Building a recovery in the New Year will be impeded by NIMBY’s charter

By Chris Williamson MP

Research released on Monday revealed that building the homes required to meet the government’s own projections of need would mean £1.2 billion of investment annually across the country and the creation of over 216,000 jobs.

The Home Builders Federation’s report, ‘Reconstructing Our Regions’, outlined the clear economic benefits of meeting housing need and tackling the housing crisis.

The report analysed the potential impact of the government’s New Homes Bonus incentive to local communities. It outlines the upturn in employment in housing construction that would be seen if local areas build the homes needed to meet the government household projections over the next two decades.

It comes as the housing crisis worsens; the last 12 months saw the lowest number of homes built since 1924 and almost five million people on waiting lists for social housing. It also saw a record low number of first time buyers, with more and more people in their 30s staying with their parents. In fact nearly a third of men and a fifth of women aged 20-34 now living with their parents, there is clearly a massive need for a major house building programme

Meanwhile local authorities have seen their funding cut severely – by 27% over the next four years – and unemployment is heading towards three million. All this demonstrates the importance of new house building for all communities and local economies across the country.

The only problem is the ConDem coalition’s policies will make it virtually impossible to deliver the new houses people desperately need. The abolition of regional housing targets could see even fewer houses being built because it amounts to a NIMBY’s charter.

But HBF Executive Chairman, Stewart Baseley, says:

“Building houses is a win-win for communities across the country. Not only will families get the homes they need but local employment and increased investment will be boosted.”

“Economic growth is fundamental to a successful recovery and housing has a huge role to play.”

I agree with him, but I’m afraid his upbeat assessment of the economic and social benefits of a major new house building programme will be ignored by the ConDem coalition.

In my view, there is little hope of a housing renaissance unless and until Labour is returned to government. The decision by Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Local Government and Communities, to scrap the Regional Spatial Strategies has already led to local authorities ditching plans for thousands of new homes.

The much vaunted ‘New Homes Bonus’ isn’t fit for purpose and will do little if anything to address the NIMBY’s charter that Eric Pickles has created. But Housing Minister Grant Shapps claims this government will build more houses in every year than Labour achieved.

They need to be held to account when their overblown assertions fail to materialise.