Shadow chancellor Ed Balls has vowed that a Labour government will build new homes on a scale “not seen for decades”.
He promised there would be a “step change in housing supply”. Housing would be at the centre of a Labour administration’s economic policy.
However, Balls also admitted that the last Labour government failed to deliver enough new homes, saying: “We should have done more … we did not move quickly enough.”
Speaking at the NHBC annual lunch, he said that house building would be a priority for a new Labour government.
Labour would build at least 200,000 new homes each and every year between 2015 and 2020, and there would be a wave of new garden cities and new towns.
He said that local people would have to play their part and although he did not use the words “nimbyism” or “compulsory purchase”, they were implied.
Balls made it clear that local communities would have to adopt a positive stance towards house building.
He said: “Every community in every part of the country will have to play their part to realise that ambition [of building 200,000 new homes a year].
“Local authorities will have to come to the fore to identity sites for new towns and garden cities.”
He also said development corporations would be revived as vehicles to build new towns, and would be given strong, devolved powers.
For example, they would have the right to use revenue from business rates to finance investment, and would have powers to acquire and assemble land.
He said: "We should draw on the lessons from the past of how the new towns were developed after the second world war by development corporations, which had the powers to acquire, own, manage and dispose of land and property; undertake building operation; provide public utilities; and do anything else necessary to develop the new town.
“These corporations generated revenue by selling land and housing, receiving rental income and receiving commercial income. However, they needed upfront funding to build the infrastructure and housing which could later be sold at a profit.”
He went on: “We cannot afford to dither any longer, and I cannot see a stronger case for the full-throated backing of the chancellor than a step change in housing supply.
“Unless we build more affordable homes, house prices relative to earnings will remain high, houses will remain unaffordable, and many people will never realise their dream of owning their own home.”
Balls also announced that Labour has asked Sir John Armit to draw up a report on how a new National Infrastructure Commission could be brought into being.
Comments
Hi Peebee,
Governments used to pay for houses to be built,
Balls doesn't mention whether these new homes will be paid for by private companies or the government, but they will be planned by development corporations
"...neither labour or the conservatives built enough houses..." I still stand by that comment as none is quite clearly not enough.
I am no house builder but I would hazard a guess that when building your average 3 bed semi, the land costs the private house builders more than the material.
The government owns a lot of land the Forestry Commission owns 2.6 million acres and the Ministry of Defence a further 560,000 acres.....building on that would mean it can ensure houses are cheaper than Barratt... Wimpey... Persimmon et al. but will it?
One would be an Astronaut.
S A Longden: "Oh yes, we just long to build even more houses, not for our own, but for the endless immigrants..."
That's REALLY rich coming from someone whose family name comes from GERMAN ancestry...
Face fact - we are ALL 'mutts'.
Live with it - or move to Jupiter.
Oh... but then you'd be an IMMIGRANT.
From the story body:
"Labour would build at least 200,000 new homes each and every year between 2015 and 2020..."
From the comments:
"...neither labour or the conservatives built enough houses..."
When will people wake up to this - GOVERNMENTS DO NOT BUILD HOMES!!
These are not 'council houses' - these are the Barratts... Wimpeys... Persimmon, etc developer homes that, in order to BE built, need to have buyers present in sufficient quantities to satisfy the supply. The two HAVE to equate.
I won't bore with the specifics but costs to build IS at an all-time high - and over the next seven years it will escalate dramatically... putting yet more upward pressure on prices... shrinking the 'pool' of buyers...
To the person who posted "Why is no one looking at the 710,000 empty homes that are in the UK.":
Ask yourself this:
Why are they currently empty?
I doubt most agents care if more houses are built since there's not much in it for them now that builders can reach the public direct via the property portals and have been liberated from the need to use an estate agent to market their wares.
Why is no one looking at the 710,000 empty homes that are in the UK.
Surely this would be a cracking place to start, whilst the politicians, local governments and residents argue the toss of where to put 1million homes over the next 5 years.
Yes neither labour or the conservatives built enough houses but I don't understand the political posturing of these posts below do you want more houses built or not.
I thought having more properties to sell was a good thing for EA's but perhaps the posters are not EA's
In that case If your answer is no do you mind taking in the homeless/low income earners/economic migrants to help.
Perhaps you would prefer a one child family rule like China, and for us to come out of the EU to reduce the need for shelter.
Oh yes, we just long to build even more houses, not for our own, but for the endless immigrants, and will be just delighted when all our green fields are gone and life is one busy urban thoroughfare through tenement city.
"He said: “Every community in every part of the country will have to play their part to realise that ambition [of building 200,000 new homes a year]."
In other words your government has cocked up over so many years that unless you help us put it right, you are the ones who will suffer.
200,000 new homes per year for 5 years, compulsory purchase orders, new garden cities and new towns, sounds lovely can't wait.
I wonder if they'll include concrete cows?
Dear Mr Balls
Whose Government borrowed so much money over so many years to artificially keep Britain out of world recession only to create a 5 year (and counting) recession all of our very own?
How much exactly did it cost the country to buy the votes of the great unwashed, allowing them to sit on their sofas watching Jeremy Kyle on their 42" tellies bought with cheap unsecured credit?
Three and a half years is not long enough for us to forget everything you and your chums did to Great Britain so please stop with these weekly press release electioneering that simply irritate anyone with a memory longer than that of a goldfish.