Written question WQ97446
- Asked by
- Andrew RT DaviesConservative
- To be answered by
- Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 11 days
Question
Will the Cabinet Secretary call on local authorities who have declared a housing emergency to prioritise local residents on the housing waiting list over people arriving under the asylum dispersal area scheme?
Answer
Answered by Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government
Cardiff Council declared a housing emergency in their Cabinet meeting in December 2023. I am not aware of any further such declarations.
It is the responsibility of individual local authorities to determine how best to discharge their functions in respect of developing allocation schemes. They do this taking into account their specific local housing demand and paying due regard to the Welsh Government’s Code of Guidance.
Local authorities are required by Section 167 of the Housing Act 1996 to have an allocation scheme that determines the authority’s priorities and procedures to be followed in allocating housing. The allocation scheme should specify eligibility criteria, alongside preference categories that must be awarded to applicants by local authorities. Each local authority should have its own published allocations policy available for the public to access.