Blatant "double dipping".And the rent the council pays out covers the maintenance on the house the landlord owns.
Triple cost to us taxpayers.
The rent paid covers the agreed price for provision of services<period>. Out of tbe agreed payment, the provider of the service pays his costs and if they got ut right keaves some profit left over.
When you go to buy a pair of shoes, do you object to paying for maintenance of tbe shop ? Do you get an itemised bill that shows wholesale cost of shoes, share of staff costs, share of utility bills, etc. ?
No, you get a bill that shows the agreed price for the shoes and how that cost breaks down is neither visible nor any concern of yours.
Put a different way.
Suppose there are two identical houses, both privately owned, both bought by the current owners at market prices, both rented to the council for the same rent.
Please explain why you think the council is paying more for one that decades ago used to belong to the council than for the one that was never council owned ?
Thst some previous owner got a good deal way back in the past is irrelevant to the current economics of keeping the properties in good order.