Tenants Association from Robert Marcantoni, an Assistant Director of OHG on 5 May. The email states OHG’s intention to “put on hold” rent rises and changes in tenancy agreements “pending further discussions with residents”.

The tenants’ association said the proposed rent rises were imposed without proper consultation, would cause serious financial hardship and possibly push tenants out of the borough where they work as teachers, social workers and in the NHS.

Ms Jansen said: “We’re delighted OHG has agreed to remove this threat, for now. It’s testament to tenants sticking together and refusing to be pushed around. We look forward to meeting with OHG to discuss a sensible way forward. But we’ll continue to organise. We will not accept rent rises that push tenants into poverty or out of Newham.”

OHG announced the exorbitant rent rises on 1 April. Their heavyhanded action drew immediate anger and criticism from tenants, trade unionists and politicians.


This version of this article was first posted on the Socialist Party website on 8 May 2017 and may vary slightly from the version subsequently printed in The Socialist.