How long do you think you can hold out? Play for Today: United Kingdom by Jim Allen, Dennis to Kath, BBC 1981
We’re in a fight. There’s no turning back … We’ve put the skids of the commissioner. We’ve blocked the rent increase. We’ve carried the unions with us. We’re looking for national support now. ibid. activist Peter
Let’s get rid of the myth – dishonorary enclave – the public spending is bad and the private spending is good. ibid.
The main burden will fall under the police themselves. ibid. Home Secretary to rozzers’ meeting
Those who have a duty to lead the nation – like us. ibid. Chief Constable
We the police are in control and we intend to remain in control. ibid.
We are here fighting cuts that didn’t start under a Conservative government. ibid. protest meeting
Special Patrol Group … you’ll probably see them again today. ibid. rebel rozzer to Peter
It’s all gone political. Far too political for my liking … Riot shields, helmets with bloody visors on ... ibid.
Attempts to impose a rent rise for council homes in the 1970s led to a famous rebellion by left-wing councillors in Derbyshire. The issues at stake continue to resonate today, writes Jules Birch
This Saturday (tomorrow) marks the 50th anniversary of legislation that triggered one of the most famous rebellions in the history of housing – and it is a story with a contemporary twist.
1 October 1972 was the date that ‘fair’ rents were imposed on council housing by Edward Heath’s Conservative government. Under the Housing Finance Act 1972, all local authorities were forced to increase their rents by £1 a week (around 50%).
Many in England, Wales and Scotland resisted interference by central government in their right to set their own rents. However, threatened with the appointment of a housing commissioner, all but one eventually complied.
Clay Cross Urban District Council in Derbyshire refused point blank to increase rents that were the lowest in the country at around £1.65 a week.
The Labour-controlled council had a long track record of going its own way and finding loopholes in legislation it did not like. There were rebellions not just over rents, but also over free school milk and pay for council staff.
Led by Dennis Skinner, until he became the MP for nearby Bolsover, Clay Cross Council saw housing as one of its top priorities as it replaced slums that had been built by the mine owners before nationalisation with new council houses at low rents.
As one councillor put it: ‘On this council, we like to think of ourselves as basic socialists. We regard housing here as a social service, not as something the private sector can profit from.’
The council’s policy of subsidising rents from the rates had been overwhelmingly backed by the electorate in a local elections that saw all 11 Labour councillors returned against candidates from the Ratepayers’ Association.
What happened after 1 October is a complex story with lots of twists and turns. For contemporary accounts of what happened, read David Skinner and Julia Langdon’s The Story of Clay Cross or watch the ITV documentary Confrontation at Clay Cross. The Municipal Dreams blog has two good posts on the history of council housing in the town and the rent rebellion itself.
To cut that long story short, the 11 Clay Cross councillors held firm and refused to increase the rent despite legal action by the district auditor.
When a housing commissioner was eventually appointed, the council refused to co-operate, or to give them a desk, a chair or even a pencil. Tenants went on a rent strike and the commissioner left after failing to collect any of the increase.
But the 11 councillors – which included Graham and David Skinner, two of Dennis’ brothers – eventually paid a heavy price for their opposition as they were surcharged and banned from holding public office.
The story of Clay Cross Council itself came to end when it was abolished during the local government reorganisation in 1974 to become part of North East Derbyshire Council.
At a time when we almost take it for granted that central government can use the housing finance system to force councils to do whatever it wants and rents need to be set against business plans, this may seem like a distant world.
The idea of politicians sticking to their principles no matter what makes it seem even more remote and echoes the legendary defiance of Poplar councillors in the rates rebellion of the 1920s. Jules Birch article Inside Housing 1922
This valley is a political frontier. This side: England’s green and pleasant land. That side, what some see as a red and peasant land, the independent republic of Clay Cross … 10 men and 1 woman built a defiant socialist Jerusalem. Take those kids in that school there: Those kids between 7 and 11 get free milk just as if Mrs Thatcher never existed; take that old age pensioner on the pavement there: he gets free television licence; you’ve got a free set, he still gets a free licence; all the corporation workmen who have just had an increase of 33.3% … and the council houses over there – the rent for those is £1.69, which is about half what it would be anywhere else in the country … Confrontation at Clay Cross, Derbyshire, Yorkshire TV 1974
Where 14 pits have shut down in the last 10 years; unemployment has sometimes hit 20% … Miners have no pits to go down. ibid.
The council has said not a penny will go on those rents. ibid.
‘We had a mandate from the electorate.’ ibid. counsellor Skinner
What once started as a way of lifting the British working class out of slums has over time just descended into these crime-ridden dilapidated areas. JimmytheGiant: The Evil Decline of Britain’s Dystopia Estates
The Boundary Estate: They found out that the rent was double that of the slums. ibid.
A new dope-strain of architecture called Modernism. ibid.
Brutalism was like a reaction to Modernism. ibid.
Germany is in serious trouble. Its economy which once seemed unbreakable has just entered a second year of recession, slowly plunging the country into chaos. Its government has just imploded as their leader has some of the lowest approval ratings in the country’s history. The Invisible Hand podcast: Why Living in Germany Has Become Impossible, Youtube 2024
Affordable homes in Germany’s major cities are nearly impossible to find. Energy prices are some of the highest in Europe. ibid.
Since 2015 Germany has welcomed 8.8 million migrants with many of these being refugees. ibid.
An economic crisis, an immigration crisis, and now a housing crisis. ibid.
Canada is often viewed as the United States’ more peaceful and progressive neighbour. And in the past it’s often ranked as one of the best places to live in the world. But over the last 10 years this image has been shattered. Over half of all Canadians feel powerless in the decline of their country, now stating that they are being pushed around. The Invisible Hand, Why Living in Canada Gets Worse Every Years, Youtube 2024
‘Analysts say there’s a ticking time bomb in housing.’ ibid. TV news
In the last 10 years they have witnessed almost all aspects of their life become increasingly unaffordable. ibid.
The rental market isn’t much better. Across Canada rental vancancies sit at an all-time low. ibid.
Living in Ireland is harder than you think. Just 9 years ago you could purchase a home in Dublin for 267,000 Euros. That figure today is over 450,000, a 70% rise in less than a decade. This isn’t an outlier. Across the country rents have almost doubled in the last 10 years. And since 2000 the price of a house has nearly tripled. The Invisible Hand podcast: Why Living In Ireland Has Become Impossible, Youtube 2025
In these desperate times people are turning to extreme measures. ibid.
Ireland simply couldn’t build enough houses to meet the rising demand. ibid.
Living in Portugal is worse than you think. Just 10 years ago, you could buy a home is Lisbon for 1,000 Euros per square metre. Today, that same space would cost you over 2,500, a staggering 250% increase in less than a decade. The Invisible Hand podcast: Why Living in Portugal Has Become Impossible, Youtube 2025
There is a housing crisis, a cost of living crisis, and now even an immigration crisis. ibid.
Living in Spain is worse than you think. 10 years ago in Barcelona you could rent an apartment for 650 Euros a month. Today, the price of that same space has nearly doubled. And in Madrid rents have increased by 20% in a single year alone. This isn’t just an outlier happening in the cities. The Invisible Hand podcast: Why Living in Spain has Become Impossible, Youtube 2025
There is a housing crisis, a cost of living crisis, and now even an immigration crisis. ibid.
The harsh reality of a city that has simply run out of space, leaving thousands with no choice but to live in cages. In Hong Kong the average family home costs 18 times the average family income. This is the worst housing crisis in the world. The Invisible Hand: Hong Kong is a Dystopia, Youtube 2025
At the centre of this are four families who dominate Hong Kong’s real estate through their big four conglomerates. ibid.
Hong Kong has a long tradition of poor living standards. ibid.