'It's time to get to work'

Unite delegate Tracey Whittle gave an impassioned speech in support of a composite on housing on Tuesday (September 10) at TUC Congress.

Tracey asserted that “Britain is broken and our infrastructure is in a state of decay and disrepair”.

“Nowhere is the failure of the previous Tory government more evident than their failure to provide decent housing for our people,” she said. “Workers and families have been left to the whims of profiteering landlords – stuck in inadequate, mouldy and crumbling homes.”

Tracey went on to note that unhealthy conditions leading to ill health have blighted the potential of children with “devastating consequences”.

“It is an indictmentof the private housing market that in 21^st century Britain we have untimely deaths caused by the failure to provide adequate housing for all,” Tracey continued. “This is the result of the historic failure to invest in council housing.”

She welcomed new government promises on delivering social and affordable housing as their number one priority, but she warned that “they must keep that promise”.

“We cannot have austerity mark two holding back investment when people are crying out for decent housing to call home,” Tracey said.

“This Labour government needs to get to work, and if that means increasing borrowing to invest in council housing then so be it,” she asserted to applause.

Tracey went on to note that we must “get Britain building” and “deliver a legacy of a new generation of skilled building workers and housing security for all”.

“To do this we also need to think seriously about craft skills,” she added, noting that this must entail “high quality apprenticeships as a condition of public sector contracts” as well as ending “the skills shortage and the menace of false self-employment”.

Urging support of the motion, Tracey concluded, “It’s time to get to work.”

By Hajera Blagg

Photo by Mark Thomas

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