Council tenants will be 'forced away' in bid to tackle poverty

David Cameron has refused to guarantee that people who live on "sink estates" will be able to return to their old communities after they are bulldozed under Government plans to tackle poverty.

The Prime Minister instead accused Jeremy Corbyn of being a "small c conservative" who wants people to remain "stuck" in dysfunctional council estates.

But the Labour leader said Mr Cameron does not understand the concerns of council tenants and those on the estates who have bought their homes under Right to Buy, who will be "forced away" from their communities.

The PM "hasn't thought this through very carefully" because an average of only £1.4 million has been allocated for each of the 100 estates earmarked for demolition, Mr Corbyn added.

But Mr Cameron hit back: "I accept this isn't as carefully thought through as your reshuffle.

"It's still going on, it hasn't actually finished yet."

The Prime Minister then defended his plans for sink estates accusing Labour of wanting people to "stay stuck in poverty".

During Prime Minister's Questions, Mr Cameron said: "We're not going to be able to deal with these sink estates unless we get the agreement of tenants, unless we show how we are going to support homeowners, unless we show how we are going to support communities.

"But isn't it interesting, here is the small c conservative who's saying to people 'stay stuck in your sink estates, have nothing better than what Labour gave you after the war'?

"We're saying if you are a tenant, have the Right to Buy, if you want to buy a home, here's Help to Save, if you're in a sink estate, we'll help you out and that's the fact of politics today.

"A party on this side of the House that wants to give people life chances and a Labour opposition that says stay stuck in poverty."

Mr Corbyn had pointed out that the sink estates will include people who have bought their council homes under Tory Right to Buy policies and asked for guarantees that they could return to the rebuilt properties.

The Labour leader said: "You haven't clearly thought this thing through very carefully.

"Because on every estate that you announce you wish to bulldoze will include tenants and people that have bought their homes under Right to Buy.

"Will those people, the leaseholders, will they be guaranteed homes on those rebuilt estates that you are proposing to do?"

Mr Cameron replied: "What we want to do is go to communities where there are sink estates and housing estates that have held people back and agree with those local councils, agree with those local people and make sure that tenants get good homes, make sure homeowners get rehoused in new houses.

"That's exactly what we want."

He added: "They (Labour) have got absolutely nothing to say about people trapped on housing estates and want a better life."