REPAIRS and maintenance to Winchester council housing could be hit by plans to cut rent for  tenants, councillors were warned as they looked to close a £2 million deficit.

Government plans to cut social rents by one per cent have forced Winchester City Council to find ways of slimming its housing budget.

Tenants may have to wait longer for repairs to kitchens, bathrooms and other fittings, a meeting heard on Monday, although "core" services will be protected.

Labour leader Cllr Janet Berry, herself a council tenant, told cabinet housing committee: "There's not only going to be consequences for the quality of the stock, repairs and whether we can build more council homes but also, long term, a threat to jobs at the council."

The council says just under half of Winchester tenants will benefit from the rent reduction, as those in temporary, sheltered or extra care housing are expected to be exempt.

The move will create a local shortfall of at least £1.35 million per year from 2019/20.

Lib Dem councillor Jamie Scott, also a tenant and an outspoken critic of the government plans, said: "Will the tenants know that even though they get an extra pound in their pocket per week for the next four years, do they really know effects of this one per cent reduction?

"It's going to have massive implications and I hope tenants realise that. Is it a good thing? No, it's not a good thing."

Cllr James Byrnes, Conservative portfolio holder for local economy, said: "I'm not a council tenant, but as a taxpayer I welcome any plan that takes money out of the pocket of local or national government and puts it back in my pocket.

"It foists upon us an opportunity to be more bold and to be more innovative."

It comes after opposition councillors accused the government of "daylight robbery" of council houses by forcing sales to fund an extended Right to Buy.

This and other parts of the Housing Bill will not significantly damage the council budget, Bob Gath, heading of housing finance, told the meeting on Monday.

David Chafe, chairman of Tenants and Council Together, said tenants at a recent meeting were "understanding of the situation and understood that the council was doing what they could for the benefit of all."

Richard Botham, assistant director for housing, said 86 per cent of tenants in the district feel their service is "extremely good".