Up to a million people in social housing, including those on council estates, should be expected to actively seek work as a condition of their tenancy, the new housing minister, Caroline Flint, proposes today.
In her first interview since becoming housing minister, Flint told the Guardian that unemployed tenants should also undertake skills audits.
The pockets of joblessness that exist in council house areas would also be tackled by opening up more jobcentres, some run by the private sector, on the estates themselves.
She admitted she was surprised by figures showing that more than half of those of working age living in social housing are without paid work - twice the national average. Nearly three quarters of social tenants under 25 are unemployed.
The new "commitment contracts" would initially apply to new council tenants, Flint said, but could be extended to existing tenants.
It is thought to be the first time the government has proposed making a traditional social housing tenancy conditional on seeking work. However, the prime minister, Gordon Brown, has committed to a radical welfare reform package, including greater use of the private sector.
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http://politics.guardian.co.uk/homeaffairs/story/0,,2252563,00.html