Thousands of foreign nationals face losing their homes under Conservative plans to ban them from social housing, a move critics say would drive up homelessness and put pressure on councils. The party proposes to end new tenancies for all foreign nationals, as well as current tenancies for couples where neither person is a UK, Irish or EU citizen with settled status, freeing up an estimated 228,144 homes for British families.
Sarah Elliott, chief executive of housing charity Shelter, condemned the plans as "divisive" and warned they would "brutally kick people out of their homes, including thousands of families and pensioners who have lived in them for decades". Elliott argued that social tenants pay rent, which goes back to the public purse and into society, making it "completely senseless to ruin people's lives, drive up homelessness and put extreme pressure on councils".
The Royal College of Nursing also expressed concern, stating that the plans could cause "serious housing worry for a workforce that keeps our services running, posing serious risk to patient care". The college urged those advocating for the plans to offer reassurances or explain why some nursing staff may face housing insecurity.
Under the proposals, any single person currently living in social housing who is not a UK, Irish or EU citizen would lose their social housing, including those with children. Couples where neither partner is a UK or EU citizen and they do not have EU settled status would also lose their entitlement. However, anyone with EU settled status would not be evicted.
Helen Whately, the Conservative shadow work and pensions secretary, defended the plans, saying "making Britain your home should be earned by working, paying tax and integrating". Whately argued that Labour has "lost control of immigration and lost control of the welfare bill, and it is British families picking up the bill and sitting on waiting lists".
Labour dismissed the proposal as "an unserious, unworkable proposal, copied from Reform, that does nothing to tackle the housing crisis the Tories themselves created". According to the English Housing Survey, in2024-25, 88.5% of main householders were UK or Irish nationals, while 11.5% were non-UK/Irish nationals. There are an estimated 470,000 non-UK and non-Irish citizens living in social housing.
The plans have sparked criticism, with many arguing that they would do little to address the housing crisis and would instead punish vulnerable individuals and families. As the debate continues, it remains to be seen how the proposal will be received by the public and whether it will become a key issue in upcoming elections.
