GETTY The proportion of social housing being let to Eastern Europeans has trebled

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Councils and housing associations let 9,128 homes to tenants from 'European Union accession countries' - all of which are in eastern Europe - during 2014/15. This staggering figure has rocketed from the 2,800 properties that were let just eight years ago in 2007/08. During this whopping increase, the percentage of social housing let to UK nationals over the same period fell from 94 per cent to 91 per cent.

In 2007 this group consisted of those from the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. Bulgaria and Romania joined the list in 2008/09, while Croatia was added in 2014/15. Provisional figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) also found the overall number lettings by councils in England are at their lowest ever level.

GETTY The percentage of social housing let to UK nationals over the last eight years has fallen

Councils let just over 116,000 homes during the 2014/15 financial year - a 7 per cent drop compared to the previous 12 months and a shocking 20 per cent lower than in 2007. Housing associations make up a larger proportion of the homes let to people from the EU accession countries, or those which have joined the EU in the last decade. In the last financial year, 61 per cent of homes that went to nationals from these countries came from the housing association, up from 54 per cent in 2007/08. The figures do not include supported housing and refer to general needs lettings, which are the majority of properties made available by councils and housing associations to private tenants.

GETTY The provisional figures came from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG)

Social housing lettings in 2014/15 to tenants from EU accession countries, by nationality: Local councils:

Poland: 60 per cent

Lithuania: 12 per cent

Latvia: 10 per cent

Czech Republic: 5 per cent

Slovakia: 4 per cent

Hungary: 3 per cent

Bulgaria: 2 per cent

Romania: 2 per cent

Croatia: 1 per cent

Estonia: 1 per cent

Slovenia: 1 per cent Housing associations:

Poland: 63 per cent

Lithuania: 11 per cent

Latvia: 8 per cent

Czech Republic: 5 per cent

Slovakia: 4 per cent

Hungary: 2 per cent

Romania: 2 per cent

Bulgaria: 1 per cent

Estonia: 1 per cent

Slovenia: 1 per cent

Croatia: 0.5 per cent