As the government prepares to unveil its long awaited White Paper Ministers have warned the housing market in England is broken
Ministers have admitted the housing market in England is “broken”. The statement has been made ahead of the highly anticipated (and delayed) Housing White Paper that is to be presented today.
The Housing White Paper will set out the strategy to get more homes built, including more affordable properties. It is expected the government will outline a new housing strategy that will force councils to plan for their own local housing needs. Powers will also be given to enable councils to pressure developers to start building on land they own.
250,000 new homes needed each year
The country is currently facing a significant housing crisis, with some 250,000 new homes needed each year to meet demand. Communities Secretary Sajid Javid will present his Housing White Paper during a statement to MPs, and is expected to outline measures to boost housing provision. This will include pushing developers to avoid “low density” housing where the availability of land is in short supply; reducing the time between planning permission and the start of construction from three to two years; and a new £3bn fund aimed at helping smaller building firms compete with major developers.
Furthermore a life time ISA will be launched to help first-time buyers save for a deposit.
Green belt will also be protected, with building only allowed “in exceptional circumstances”.
The Campaign to Protect Rural England’s chief executive Shaun Spiers said this was good news, but did little to protect land already earmarked: “We are pleased that ministers have recognised that weakening the Green Belt is unnecessary.
“But with 360,000 houses already proposed for green belt land the government needs to do much more to uphold national policy and stop councils releasing it for development.”
Starter Homes to affordable agenda
Javid is also set to outline that starter homes will be aimed at “households that need them most”. This will cover those with a combined income of less than £80,000 (£90,000 in London). Starter homes will also take more of a back seat, with the focus to shift from this to “a wider range of affordable housing”.
Javid will say: “Walk down your local high street today and there’s one sight you’re almost certain to see.
“Young people, faces pressed against the estate agent’s window, trying and failing to find a home they can afford.
“With prices continuing to skyrocket, if we don’t act now, a whole generation could be left behind. We need to do better, and that means tackling the failures at every point in the system.
“The housing market in this country is broken and the solution means building many more houses in the places that people want to live.”
Barrier to social progression
The cost of housing, Javid said, was the “greatest barrier to social progress in Britain today”. He also admitted the government is behind schedule to build one million new homes by 2020.
Labour’s shadow housing minister John Healey said: “The measures announced so far in Theresa May’s long-promised housing white paper are feeble beyond belief.
“After seven years of failure and 1,000 housing announcements, the housing crisis is getting worse not better.”
