NHF ready to partner with new government

NHF ready to partner with new government



The National Housing Federation (NHF) has welcomed the ‘Building More Homes’ report by the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee.


The report was released last Friday (15th July) and claims that the demand for housing in England can be attributed to: ‘A growing population, rising immigration and rising incomes.’ Some the recommendations and conclusions made were:

  • 300,000 new homes are needed annually for the foreseeable future. One million homes by 2020 will not be enough
  • The government must recognise the inability of the private sector, as currently incentivised, to build the number of homes needed
  • Local authorities should be able to borrow to build social housing as they can for other purposes
  • A senior Cabinet minister must be given overall responsibility for identifying and coordinating the release of public land for housing.

The full list can be viewed in the official report.

Rachel Fisher, head of policy at the NHF, said: “We are delighted that today’s report takes on board many of the suggestions we made in our submission, and we welcome its recommendations.

“It highlights the vital importance of housing associations in delivering the new homes the country desperately needs – something that simply cannot be achieved by the private sector alone.

"Designating responsibility for releasing public land for housing to a senior Cabinet minister would help maintain focus on delivering results.

“Relaxing the requirement to achieve best market value would also help achieve best social value and provide more affordable homes.

“Giving housing associations the flexibility to build homes for affordable rent as well as for sale is crucial to providing the uplift in supply that is needed.

"We are ready to partner with the new government to deliver the homes this country needs, and our Brexit conference on Tuesday (19 July) will be a key moment for the sector to clarify how we can step up and continue their vital work in boosting the nation’s housing supply."

 



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