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The Tories’ “pitiful” new social housing strategy fails to commit a "single extra penny" toward constructing new homes, campaigners have warned.

Communities Secretary James Brokenshire said a Green Paper introduced today would help re-balance the relationship between tenants and landlords and help tenants get on the housing ladder.

But Labour said it was “pitiful” that the long-awaited proposals committed no new money towards building new social homes.

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation said the paper "does little to address the fundamental lack of low-cost rented homes".

And the Local Government Association (LGA) warned the announcement was "only a small step, compared with the huge and immediate need for more genuinely affordable homes".

(Image: PA)

Polly Neate, Chief Executive of homelessness charity Shelter said: "The terrible Grenfell tragedy has shone a light on social housing and forced the country to think about the choices we face.

“Today's Green Paper is full of warm words, but doesn't commit a single extra penny towards building the social homes needed by the 1.2 million people on the waiting list."

It comes after red-faced Mr Brokenshire admitted there was no new money behind the Government's flagship £100million fund to eradicate rough sleeping within the decade.

And Housing Minister Kit Malthouse admitted this morning that social house building would remain at record low levels through next year.

(Image: The Wharf)

Last year just 5,900 social rented homes were build, the lowest level since records began.

Asked how many would be built next year, Mr Malthouse told the BBC: “We’re going to be building, I think, about 6,000 next year”.

John Healey, Labour’s Shadow Housing Secretary, said: “Nothing in this social housing Green Paper measures up to the scale of the crisis.

“It's pitiful that while Conservative cuts have driven the number of new social rented homes to a record low, there is not a single penny of new money to increase supply.”