Prime Minister David Cameron gave a strong hint that indefinite secure council house tenancies may be a key target for review.
His comments suggest that the Government may introduce "fixed period" tenancies to avoid ongoing occupation of social housing by people who are considered to no longer to have the need for it.
His made the comments at a public forum in Birmingham when responding to a mother of two teenagers, who told him she had slept on a blow-up bed for two years because her council could provide her with a larger home.
Mr Cameron replied:
"Your need has got greater and yet there isn't really the opportunity to move.
"At the moment we have a system very much where, if you get a council house or an affordable house, it is yours forever. And actually it ought to be about need.
"There is a question mark about whether, in future, should we be asking, when you are given a council home, is it for a fixed period, because maybe in five or ten years you will be doing a different job and be better paid and you won't need that home, you will be able to go into the private sector."
Mr Cameron conceded that an attempt to reform the system would cause "a big argument" but was necessary. He said:
"Looking at a more flexible system I think makes sense."
He also said that any changes would not, however, apply to people already in social housing. The Conservatives pledged in their general election manifesto to protect the rights of existing tenants.
Whilst the Prime Minister can claim that his remarks only reflect options being considered, it will be widely felt that 'there is no smoke without fire' and the fundamental concepts of secure public sector tenancies and the right to succeed are under serious threat.