Julian Fulbrook

Published: 5 July, 2012

THE Coalition government may succeed in transforming life for council tenants in many parts of Britain, but I predict they will come unstuck in Camden.

Opposing Whitehall is mild-mannered Council­lor Julian Fulbrook (pictured), a lawyer and lecturer at the London School of Economics.

Fulbrook, the borough’s housing chief, assured me this week that if he has his way the new housing legislation will not change the way the council views its 23,500 tenants.

The government wants to end tenancies for life, stop tenants from having the right to pass on their tenancies to members of the family, and charge them higher market rents not lower “social” rents.

Fortunately, the Coalition has opened the door to opponents like Fulbrook because it has made its proposed changes “discretionary”.

Perhaps this was a deliberate political man­oeuvre because of fears that anything compulsory would set off a damaging chain reaction of unmanageable reaction.

Following a successful housing conference held at Arlington House in Camden Town, which drew 160 tenants as well as landlords, Ful­brook is confident a consultation now under way with tenants will support his opposition to the legislation.

“Government proposals are wholly counter-productive and could spread alarm and anxiety to our residents,” said Fulbrook. He emphasised they are discretionary and that he – and the majority ­ Lab­our group – “are not interested in these discretionary powers”.

The government wants tenants to have short-term “fixed-term tenancies” but council research, according to their press office, shows that if flexible tenancies were introduced when tenants can afford a higher rent – another Whitehall target – so that they would lose their homes, only 100 or so new homes would become available.

I know Fulbrook as a nit-picking lawyer who loves the small print in contracts. If anyone can drill holes in this hastily thought up legislation, it is Fulbrook.