Labour in power will “rebuild Britain from the ground up”, Nandy to declare

Lisa Nandy will declare that the next Labour government will “rebuild Britain from the ground up” in a speech in which she will set out plans for a “great rebalancing of power” across the country.

In speech to conference on Monday afternoon, the Shadow Levelling Up Secretary is expected to say: “The people of our country are our great untapped asset.

“Labour will tilt the balance of power back in their favour, so those with skin in the game, who are in it for the long haul, will feel the whole system pulling in behind them. That is how you grow the economy.”

She will tell delegates: “It will be about the real wealth creators – the women and men who work in our shops, who drive our buses, who deliver our mail, who produce our food, who care for our families and teach our children – who make sure we have what we need to live every day of our lives.”

Nandy is expected to compare the UK economy to a “jet flying on one engine” and pledge to get the country firing on all cylinders by “building a country where everyone can contribute and everyone has a stake in our future”.

The Labour frontbencher will reiterates the party’s plans to invest in creating well-paid jobs in industrial and coastal towns and to introduce “radical new powers” for local leaders and communities.

She will also detail proposals to build a new generation of council housing, rebalance home ownership towards first-time buyers and introduce reforms to empower people in the private rented sector.

Nandy is expected to declare that tackling the housing crisis is central to growth and giving people a stake in society and the opportunity to contribute.

She will say: “For private renters, we will tilt the balance of power back to you through a powerful new renters’ charter and a new decent homes standard – written into law.

“Because security in your home, the right to make your home your own, and most of all the right to live in a home that isn’t cold, mouldy, damp, unfit for human habitation, is a fundamental human right.”

Labour will pledge to introduce a white paper to make renting fairer, more secure and more affordable within the first 100 days of being elected into government.

The white paper will set out how longer-term tenancies will become the norm, and the party will consult on its proposals with landlord and tenant groups on how best to stabilise rent increases within tenancies.

The plan will seek to give tenants more choice and control over their homes, including ending automatic evictions for rent arrears, scrapping section 21 no-fault evictions and introducing a national register of landlords.

Labour plans to “significantly boost” the building of council homes and reform purchasing rules to “rebalance power between developers and communities and bring in a new generation of council house building”.

The opposition’s housing plan will look to “rebalance the market towards first-time buyers and working families” by working with lenders to introduce a system where meeting rent payments will be included in mortgage affordability tests.

The party will expand new models of sub-market home ownership, including shared, discounted ownership and community-led and cooperative models of ownership.