Southend braces itself from an influx of people from London boroughs

5:40pm Monday 18th February 2013 in News

Wayne Mearns Wayne Mearns

SOUTHEND Council is bracing itself after the London Borough of Camden announced it is to turf out almost 3,000 people.

The Labour council says it will displace 761 families, including 900 children, because a cap on housing benefit means they can no longer afford London rents.

In January the Echo reported private landlords outside London could be tempted by cash incentives of up to £1,500 being offered by some London councils.

Camden Council has been looking at areas as far away as Leicester and Birmingham but with the close proximity of Southend to the city it is more than likely some tenants will head this way.

A spokesman for Camden Council said she couldn’t confirm Southend was one of the authorities approached, but she said up to 30 councils had been contacted and it was “possible Southend was one of them”.

Council leader Nigel Holdcroft said: “Our officers are liaising with London local authorities to avoid this happening. We would certainly be opposed to any relocation of peole to Southend. “It is for local authorities to take responsibility for their residents rather than transfer them to us or other local authorities. It would create an unreasonable burden on our services and resources.”

Wayne Mearns, owner of Belvoir letting agents in Westcliff believes it could trigger a rise in the numbers of rogue landlords and agents. He said: “My concern is the possibility of more sub-standard properties appearing on the market from inexperienced or unregulated agents.”

Comments(43)

barneydrop says...
3:04pm Mon 18 Feb 13

It's the Bulgarians, who will be allowed in soon, that Southend should be worrying about.

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supermadmax says...
3:15pm Mon 18 Feb 13

barneydrop wrote:
It's the Bulgarians, who will be allowed in soon, that Southend should be worrying about.
I think you will find that very few of the 761 families being rehoused are what most people would class as 'British'.

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whateverhappened says...
3:25pm Mon 18 Feb 13

supermadmax wrote:
barneydrop wrote: It's the Bulgarians, who will be allowed in soon, that Southend should be worrying about.
I think you will find that very few of the 761 families being rehoused are what most people would class as 'British'.
What from camden?

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BASILBRUSH says...
3:27pm Mon 18 Feb 13

This is nothing more than Daily Mail style scaremongering.
The incentives for Landlords maybe there, but that doesnt mean the landlords want them, or that the families actually want to move here.

Barneydrop do you actually think the Bulgarians want to come here?
Even the most oppressed Bulgarians would rather stay put in their slums than come to a strange country to be treated as second class citizens.

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DannyK86 says...
5:55pm Mon 18 Feb 13

barneydrop wrote:
It's the Bulgarians, who will be allowed in soon, that Southend should be worrying about.
Bulgarians are fine - at least most of them will want to work, contribute to the economy and they're not that culturally different - much like the Poles. Plus the women are hot! Better to have Bulgarians than Somalis...

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Boyracer_1991 says...
6:24pm Mon 18 Feb 13

Watch the crime rate rise through the roof even more in Southend!

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mys842 says...
6:58pm Mon 18 Feb 13

I fail those why the news story is about Southend. There are plenty of places before you get to Southend where the property prices and rents are lower, take Canvey, Basildon, Tilbury, Grays etc. they're also closer to their old homes!

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A Dermot says...
7:02pm Mon 18 Feb 13

Nigel Holdcroft should congratulate his Government for Housing Benefit reforms that means Council's in expensive rental areas dump their unemployed onto cheaper areas outside London.

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reptile says...
7:07pm Mon 18 Feb 13

DannyK86 wrote:
barneydrop wrote:
It's the Bulgarians, who will be allowed in soon, that Southend should be worrying about.
Bulgarians are fine - at least most of them will want to work, contribute to the economy and they're not that culturally different - much like the Poles. Plus the women are hot! Better to have Bulgarians than Somalis...
---and such cute moustaches!

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Nebs says...
7:11pm Mon 18 Feb 13

That Nirvana development along the seafront still has a few empty flats waiting for occupants.

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GentleGiant says...
7:28pm Mon 18 Feb 13

I bet that agent drives over the pavement to park his vehicle there! lol

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GrumpyofLeigh says...
7:36pm Mon 18 Feb 13

Good thing they are to build a few beach huts at Shoebury (see concurrent story)

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perini says...
7:42pm Mon 18 Feb 13

GentleGiant wrote:
I bet that agent drives over the pavement to park his vehicle there! lol
Surely not - that would be illegal!

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jolllyboy says...
7:49pm Mon 18 Feb 13

Do as Harlow - only those who have lived in the borough for five years qualify for council housing. No-one with a criminal records either gets council housing.So far as Housing benefit goes find a way of a similar system.

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SpiffSpaffington1984 says...
8:19pm Mon 18 Feb 13

only if the locals are given pickup trucks & baseball bats to keep them all in check. they are just trying to make the city centres middle/upper class again as too many old snobby lords have been mugged and had their cars stolen now and finally made the government do something, that way they can dodge the immigration issue too, just protect the city centre from poor people and let the rest of the country turn into a slum like india or south africa, we all know its coming

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How-ironic says...
8:28pm Mon 18 Feb 13

Boyracer_1991 wrote:
Watch the crime rate rise through the roof even more in Southend!
So Basildon is quite a bit closer to London than Southend, but they would touch that sh'thole with the proverbial barge pole

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Born & bread says...
8:53pm Mon 18 Feb 13

mys842 wrote:
I fail those why the news story is about Southend. There are plenty of places before you get to Southend where the property prices and rents are lower, take Canvey, Basildon, Tilbury, Grays etc. they're also closer to their old homes!
Are you for real? Even the Bulgarians know these places are sh1tholes. They would much prefer to live by the sea.

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Local yachtsman says...
9:03pm Mon 18 Feb 13

"Council leader Nigel Holdcroft said: “Our officers are liaising with London local authorities to avoid this happening. We would certainly be opposed to any relocation of peole to Southend".
That's funny, it wasn't so long ago that Southend Council were actively encouraging people from Islington to move to Southend, there was a huge billboard in the middle of Islington saying just that.
At this rate Southend will soon be an extension of east London, with similar crime rates etc, if it isn't already. Thanks Nigel, not.

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John T Pharro says...
9:07pm Mon 18 Feb 13

BASILBRUSH wrote:
This is nothing more than Daily Mail style scaremongering.
The incentives for Landlords maybe there, but that doesnt mean the landlords want them, or that the families actually want to move here.

Barneydrop do you actually think the Bulgarians want to come here?
Even the most oppressed Bulgarians would rather stay put in their slums than come to a strange country to be treated as second class citizens.
Were the "Daily Mail " "scaremongering" when the Poles and Czechs came in their hundreds of thousands? Suggest you watch the documentary on Boston aired recently by Auntie BBC. The Poles have a far better life style in their own country than Bulgarians so why are they still here?

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EssexBoy1968 says...
9:11pm Mon 18 Feb 13

From what I have read elsewhere one of the major problems is the increase in housing benefit claimants per se. This is due to the fact that central government give an allowance of most of the cost of this benefit to local councils based on figures collated from sources such as the census. If the number of claimants increases after the allowance has been decided on or paid out, my understanding is that the council is left to sort it out for themselves, although they can appeal to central government for additional funding. With the decrerase in the funds made available to local councils, it would seem that the only answer to a larger number of housing benefit claimants will be to reduce the benefit paid out to those of working age. A good idea would be for the councils which encourage their residents to move to pay the benefit to the new area, but that won't happen....

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mcnasty says...
10:12pm Mon 18 Feb 13

SUFC are playing Leyton Orient on Wednesday night so you can expect several thousand East Londoners in town.

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BASILBRUSH says...
10:21pm Mon 18 Feb 13

John T Pharro wrote:
BASILBRUSH wrote:
This is nothing more than Daily Mail style scaremongering.
The incentives for Landlords maybe there, but that doesnt mean the landlords want them, or that the families actually want to move here.

Barneydrop do you actually think the Bulgarians want to come here?
Even the most oppressed Bulgarians would rather stay put in their slums than come to a strange country to be treated as second class citizens.
Were the "Daily Mail " "scaremongering" when the Poles and Czechs came in their hundreds of thousands? Suggest you watch the documentary on Boston aired recently by Auntie BBC. The Poles have a far better life style in their own country than Bulgarians so why are they still here?
And the Czechs and Poles left again in their hundreds and thousands too, just as the 'british' leave to other countries.

I bet France and Italy would love to have the 'problems' we have in the UK with immigration.

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billericay boy says...
10:23pm Mon 18 Feb 13

Billericay is full and the way you can tell is the houses have shiny red roofs with sola panels on them, they are rife round my area and I'm paying for it...

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ORACUS says...
4:36am Tue 19 Feb 13

Great so the reason they cant afford their rent is because their unemployed so they can come here where there’s job a plenty.
Of course the real problem is Eastern Europe and EU treaty rights the right to live and work in another EU member state.
A treaty that should have resulted in a fair exchange of peoples from one county to another not the emptying of some into the rest.
It is clear to anyone that the treaty isn’t working and were all paying the price.
I think the reason our government doesn’t do its duty is because many MP receive donations from business people and they want the door to limitless cheap labour firmly wedged open.

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apapa palm says...
6:52am Tue 19 Feb 13

Lame words from a conservative ... the landlords with empty properties are rubbing their hands. So are the council . Be prepared

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smiffy1980 says...
8:51am Tue 19 Feb 13

Was always going to happen wasnt it ?. Same happened in the lates 70's/early 80's. Alot of londoners move out to essex . I would guess alot of people on here parents/gandparents all originate from London and moved out "for a better life".

The influx from EU countries is another story and it will be interesting to see what happens. As people are saying, most likely crime will increase (if thats possible) and jobs will be taken by people willing to work for less.

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jayman says...
10:27am Tue 19 Feb 13

southend-on-sea. A town run by letting agents and Tories.

southends Tory cabinet are giving out about a central Tory government policy! Thousands of good, hard working people (contrary to daily mail, right wing hate mongering) are being displaced from their London homes because landlords and letting agents remain largely unregulated in how much can be collected for rent.

The only thing southends Tories are concerned with is the potential house price decreases that will come according to their daily mail 'thought masters'

If you want someone to blame you need look no further then David Cameron! Instead of regulating the landlords he has chosen to punish the tenants..

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SpeekinMyBranes says...
11:37am Tue 19 Feb 13

this post will probably be deleted. . open your eyes people! the pc nazis are getting away scott free. we must get rid of them. what a tragedy!!!

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Audioman says...
12:00pm Tue 19 Feb 13

Who in there right mind would want to live in South End at all.

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DonaldUnpleasance says...
12:19pm Tue 19 Feb 13

When has Southend not faced an "influx" of people from London Boroughs? Anyway no doubt it'll be a right royal cockney knees-up when they unload their chattels from their charabancs! Wot no eels!!

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SpeekinMyBranes says...
12:46pm Tue 19 Feb 13

this is just typical here come the pc brigad and the nanny stat e guardian readers are lining their pockest because our cultuer has been emasculated it s time we abolish tax sad but true

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Sir Peter Pantsless the 3rd says...
1:27pm Tue 19 Feb 13

I honestly dont know what all the fuss is about.
Southend's tory council will know what to do!
They'll do what's best for the people they represent, you know the boroughs residents, the electorate, etc.
Oh, sorry, that's not what i meant at all!, what i meant was..
Southend's tory council will do what best for Southend's tory councils coffers!
.
Remember peeps "It's not what SBC can do for you, it's what you can do for SBC!"
.
The good ole tory ethos "Make the quick buck, and don't worry about the consequences!"
.
And besides, Holdcroft, Tinlin and posse must all be fast approaching their golden handshake, early retirement etc, Do you think for one minute any of them will be hanging around to spend their days reclining amongst Annie's dead palm trees in a town theyve systematically decimated!
.
I am in no uncertain doubt that Southend council will fail us again.

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Carnabackable says...
5:11pm Tue 19 Feb 13

At least they won't be moving into Rayleigh, far too upmarket for them, though Canvey might feel like home...

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Seasider90 says...
7:28pm Tue 19 Feb 13

All you dumb idiots. You won't know what's hit you when Bulgarians and Romanians come flooding in. Are you all too stupid to believe they haven't noticed our ridiculous benefits system? Large families will be licking their lips at the housing, the cash in their pockets far better than their own country and free health service. So our schoolkids will suffer and you'll have to wait longer in NHS waiting queues. You mugs voted for the main parties who are slaves to the EU - just don't moan when it all kicks off next year. Oh and a vision of the future? Look at the German cities where these immigrants have already settled and the crime rates have gone through the roof. The English - soon to be a minority in your town.

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whateverhappened says...
7:27am Wed 20 Feb 13

John T Pharro wrote:
BASILBRUSH wrote: This is nothing more than Daily Mail style scaremongering. The incentives for Landlords maybe there, but that doesnt mean the landlords want them, or that the families actually want to move here. Barneydrop do you actually think the Bulgarians want to come here? Even the most oppressed Bulgarians would rather stay put in their slums than come to a strange country to be treated as second class citizens.
Were the "Daily Mail " "scaremongering" when the Poles and Czechs came in their hundreds of thousands? Suggest you watch the documentary on Boston aired recently by Auntie BBC. The Poles have a far better life style in their own country than Bulgarians so why are they still here?
The system we have means not all the family need to come here, just a couple who then register as self employed selling the big issue. This then allows them to claim benefits which are sent home, working tax credits, child benefits and whatever else is out there that everyone apart from seems to be entiltled to....
With regard to the poles (i know many and have friends amongs them) the women cannot believe we think of their men as hard working they think of them as useless lazy drunks, yet i still find them more use than our tradesmen.

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pembury53 says...
8:12am Wed 20 Feb 13

Seasider90 wrote:
All you dumb idiots. You won't know what's hit you when Bulgarians and Romanians come flooding in. Are you all too stupid to believe they haven't noticed our ridiculous benefits system? Large families will be licking their lips at the housing, the cash in their pockets far better than their own country and free health service. So our schoolkids will suffer and you'll have to wait longer in NHS waiting queues. You mugs voted for the main parties who are slaves to the EU - just don't moan when it all kicks off next year. Oh and a vision of the future? Look at the German cities where these immigrants have already settled and the crime rates have gone through the roof. The English - soon to be a minority in your town.
Your 100% correct, so were not all dumb...
The vision of southend in the future is basically what some London outer boroughs are now... there is no hope of reversing this tragedy as the birth rates of the immigrant cultures is 4 or 5 times what is typical for the english.... Our only influence is through the ballot box, but frankly its difficult to know where to turn to, although as i said, probably beyond repair now anyway... very depressing !

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SpeekinMyBranes says...
8:27am Wed 20 Feb 13

Sad but true, I have been realising over the past few years that migrants are introducing more stealth taxes, All Englishmen should leave the country., Im voting BNP in the next election, its the sensible choice!!!

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howroyd says...
5:36pm Wed 20 Feb 13

BASILBRUSH wrote:
This is nothing more than Daily Mail style scaremongering.
The incentives for Landlords maybe there, but that doesnt mean the landlords want them, or that the families actually want to move here.

Barneydrop do you actually think the Bulgarians want to come here?
Even the most oppressed Bulgarians would rather stay put in their slums than come to a strange country to be treated as second class citizens.
THAT'S ABSOLUTE RUBBISH BASIL BRUSH AND IF ONLY THAT WERE TRUE, OF COURSE THEY WANT TO COME HERE. WHAT CLASS CITIZENS DO YOU THINK THEY ARE IN BULGARIA.

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Pat 1955 says...
6:14pm Wed 20 Feb 13

I'm horrifed. We are talking of current residents of Camden, mainly foreigners then? Why have they got to come here? They should be dispatched up North. I think these London councils are making room for the Bulgarian/Rumanian influx in January. Its disgraceful. When is someone in authority going to grow a spine and say NO, ...No to the Eastern Europeans, and NO to the overspill from London. Why are the people in our area not asked first? I cannot believe the change in this area in the 25 years Ive lived here, its frightening. We have a weak Government and weak councils !!

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Ironman says...
8:28pm Wed 20 Feb 13

I see Slimey Dave is in India, nbow, schmoozing them to send more students over here so that they can then go back educated and improve their homeland. Yeah right.
It will all end in tears. We are an island with finite resources which are being stretched to the limit.
Not long now!

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disenfranchisedpast says...
1:14pm Thu 21 Feb 13

howroyd wrote:
BASILBRUSH wrote:
This is nothing more than Daily Mail style scaremongering.
The incentives for Landlords maybe there, but that doesnt mean the landlords want them, or that the families actually want to move here.

Barneydrop do you actually think the Bulgarians want to come here?
Even the most oppressed Bulgarians would rather stay put in their slums than come to a strange country to be treated as second class citizens.
THAT'S ABSOLUTE RUBBISH BASIL BRUSH AND IF ONLY THAT WERE TRUE, OF COURSE THEY WANT TO COME HERE. WHAT CLASS CITIZENS DO YOU THINK THEY ARE IN BULGARIA.
So many capital letters, this mans reasoning must surely be sound!

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RICH:;CAROL says...
9:46am Fri 22 Feb 13

I dont think people really know about Bulgarians. We had a holiday home in Nesebar in the late 80s . Nice property but we couldnt own the land it sat on only the building. It was always a bit dangerous there as it is everywhere throughout Bulgaria. The Bulgarians we got to know many of them well as for 5 years we made many trips there and stayed for weeks at at time.

The young Bulgarians boys and girls always carried a knife, not just a few thats everyone of them as it was part of their culture. Prostitution is rife and thats organised there are no prostitutes that work for themselves. Young kids are taught how to beg steal and rob and take it from me they are premier division. Drug dealers are also rife and its organised better than the yardis here in the uk. We had to sell our property as it got far too dangerous there as we were broken into 4 times in 14 months.

The Bulgarians are far worse than than anything we've even seen in the UK and they are very racist people and hate black people with vengeance , so they will have fun here in the uk.

We got educated there as you all know my husband was a regional crime squad police officer here in the uk and he always said to everyone "These Bulgarian people are top of the range Parasites and criminals" Dont worry now about the Africans, or Jamaicans in the UK and we are lucky we havnt got these people here. we are now going to take the top of the range criminals. They know every trick in the book and i mean every trick and the frightening thing is, they dont care about anything.

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RICH:;CAROL says...
11:39am Fri 22 Feb 13

SpeekinMyBranes wrote:
Sad but true, I have been realising over the past few years that migrants are introducing more stealth taxes, All Englishmen should leave the country., Im voting BNP in the next election, its the sensible choice!!!
Cant agree with you as BNP are a racist party so I couldnt vote for them. Of course everyone agrees there's too many foreigners in the uk and it must be stopped NOW . But BNP are not a choice I could make. I will decide at the next election who I feel will save our country but it wont be bnp.

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